Black Widow
01-31-2009, 07:18 PM
by Buck Woodward
Last night's Smackdown featured a strong promo by Matt Hardy to set up his feud with brother Jeff and some of the usual strong heel mic work by Edge. Three matches on the show set up Elimination Chamber participants for No Way Out, and there were two solid matches featuring undercard talent. Plus Umaga returned, finally. While parts of the show were not perfect, and the main event left a bit to be desired, it was still a good effort following the Royal Rumble and beginning the build to the next PPV.
Onto my thoughts on the show.
Plusses:
The opening video package splicing in classic Hardy Boyz images with the events that took place for the Royal Rumble was very well done. Having Matt walk out to the boys of the fans, with no music, was also a great move. The "dramatic music swells" during the promo, I could have done without. Those are great for video packages, but not for a "live" promo. Matt saying no one can "prove" he was behind the other incidents could be taken one of two ways. It could be seen as "I did it, but you'll never be able to arrest me for it" or it could be a case of "someone else was doing it, and hearing about it was the final straw for me." Personally, I think WWE will go with the former, but the latter would open up for another Jeff enemy to come forward. The promo really picked up with Matt's bitching about having to cover for Jeff Hardy and how fans cared more about the "screw up" than the "role model". The big question going into this week was whether Matt was going to drop the ball with his promo. Well, he definitely didn't. I also like that they went straight to commercial after he was done, not diluting the segment with anything else.
R-Truth and Brian Kendrick had a solid match, even if some of the transitions seemed a bit off. I liked the referee sending Ezekiel Jackson to the back based on his post-match attack on Truth last week. There were some nice spots, like Kendrick's dropkick to the head, and R-Truth's sweet powerslam. In the end, Truth picked up his second clean win over Kendrick, so I'm not sure where things go for him at this point.
After weeks of both getting squashed, it was really nice to see MVP and Chavo Guerrero get to work a competitive match again. Both wrestlers got the chance to be in control for a while, with MVP looking especially good with the armdrags and belly to belly suplex. Chavo misses the splash and MVP gets the clean win with the Shining Kick. The fans were 100% behind MVP, and with his post-match promo that he is "back" and wants his U.S. Title, we should be looking at an excellent MVP-Benjamin feud soon. I actually wouldn't mind seeing Chavo thrown into the mix as well, along with Kendrick and Truth. They could put together a great U.S. Title division to compliment the WWE Title chase on the top of the cards.
Umaga is back, and apparently I'm not the only one who missed him, as the fans were popping for his trademark spots during the bout. I liked that Jimmy Yang stopped his usual entrance when he saw Umaga staring at him from the ring. Pure squash, which is unfortunate for Yang, but the priority is to reestablish that Umaga is a monster, and the mission was accomplished.
I wonder what Mickey Rourke's publicist thought about WWE's video package on Rourke-Jericho? And does anyone else find it funny that CNN's flagship show, Larry King Live, was used as a backdrop for a wrestling angle, when a year ago WWE was ticked off at the news network for editing a John Cena interview to make it look like he did not deny using steroids?
Simple math. Edge + Microphone = Great Promo. Vickie Guerrero + Fans = Heat. Edge is the best heel in wrestling, and the fact he used the words "public discourse" cracked me up for some reason. He was just gold on the stick, telling the crowd they were wrong, making them "apologize" and then bringing back the "five second pose" to infuriate the fans. When you can get that much heat just by kissing, you're doing something right. Big Show enters, and Edge beats an exit, taking another step in the growing issue between them. Good segment.
Minuses:
Eve Torres was interrupted by Michelle McCool, who apparently sees herself as some sort of badass now. Eve slaps her, and ... Michelle smiles and leaves. That was ... quick. Probably best it was, but honestly, if Eve was going to take her down, why not follow up the slap with a tackle and some punches? And why would McCool just take a slap and walk away with no retribution?
