History Lesson: Unforgiven

UNFORGIVEN

Unforgiven has been held in September since the 1999 edition, originally being an “In Your House” event in April 1998. It became a Raw-only event in 2003, but opened itself to every brand in 2007. Much of the time, it has served as a “revenge” event to compliment SummerSlam, much like Backlash does for WrestleMania.

UNFORGIVEN: IN YOUR HOUSE 1998 – Sable vs. Luna Evening Gown match
In the WWE’s first ever Evening Gown match, Sable and Luna continued their fierce rivalry in what then was a pretty unconventional match. Luna had Goldust in her corner, while Sable was seemingly on her own, as her husband Marc Mero was too embarrassed to accompany her: (Match starts at 3:40.)

UNFORGIVEN 1999 – Chyna vs. Jeff Jarrett (w/ Miss Kitty) – Intercontinental Title match
Chyna and Jeff Jarrett faced off in an Intercontinental Title match, and with Miss Kitty and Debra in the mix, things were sure to go haywire. With an overturned decision and heavy referee involvement, this match was anything but ordinary:

UNFORGIVEN 1999 – Ivory vs. Luna – Hardcore match for the Women’s Title
Ivory defended her Women’s Championship against Luna in a kind of Hardcore match you never see these days – the ladies took brutal bumps as they tore through the backstage area, creating plenty of chaos along the way:

UNFORGIVEN 2002 – Molly Holly vs. Trish Stratus – Women’s Title match
Molly Holly was the reigning Women’s Champion, and resident underdog Trish Stratus looked to once again become Champion. Trish perfected her role as the underestimated challenger as Molly looked to remain a dominant champion and effective heel:

UNFORGIVEN 2003 – Trish Stratus & Lita vs. Molly Holly vs. Gail Kim – Women’s Title match
Relative newcomer Gail Kim had recently turned heel, and her hooking up with Molly Holly proved tough for Trish Stratus to handle. The two double-teamed Trish for weeks until Lita made her triumphant return from her neck injury, coming to Trish’s aid and setting up this match:

UNFORGIVEN 2004 – Trish Stratus vs. Victoria – Women’s Title match
Trish Stratus, now a heel, looked to successfully defend her Women’s Title against fan-favorite Victoria. Trish had Tyson Tomko by her side, so it was safe to say that Victoria had the odds stacked against her:

UNFORGIVEN 2005 – Trish Stratus & Ashley Massaro vs. Victoria & Torrie Wilson (w/ Candice Michelle)
With Ashley getting plenty of abuse from the trio dubbed “Vince’s Devils” – Victoria, Candice Michelle, & Torrie Wilson, it soon came time for Trish Stratus to even the odds a bit. Thus, the challenge was made for Trish & Ashley to take on the trio in a match that seemed to be even – a Tag Team match. Yet, with Candice at ringside, “Vince’s Devils” definitely weren’t playing fair:

UNFORGIVEN 2005 – Edge (w/ Lita) vs. Matt Hardy – Cage match
The rivalry between Edge and Matt Hardy had everything to do with Lita, and she was doing everything possible to thwart her former flame’s plans for revenge. Towards the end of this intense Cage match, Lita got heavily involved and was in danger of paying dearly for her actions:

UNFORGIVEN 2006 – Lita vs. Trish Stratus – Women’s Title match
Their rivalry spanned 6 years, on-and-off, and this match was set to settle the score. Lita was the cocky Women’s Champion, and Trish Stratus was competing in her very last WWE match, hoping to squeeze in one more Women’s Championship reign before retiring from the ring:

UNFORGIVEN 2007 – Candice Michelle vs. Beth Phoenix – Women’s Title match
Resilient Women’s Champion Candice Michelle found her second feud as Champion with Beth Phoenix, who had recently returned to the roster after being on the injured list for an extended period. Beth was a monster in the ring, decimating her opponents. Though, ever overcoming the odds, Candice was determined to not relinquish her Title:

As you can see, the Women’s Championship has been defended numerous times at Unforgiven. With the show’s lengthy history as a Raw brand show, it’s clear that it was in need of some SmackDown Diva involvement, and that’s just what it will get tonight. It’s fitting, though, that after the many times the Women’s Championship has been contested on this very Pay-Per-View, the Divas Championship will see its first defense. Will tonight’s match hold up against the ones you’ve just seen? Here’s hoping!

Now for that quiz I mentioned. Below, I’ve posed several questions pertaining to each of the matches I’ve covered above. Get your #2 pencils sharpened, because the quiz starts… now! (Hover over the question to see it in full.)