SmackDown - July 6, 2007, Dallas, Texas (taped July 2)
Report by Erich West, rajah.com reporter
"Welcome to the most exciting two hours on network television!" So says Michael Cole, thereby reducing Monday Night RAW to second rate status. I wonder if the writers are really thinking about the scripts they give these guys. I can't imagine that the boss of this whole operation, Triple H....pardon me, I mean Vince McMahon, approved this. But, maybe that's his way of telling the fans that SmackDown is really as good as RAW, even though the focus is always on RAW - the show that Triple H performs on, of course. Lord knows, you can't let the fans think for themselves, perhaps give them a good show and let it be done at that. No, you have to tell them it's good and hope that they will believe it. Well, thankfully, there are some great performers on SmackDown. And there's a huge difference between great performers and the show that's created for them. Thus, we must have JBL and Michael Cole regaling us for the next two hours about how SmackDown is the "most exciting show in sports entertainment." But let's make sure we give credit where it's due. Anything "great" or "exciting" about SmackDown is solely due to a handful of performers who transcend the drivel that the Uncreative Team dishes out to them.
On with the show, though, hopefully an improvement over last week's failure, where RAW performers overran the show and we were forced to miss seeing some of the SmackDown roster we tuned in to see - all credited to Vickie Guerrero for devising a brilliant show, according to the fables we read on wwe.com. Go check it out - the wwe site is always a great source of laughter and fabrication. Here's a sample.... :"For those who judge by deeds, not words, consider what Vickie accomplished in her first-ever performance as SmackDown's acting General Manager. First, she was responsible for inviting Superstars from RAW to compete against members of SmackDown's elite." To those of you with only short-term memory, we've never seen interpromotional matches on a WWE show before, right? And how about this beaut..... "Vickie also treated our fans to contests only SmackDown can deliver, including a Triple Threat Cruiserweight Championship Match..." You hear that RAW? Only SmackDown can deliver entertainment like that. Are you all laughing as hard as I am?
US Champion MVP vs Matt Hardy
MVP begins with what seems to be his usual schtick, talking smack to the local fans and touting himself as the only thing worth watching. He did this last week and lost to Kane, so there's a good chance that the same will happen here. I say this because the Uncreative Team consistently relies on the same thing over and over. Why make it different because it's the US champ in the match? But MVP is a good actor and manages to keep his role refreshing. Anyway, as I mentioned above, the performers rise above the boardroom drivel and MVP and Matt Hardy are to be commended for giving us a nice long, entertaining match. Athletic, powerful, even brutal, both men showed us what it means to work a ring, and work it well. The crowd loved this match, the expected chants of "Hardy" ringing throughout the arena and the natural catcalls for the heel, MVP. It's a shame that so many spoilers are out there these days because knowing the results of this particular match in advance really took some wind out of a contest that left you wondering, at every moment, who would win. Matt Hardy, after almost being knocked into next week's show, managed to pull out a Twist of Fate and win this non-title match. Not the best of results for the US champ, but perhaps there's more in store for him. I hope so, because the belt isn't looking too secure with two defeats on record for MVP.
Winner: Matt Hardy
This may be as good a time as any to make a request. New SmackDown announcers, if you please. There are a lot of poor announcers between SmackDown, RAW and ECW, but JBL takes the cake, in my opinion. A liability to the show, to be sure. There was so much anecdotal blather during the MVP vs Hardy match that it distracted from the action. There's only so much commentary we need while two men are wrestling. And JBL keeps up his irrelevant harangue during the entire show. I had my finger on the mute button for most of the show. Why couldn't they draft him to RAW?
We get an announcement that Ric Flair will face Finlay later tonight. Apparently, it's big news they have never wrestled before even though they've both had long careers. No surprise to me, though, as we are continually pestered with the same bouts on RAW, ECW and SmackDown, over and over, so why would we have time for something new like Flair vs Finlay? Evidently, a few new thoughtful heads are giving input to the Uncreative Team on the SmackDown side of things, and therefore, we have Flair vs Finlay tonight. But before we get to that, we must learn that Michelle McCool, WWE diva on a shopping spree, is "lovin' life." So she herself tells us. If I were on the payroll and all I had to do was romp through department stores and shop, I'd be "lovin' life," too. Get in the ring, Michelle, or step aside. We have a show to do.
On to the action. No...first we cut to backstage where Teddy Long is discussing wedding plans with Kristal, all under the watchful eye of a very wary looking Vickie Guerrero. Either she disapproves of this union or she's simply put out because she's no longer managing, even though wwe.com hailed her as the next best thing to manage a show since Vince himself. Edge makes an appearance before Vickie can offer her opinion and Teddy Long tells him, rather than wrestling, which Edge refused to do, that he will do a 'Cutting Edge' segment and will have the "biggest superstar that has ever been on the 'Cutting Edge.'" I perch on the "edge" of my seat, awaiting.