The main event. Well, you knew it wasn't going to be pretty. Thankfully, they took a commercial during it. A commercial break that told us that Triple H would be in the elimination chamber, so we knew the result before the match came back on. Maybe that was WWE's way of saying "Hey, this match features Great Khali and Vladimir Kozlov, you probably want to turn it off, so we'll let you know that Triple H wins." To be fair, Khali did spend a lot of time on the floor, and HHH and Koz have been working better together now that they have some house show matches under their belts. Of course, Khali entered to remind us how dumb the Vice Grip looks. Then we get Kozlov headbutting Khali, but being sent over the top rope (so Kozlov can remain "undefeated" while not winning a match). This leads to Triple H doing the world's worst looking Pedigree ever on Khali. Who thought this was a good idea? Triple H is in the Elimination Chamber, and please, do not ever sign a rematch of this debacle.
A Mixture Of Both:
Mark Henry and Undertaker had a nice "big man's match" with lots of heavy shots being exchanged. Henry catching Undertaker on the Old School attempt was a nice spot. Does Taker ever hit that move anymore? Undertaker gave Henry a ton of offense, then got his shots in. The chokeslam was nice, but unfortunately, the applying of the Devil's Gate just looked downright sloppy. Good match, but the finish was just awkward when Henry's arm slipped out during the rollover. Toss in the fact that I don't like seeing Mark Henry losing clean after all the work that has been done in making him a monster that usually needs to be hit by a Shillelagh, chair or ringpost, and I can't praise the match too highly. Still, it was the Undertaker, so it isn't like he just lost to a "normal" wrestler.
I like that WWE is having wrestlers earn a spot in the Elimination Chamber by winning matches. However... Festus? At least Kofi Kingston is a former Intercontinental Champion. Festus has never had a major singles win, and no one was expecting him to beat the Big Show here. Festus did get a lift in, which Show countered with a nice DDT. Festus' tornado DDT? Not as nice looking. Show tosses Festus with the reverse powerbomb and then the KO punch. A chokeslam for Jesse to finish it off, and Big Show, not surprisingly, is in the Elimination Chamber and I'm wondering what the future holds for Biscuits and Gravy.
What To Make Sure And Watch If You DVR'd The Show: Watch Matt Hardy and Edge's promos for sure. If you have the time, watch all the matches, except the three-way bout at the end. You can skip the Three Way and the recap packages/movie trailers and get the show done with in under 90 minutes easily.
PWI
Last night's Smackdown featured a strong promo by Matt Hardy to set up his feud with brother Jeff and some of the usual strong heel mic work by Edge. Three matches on the show set up Elimination Chamber participants for No Way Out, and there were two solid matches featuring undercard talent. Plus Umaga returned, finally. While parts of the show were not perfect, and the main event left a bit to be desired, it was still a good effort following the Royal Rumble and beginning the build to the next PPV.
Onto my thoughts on the show.
Plusses:
The opening video package splicing in classic Hardy Boyz images with the events that took place for the Royal Rumble was very well done. Having Matt walk out to the boys of the fans, with no music, was also a great move. The "dramatic music swells" during the promo, I could have done without. Those are great for video packages, but not for a "live" promo. Matt saying no one can "prove" he was behind the other incidents could be taken one of two ways. It could be seen as "I did it, but you'll never be able to arrest me for it" or it could be a case of "someone else was doing it, and hearing about it was the final straw for me." Personally, I think WWE will go with the former, but the latter would open up for another Jeff enemy to come forward. The promo really picked up with Matt's bitching about having to cover for Jeff Hardy and how fans cared more about the "screw up" than the "role model". The big question going into this week was whether Matt was going to drop the ball with his promo. Well, he definitely didn't. I also like that they went straight to commercial after he was done, not diluting the segment with anything else.
R-Truth and Brian Kendrick had a solid match, even if some of the transitions seemed a bit off. I liked the referee sending Ezekiel Jackson to the back based on his post-match attack on Truth last week. There were some nice spots, like Kendrick's dropkick to the head, and R-Truth's sweet powerslam. In the end, Truth picked up his second clean win over Kendrick, so I'm not sure where things go for him at this point.
After weeks of both getting squashed, it was really nice to see MVP and Chavo Guerrero get to work a competitive match again. Both wrestlers got the chance to be in control for a while, with MVP looking especially good with the armdrags and belly to belly suplex. Chavo misses the splash and MVP gets the clean win with the Shining Kick. The fans were 100% behind MVP, and with his post-match promo that he is "back" and wants his U.S. Title, we should be looking at an excellent MVP-Benjamin feud soon. I actually wouldn't mind seeing Chavo thrown into the mix as well, along with Kendrick and Truth. They could put together a great U.S. Title division to compliment the WWE Title chase on the top of the cards.
