Year in and year out WWE always seem to be trying new pay-per-view concepts in order to try and re-invent themselves. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't, but usually you can tell in the days following the event whether or not the WWE Universe enjoyed themselves.
It's very rare that you get a new idea that people love, but sometimes fans can be a tad too harsh towards these shows.
Take Capitol Punishment for example. The show was held in Washington D.C, and as such, there was a very presidential theme to the pay-per-view. You had Obama lookalikes, red white and blue ropes and a number of different nods towards the United States of America. Unfortunately, a lot of people didn't take too kindly to the idea.
It received a lot of negative reviews and to this day people tend to look back on it with a frown rather than a smile, but there are definitely some positives that can be drawn from it.
If nothing else, WWE tried something that was a bit different and felt unique, which is something they can sometimes be criticised for not doing. Make up your minds, WWE Universe.
So with that being said, let's look at five reasons why Capitol Punishment was actually a decent PPV.
#1 Set
Everything about this pay-per-view felt different. Back in 2011, we were still in the age where WWE put some serious effort into their set and staging, which ended up making Capitol Punishment about ten times better.
The scene of superstars coming down the ramp in front of a version of the White House was really fascinating, and it played into the presidential idea brilliantly.
Also read: Eyes on #1...Capitol Punishment [2011]
It made this feel more than a B-show and whilst we all know that's exactly what it was, there was still enough effort put in by WWE to make it feel important.
It fit the location of Washington D.C and the theme was evident throughout the night, which is something you don't see nowadays as the company don't put much focus into the little details as often.
Onto a specific matchup that gave us a look into the future.
#2 Randy Orton vs. Christian
The feud between Randy Orton and Christian was a really strong one over the summer of 2011, and at Capitol Punishment they added yet another fine chapter to their story.
It was a solid match with Captain Charisma being desperate to reclaim the gold that he had lost to The Apex Predator, and the psychology between the two was pretty strong throughout.
Then you had the finish, and while it did come out of nowhere it ensured that we'd see the story continue on for another month at the very least. With Christian getting his foot under the rope it was clear a long term story was being told, with Orton's anger slowly starting to get the better of him.
This would lead to the explosive bout at Money in the Bank before we finished up at SummerSlam, and the match here played an important role in progressing all of that.
We move from a match to the start of a very special storyline.
#3 Punk's beginnings
When it was announced that CM Punk would face Rey Mysterio at Capitol Punishment, people were relatively excited about it.
They'd had numerous good matches in the past and possessed a great chemistry together, but for the most part, it was just another bout on the card. That was, until, Punk's pre-match promo started to get people talking.
Punk hinted that after defeating Rey he would go on to do something big, with members of the WWE Universe questioning exactly what it may be.
Of course, as we all know now it was the legendary Summer of Punk angle, and the fact that the seeds were planted here shows that WWE have the potential to book storylines in a smart way. This was subtle but important enough to the point where the internet couldn't stop talking about it.
Onto another superstar's supposed rise in the company.
#4 Alex Riley's rise
Back in 2011, Alex Riley was one of the hottest babyfaces in professional wrestling. Following his split from mentor The Miz, Riley began to form his own path to success which started at Capitol Punishment.
With the feud between the two former friends being so fresh, many people were expecting Miz to pick up the win here, but Riley surprised a lot of people and defeated The Awesome One.
But it wasn't just his win that was important here. The second Riley's entrance music hit you could hear a notable pop from the crowd, and it showed that the WWE may well have had a star on their hands.
Unfortunately, as we all know things didn't work out for various reasons, but at the time this was a huge moment and the build towards the feud and match was handled really well.
We conclude with a one-time main eventer that had his 15 minutes of fame.
#5 R-Truth's conspiracy
"It's a conspiracy!" R-Truth would shout, over and over again. It's funny how such a radical change in character can cause a superstar to become so much more interesting, isn't it?
Truth's heel turn was handled brilliantly in the build-up to Capitol Punishment, with the outlandish madman continually talking about there being a conspiracy within the WWE.
It was different and it was fresh, which is one of the reasons it was so compelling. The promos where the likes of Richard Nixon were referenced made it feel like this was the perfect pay-per-view for Truth to cease his moment.
Whilst he was unfortunately unsuccessful, the anticipation for the match was something that nobody could have expected.
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