Chris Masters vs Jimmy Wang Yang
RAW's loss is SmackDown's gain. Masters looks as great as ever in his entrance and he's getting the kind of response he deserves on his way to the ring - the kind of jeering a top level heel is supposed to get. He certainly earned it during his stint on RAW, doing everything asked of him and making a lot of people look good, but probably much to their dismay, making himself look even better while doing it. No sooner is he in the ring, showing off to the crowd when his opponent, Jimmy Wang Yang, clad in jeans, a wife-beater and ten-gallon hat, appears. Masters looks as perplexed as I am when we see Wang Yang attempt a bodybuilder's crab pose. I think it's meant to be funny. Masters doesn't say a word but you know what he's thinking. Masters makes short work of Wang Yang, including a brutally beautiful mid-match clothesline that nearly decapitates Wang Yang. Hilariously, Wang Yang tries a similar move later on to no effect on the statuesque Masters. A desperate Wang Yang tries a few moves that might work on a lesser opponent but Masters simply shakes them off, catching a flying Wang Yang in midair, repositioning him and finishing him off with the Masterlock. Nice stuff. Really nice. Too bad Vickie couldn't come up with something like this last week.
Winner: Chris Masters
Rather than permitting Masters to make a triumphant exit up the ramp after that performance, we are interrupted by the Great Khali, who comes down to the ring and chokeslams the already beaten Jimmy Wang Yang, issuing an open challenge for the Great American Bash PPV. I could live without it. Along with his gibberish.
We are treated to another promo for the upcoming debuts of Jesse and Festus, a tag team that will, to my dismay, soon be appearing on SmackDown. We move on to our next match.
The Major Brothers vs. Mike Fox and Jeremy Young
SmackDown is evidently the training ground for a number of independent wrestlers and here we have Mike Fox and Jeremy Young getting a chance to show their stuff. The Major Brothers, who are difficult to tell apart, show some great skill in their debuts and pull off a quick win over their less-skilled counterparts. In one moment that shows the dangers always present in this sport, either Fox or Young is knocked off the apron (they weren't identified individually) and hits the steel stairs on the way out. The "clank" of his head against steel is not funny and a reminder that these performers are continually putting themselves in danger for our entertainment. So I urge anyone attending these shows to acknowledge all of these performers - and I'm talking to you, if you just sit there and don't applaud at the end of matches.
Winner: The Major Brothers
We are reminded that Edge will host "The Cutting Edge" later tonight with a special guest yet to be announced. I can't wait. A Rey Mysterio return promo. They're doing a "Triple H Returns" promo over on RAW - this must be the new thing for the WWE. I'm sure we'll see one for HBK soon. Interesting note about the Triple H return promo. After some sleep-inducing footage about his recovery, Triple H muses on the possibility of becoming champion for the 11th time (I think that was the number, but it's quite difficult to pay attention to this man). With the influence Trips has behind the scenes, it strikes me as rather odd - a conflict of interest, actually - that he would be contemplating - on camera - a possible title reign. All he needs to do is say the word and it's his. Sadly.
Ric Flair vs Finlay
I don't know the age of Finlay and I'm certain he's a good deal younger than Flair, but these two seemed to be natural opponents for each other. Finlay has a rough and tumble style and coupled with Flair's more sophisticated, measured approach to brawling, the two styles made an entertaining match. As usual, Flair's chops dominated his side of the action and Finlay went for a more targeted approach to wearing down Flair, a good deal of the time on his legs. Flair tries a reversal, after a lot of torture, and gets the Figure Four on him only to have Finlay reach the ropes. Flair tries another and Finlay rolls him up, almost getting a pin. Flair kicks out and he lifts Finlay, dropping him to the mat for another pin attempt. Hornswoggle comes in for the save only to be chopped by Flair. Finlay hits Flair with the shillelagh and gets a submission hold on Flair. Flair taps out giving Finlay the win. Note to WWE - you need new referees. The arrival of Hornswoggle should have been an immediate disqualification for Finlay. Is there a rule book or did they throw that out with the common sense?
Winner: Finlay
Backstage we go. Victoria interrupts Torrie Wilson's photo shoot, accusing her of stealing the spotlight from her on RAW "I'm not gonna let that happen here on SmackDown," Victoria warns. Torrie opines that people are talking about Victoria and that many think she's crazy. Victoria is not only the best woman athlete on the show, she knows how to deliver a line with just the right blend of realism and camp. "Crazy? Me crazy?" And they are off, destroying the set in a catfight that will clearly set up a feud between them. Both of these women are good additions to the show - they look great, they pull off the pathetic skits with aplomb and are a fun diversion. They also look pretty good in the ring, too.
Not so with the next moment, as the Great Khali continues to stalk the arena, now backstage, attacking a poor stagehand who declined to accept his challenge at the Great American Bash. After the destruction, Khali's manager roars with laughter and Khali follows suit, rather lamely. He needs a few tips from Victoria on how to pull this kind of stuff off.
