WWE TLC 2013 Review: Fan's Experience from Inside Toyota Center

A throng of sullen kids filed out of the Toyota Center as WWE TLC 2013 ended with a newly crowned unified champion clutching gold in each hand.

On a crisp night in Houston, Tex., Randy Orton defeated John Cena to become "Champion of Champions." That bout capped a pay-per-view event that saw CM Punk defy the odds, AJ Lee retain her title and the tag-team division flourish.

The show delivered its share of drama despite not leaving the wake of twisted ladders fans have grown accustomed to. Heroes fell and heroes triumphed as a crowded arena watched on.

Who received the most passionate responses? Which matches had the audience most locked in?

The following is a look at the matches, the spectacle and the experience that was TLC from the view of seat 15 in section 116.

Before the Cameras Went on

Fans swarmed the Toyota Center entrances as the start of TLC neared. Doors were supposed to open at 5:30 p.m. CT. Instead, antsy WWE aficionados had to wait until just before the pre-show before security started to check tickets and inspect bags. 

The first of many "Yes!" chants began outside.

The energy pulsing through the crowd was more electric than it was for the recent SmackDowns that Houston has hosted. The promise of a unified champion and the special feel of a pay-per-view coming to town had fans showing up early, anticipation humming around the home of the Rockets.

Inside, Mick Foley, Booker T and The Miz prepped for their pre-show panel. Houston's own Booker T inspired fans to slip out their phones and click away.

The Daniel Bryan chants continued as the seats slowly filled. 

Ric Flair's famous "woo!" echoed through the Toyota Center as well. The dueling "Let's go Cena!" and "Cena sucks!" chants soon followed. It was as if the Houston audience was a group of singers warming up their voices.

Rick Achberger, better known as "Sign Guy," found his seat near ringside not far from a pair of young fans wearing the Libyan flag over their shoulders.

Fandango's music soon hit as the countdown to championship history began.

Biggest Pops

• John Cena
• Daniel Bryan
• CM Punk
• Rey Mysterio
• Vince McMahon

The love for Bryan was spread out throughout the event. Fans chanted his name in between matches, during his bursts of offense and while in line to go to the bathroom. Cena, on the other hand, spurred on the loudest, most concentrated response.

As he entered, the cheers, the boos and the squeals seemed to rattle the Toyota Center. 

Punk's pop wasn't far behind. Fans drowned out his entrance music when he came out to battle The Shield.

The audience showed Mysterio and McMahon a lot of love as well. McMahon's early appearance arriving in a limo had folks wondering aloud once the noise died down.

Several fans believed that McMahon's presence meant something momentous was coming in the main event, some of WWE's special brand of chaos set to complicate the final championship match.

Matches the Crowd Didn't Care for 

• Brodus Clay vs. R-Truth
• Kofi Kingston vs. Miz
• AJ Lee vs. Natalya

R-Truth's "What's Up?" song charged up the crowd. The match that followed diffused much of that charge.

Clay pounded on R-Truth in a largely one-sided bout. The big man's turn toward villainy, his increasingly merciless approach to wrestling was met with general disinterest and the occasional chant of "Boring!"

Those chants increased in intensity when Kingston battled The Miz. 

An altercation during the pre-show led to a No Disqualification match. Most fans at the event didn't see that scuffle between Kingston and Miz unless they were right under where the panel broadcast from. WWE didn't show video of that fight on the big screen.

What seemed to irk fans the most about Kingston and Miz was the lack of violence.

TLC had shown no usage of tables, ladders or chairs thus far, and the No Disqualification bout would seemingly change that. Even with the rulebook tossed out, Kingston and Miz didn't use the objects the pay-per-view is named after.

Chants of "We want tables!" went ignored.

The Divas Championship match didn't inspire any negative chants or have folks headed for nachos the way that Clay and R-Truth did. Still, the appreciation didn't match the excellence with the Natalya and AJ bout.

Fans welcomed both champion and challenger with modest applause. One young girl glared at AJ's bodyguard and said, "Tamina is just so mean."

AJ and Natalya used hard-hitting action, stellar dropkicks and drama born from the champion suffering in the Sharpshooter for so long to compose one of the night's better offerings. The crowd's energy was mostly underwhelming.

This kind of response to quality Divas action has one going back to an old "the chicken or the egg" argument. Are fans not engaged by Divas matches because WWE hasn't given that division enough focus or does WWE not give it any focus because fans just aren't into the female side of the roster?

Matches the Crowd Loved

• The Shield vs. CM Punk
• The Wyatt Family vs. Daniel Bryan
• Fatal 4-Way Tag Team Match
• John Cena vs. Randy Orton

Punk beating impossible odds opened the show. 

Fans roared at much of his offense. After he hit Seth Rollins with two neckbreakers in a row, the audience demanded a third. His match generated some of the most electric energy of the night.

When he avoided Roman Reigns' spear and picked up the surprise win, few seats remained occupied.

Diehard fans may have been grumbling at home about how the loss made The Shield looked weak, but the folks in the Toyota Center seemed to simply view it as a fun bout.

Bryan's handicap match was well received as well. The much slower pace made the experience a vastly different one, though.