Umaga is back, and apparently I'm not the only one who missed him, as the fans were popping for his trademark spots during the bout. I liked that Jimmy Yang stopped his usual entrance when he saw Umaga staring at him from the ring. Pure squash, which is unfortunate for Yang, but the priority is to reestablish that Umaga is a monster, and the mission was accomplished.
I wonder what Mickey Rourke's publicist thought about WWE's video package on Rourke-Jericho? And does anyone else find it funny that CNN's flagship show, Larry King Live, was used as a backdrop for a wrestling angle, when a year ago WWE was ticked off at the news network for editing a John Cena interview to make it look like he did not deny using steroids?
Simple math. Edge + Microphone = Great Promo. Vickie Guerrero + Fans = Heat. Edge is the best heel in wrestling, and the fact he used the words "public discourse" cracked me up for some reason. He was just gold on the stick, telling the crowd they were wrong, making them "apologize" and then bringing back the "five second pose" to infuriate the fans. When you can get that much heat just by kissing, you're doing something right. Big Show enters, and Edge beats an exit, taking another step in the growing issue between them. Good segment.
Minuses:
Eve Torres was interrupted by Michelle McCool, who apparently sees herself as some sort of badass now. Eve slaps her, and ... Michelle smiles and leaves. That was ... quick. Probably best it was, but honestly, if Eve was going to take her down, why not follow up the slap with a tackle and some punches? And why would McCool just take a slap and walk away with no retribution?
The main event. Well, you knew it wasn't going to be pretty. Thankfully, they took a commercial during it. A commercial break that told us that Triple H would be in the elimination chamber, so we knew the result before the match came back on. Maybe that was WWE's way of saying "Hey, this match features Great Khali and Vladimir Kozlov, you probably want to turn it off, so we'll let you know that Triple H wins." To be fair, Khali did spend a lot of time on the floor, and HHH and Koz have been working better together now that they have some house show matches under their belts. Of course, Khali entered to remind us how dumb the Vice Grip looks. Then we get Kozlov headbutting Khali, but being sent over the top rope (so Kozlov can remain "undefeated" while not winning a match). This leads to Triple H doing the world's worst looking Pedigree ever on Khali. Who thought this was a good idea? Triple H is in the Elimination Chamber, and please, do not ever sign a rematch of this debacle.
A Mixture Of Both:
Mark Henry and Undertaker had a nice "big man's match" with lots of heavy shots being exchanged. Henry catching Undertaker on the Old School attempt was a nice spot. Does Taker ever hit that move anymore? Undertaker gave Henry a ton of offense, then got his shots in. The chokeslam was nice, but unfortunately, the applying of the Devil's Gate just looked downright sloppy. Good match, but the finish was just awkward when Henry's arm slipped out during the rollover. Toss in the fact that I don't like seeing Mark Henry losing clean after all the work that has been done in making him a monster that usually needs to be hit by a Shillelagh, chair or ringpost, and I can't praise the match too highly. Still, it was the Undertaker, so it isn't like he just lost to a "normal" wrestler.
I like that WWE is having wrestlers earn a spot in the Elimination Chamber by winning matches. However... Festus? At least Kofi Kingston is a former Intercontinental Champion. Festus has never had a major singles win, and no one was expecting him to beat the Big Show here. Festus did get a lift in, which Show countered with a nice DDT. Festus' tornado DDT? Not as nice looking. Show tosses Festus with the reverse powerbomb and then the KO punch. A chokeslam for Jesse to finish it off, and Big Show, not surprisingly, is in the Elimination Chamber and I'm wondering what the future holds for Biscuits and Gravy.
What To Make Sure And Watch If You DVR'd The Show: Watch Matt Hardy and Edge's promos for sure. If you have the time, watch all the matches, except the three-way bout at the end. You can skip the Three Way and the recap packages/movie trailers and get the show done with in under 90 minutes easily.
PWI