Kenny Dykstra vs Chuck Palumbo
Dykstra is a cocky kid, even taking the mic to tell the fans he's the "hottest commodity," a "21-year old future Hall-of-Famer." He's interrupted by the 280-pound Chuck Palumbo, making his SmackDown debut. Palumbo's entrance is entertaining enough, a good move for an unknown (even though Palumbo has been around for a while, wrestling fans are not only fickle, they're forgetful) and it gives him an immediate edge with the crowd. Palumbo lets Dykstra know, right off the bat, how powerful he is, shoulder blocking him almost out of the ring. But Dykstra isn't fazed - he lashes out with punches, smack-talking the bigger Palumbo. "You like that?" Dykstra is a big kid - not as heavy as Palumbo, but tall and impressive. Evidently, Palumbo didn't like the punches as he belly-to-bellies Dykstra. Dykstra show us some great high-flying moves here, keeping Palumbo down on the mat more often than not. Palumbo keeps up the assault and suddenly we get a back and forth of punches and kicks until Dykstra drops to the outside stretching Palumbo's arm out. A front face take-down and Dykstra appears to be manhandling Palumbo. Palumbo works his way back to his feet and a driving powerbomb has Dykstra wailing. A right hand almost knocks Dykstra out on his feet.. He's rubber as Palumbo hits him again and clotheslines him to the mat. Palumbo takes care of things with a Full Throttle ending, getting the pin. Palumbo wins but you can tell he favors that arm, thank to Kenny Dykstra. Another very entertaining match, and proving that RAW has some catching up to do in terms of the overall caliber of performers.
Winner: Chuck Palumbo
Promo for Mark Henry. "I have made my presence felt, destroying all those who oppose me. And in the aftermath of the draft, many new faces have come to SmackDown. And it's just a matter of time before one of those faces comes eye to eye with the Silverback. I can smell the fear. You know that Mark Henry's strength is your weakness. Welcome to my jungle." This kind of nonsense I can do without. For what it's worth, the only thing you can do with a Mark Henry is put him in against some of the other giants, Kane, Undertaker, Khali. Having him wrestle men who don't have his kind of, shall we say "girth," is ludicrous as there's no way to compete with that kind of bulk. It's not like Henry is better...he's just much bigger and there's no physical way to offset that. It's not a competition. Hopefully, they won't be wasting the new talent on SmackDown in matches with Mark Henry. Back to the more entertaining aspects of tonight's show.
Deuce vs Eugene
The comic relief segment of SmackDown is interrupted, yet again, by the Great Khali. He's still looking for an opponent for the Great American Bash (he must be getting desperate...is there a chance he might not appear?). Deuce and Eugene are commencing their match when Khali enters and attacks them both. If Khali is still looking for an opponent, Mark Henry is available.
Winner: None. Interrupted by Khali
Khali is now hanging out in the ring, continuing to beg for an opponent and now we are treated to the appearance of Batista. Looking very dapper in a gray suit over a wife-beater - few people can carry this off, but Batista is one of them - Batista is the epitome of cool as he stares Khali down, even with the difference in height. Batista looks him over, inches from him, and then steps back. A sly smile and then he removes his sunglasses - and the smile disappears. It's a classic moment. Just when you think it's a calm, collected set up for the Great American Bash, Batista steps back and strips off his jacket, the crowd going wild for him. Peeling off the wife-beater, he has the entire place in an uproar as the man could barely get the thing off his upper body. Then he's in Khali's face, challenging him right there on the spot. Khali, bless his soul, looks like he doesn't know what to do with Batista. Understandably so. Batista is all over him and Khali's manager wisely splits this up and Khali exits the ring, the two of them threatening each other as Khali works his way up the ramp and Batista remains in the ring. I guess we have a contender for Khali at the Great American Bash and we can enjoy the remainder of the show without further interruption by Khali's quest.
SmackDown allows that it's time for "The Cutting Edge." The sea of "Edge Sucks" signs in the front row is a little over the top. I was kind of hoping that someone would have taken a magic marker and changed one of the signs to "Edge Rules!" just to break up the silly monotony. It turns out that the "biggest superstar ever to appear on The Cutting Edge" is Kane. We are clearly on our way down from some of the high moments that SmackDown provided for us this week. Essentially, "The Cutting Edge" is a waste of time. Edge makes nice with Kane but Kane is man of few words. "I don't like you." Kane then beats Edge up and breaks up "The Cutting Edge" set, much to the dismay of the stagehands, I'm sure. The only thing anyone needs to know is that it will be Edge vs Kane at the Great American Bash - for the title.
We must remember that this week's SmackDown was part of a supershow that began with an hour of the ECW taping, followed by the SmackDown taping and after "The Cutting Edge," there was two more hours of RAW, so I guess some forgiveness is in order for ending SmackDown with the lame "Cutting Edge." Lord knows, we don't want to steal the thunder from RAW, although Batista just about did that, without even wrestling. All in all, for this fourth SmackDown after the draft, the show is looking good, a considerable improvement over the bottomless pit that Vickie Guerrero is credited with giving us last week. I can't be sure it's all Vick's fault as the wwe.com site is notorious for falsehoods, but nonetheless, she was credited with that debacle so she shall take the blame. No more General Manager assignments for her please. We like SmackDown the way we had it tonight.