Luke Harper, Bray Wyatt and Erick Rowan spent much of the contest pounding on Bryan. Whenever Bryan managed a short run of offense, the chanting began anew. This was the match that fans interacted with the most, following its ups and downs with sighs and screams.

Wyatt's spider-like walk created an unsettled feeling throughout the Toyota Center. "That was creepy!" chants followed that moment seemingly as a means for fans to shake off Wyatt's creepiness.

This is a great sign for Wyatt's future. The more he can unnerve fans in and out the ring, the higher he'll climb.

Bryan's handicap bout was the more realistic and Punk's was the more fun one.

Cody Rhodes and Goldust's successful title defense was an engaging blend of fun moments, drama and uncertainty. While battling Curtis Axel and Ryback, The Real Americans and Mysterio and Big Show, the tag champs' titles seemed in serious jeopardy several times over.

That's a huge part of why the bout earned the coveted "This is awesome!" chants.

Big Show chopping Axel had fans laughing and cringing simultaneously. Goldust's speedy offense impressed. Mysterio and Rhodes' final sequence, where they traded their best weapons, sucked the crowd in.

It's apparently going to take something major for Rhodes and Goldust to be dethroned. The more that WWE makes them look like strong champions, as it did at TLC, the more significant their eventual defeat will be.

As the main event approached, several fans kept reflecting on the tag-team match. Some were ready to proclaim it the best match of the night, assuming that Cena vs. Orton didn't overtake it.

TLC's final clash felt big.

There was a crackling energy when Cena and Orton entered, when the Unified Championship coronation was only minutes away. Orton's viciousness played well with the crowd. When he slunk around the ring with a steel chair in hand or yanked the equipment off the Spanish announce table, the Toyota Center audience seemed to hold its collective breath.

Every time he sent Orton crashing through a table, Cena's supporters rose. 

The desire to see Cena pull down both championship belts was obvious. Kids leaned forward in their seats. Fans in Cena T-shirts gasped.

It was not one of the more violent TLC matches in WWE history, as the many ladders around the ring remained unbent.

Still, Orton and Cena had the audience tied to their strings. When Orton handcuffed his foe in the corner, fans sucked in their breath. When both champions slugged it out atop the ladder, the ring rope hanging from Cena's wrist, energy churned throughout the arena.

With his longtime enemy lying awkwardly on the mat, his face pressed against a table, Orton claimed the championships.

The result stunned the crowd. Open jaws and wide eyes occupied much of the Toyota Center. Cena's biggest fans waited around for a few moments, even after The Authority congratulated Orton. Perhaps they were waiting for the result to somehow be overturned, for the hero to somehow win even after defeat.

Someone had bested Superman. Cena lost what WWE billed as its biggest match ever.

Stunned kids began their slow exit.

Houston, like many cities, is largely pro-Cena. He has his vocal detractors in Space City, but it was clear from the somber response to TLC's climax that Cenation is still a dominant force. 

What's next for Cena? Does he get a rematch or does Punk's huge victory earn him the No. 1 contender's spot? That will depend on what WWE has planned for the former champ at WrestleMania.

Should Cena be getting a shot at The Undertaker, he will walk away from the title picture for the moment, preparing for that match instead.

Final Thoughts

After his pre-show match, Ziggler stayed on the mat for a long time. Even with the cameras off him, the spotlight pointed elsewhere, "The Show Off" sold Fandango's diving leg drop like it was man's most devastating weapon.

It doesn't seem to matter what position on the card he lands; Ziggler will give everything every time.

Fans were in awe of Big E Langston.

His match may not have had them on their feet, but his power and explosiveness earned him plenty of oohs and aahs. His rise is sure to continue as WWE fans get better acquainted with him.

Cena's stranglehold on merchandise appears to be loosening. At other shows, the Toyota Center has been a sea of Cena gear. This time around, fans were dressed in an assortment of Superstar attire. Ziggler, Orton and Bryan had nearly as much support via T-shirts as "The Hustle, Loyalty and Respect Soldier." 

He still brings in the casual fans, however.

Often when fans asked their friends to clarify a rule or ask who the man in R-Truth's corner was, they were wearing a Cena T-shirt. This is why he remains on top in spite of the backlash from his detractors.

The WWE live experience is both superior and inferior to the one from the couch. Fans who buy a ticket don't get the benefit of hearing commentary. It's a struggle to hear backstage segments with fans screaming their appreciation. 

Beyond seeing small details like the crew tighten the ring between matches, a live event has the power of collective enjoyment. Being around like-minded folks who are just as crazy about the strange creature that is WWE makes the action even more thrilling.

The energy rumbling throughout the arena doesn't always travel through the cameras well. The same goes for the sound of chair hitting flesh. When Orton cracked Cena in the back with a steel chair, it echoed louder and felt more violent than it would sound on TV.

TLC 2013 gave critics ammunition by not leaning more on the broken furniture the event is famous for.

Still, the show's highlights were plentiful. AJ and Natalya rocked it in spite of a lack of fan enthusiasm. The tag-team match, Punk's surprising survival and the crowning of the unified champion made the price of admission more than worth it.

Try telling that to the young Cena fan with his head hanging and his feet dragging, though.