Batista started the show off in ring. He basically said Rey's overmatched later in the night in their street fight and that it's about him, not the fans. To show us just what he means, he asked for a spotlight on him so we couldn't see the fans. That's his way of owning the fans, I guess. Basically the whole point of this was to put over how obsessed he is about being the World Champion again. I thought it worked well. They gave him about eight minutes, the crowd seemed like they were legitimately booing him without the canned noise and his delivery seemed pretty natural. I'm pleased with heel Batista so far.
CM Punk & Luke Gallows d. Matt Hardy & R-Truth (**)
The Punk/Gallows duo came out plugging the Jeff Hardy DVD and then they beat it up. That'll show you, DVD! I really like the Punk/Gallows duo. It's perfect to give Punk a bodyguard while Gallows looks like the happiest guy out there because he's been rid of that terrible Festus gimmick. The match was fine as expected. Gallows go the blind tag and did his reverse full nelson slam thing for the finish, which they're calling "The Gallows Pole" or "The 12th Step." I wonder what Matt Hardy's record is on Smackdown this year? He's probably lost 70% of his matches this year, right? It might be more than that. I think it's a waste. I wish he was used better. They never seem to care to push him on Raw or Smackdown, though. By the way, CM Punk not being on a PPV is a crime. He was one of the two best wrestlers in the company this year (I'm not saying if he's first or second until Monday!) and he should be on every PPV. Maybe he should have worn a suit instead of questioning the dress code, I guess.
Backstage, Eric Escobar insulted Vickie Guerrero some more to continue that storyline. I thought he'd be sent back to the minors. Guess not. She's going to make him pay by putting him against Jericho later.
Backstage, Kane bumped into Mike Knox. They did some staring as if they wanted to make out. Remember when Mike was dating Kelly x2? That felt like ages ago. Anyway, they're fighting again this week because they want to see if it can be as boring as last week.
Big Show & Chris Jericho d. Eric Escobar (1/2*)
Escobar came out. Nobody cared. No reaction whatsoever. The match started against Jericho and then Vickie came out to make it a handicap match against Jerishow. Show came in, beat up Escobar a bit (no KTFO punch) and Jericho made him tap to the Walls. I guess we're supposed to feel sympathetic to Escobar, but I don't think it's working. Post match, Jericho cut a promo for TLC putting over Big Show being the biggest weapon in the match.
Drew McIntyre came out angrily because he's always angry. He talked about how John Morrison is on the cover of WWE magazine in an issue talking about future stars. Well, I guess that's better than feuding over a shampoo commercial. He mentioned William Wallace in Braveheart (fantastic movie in my top 20 all time - I need to write a list sometime) and that ended up bringing out Morrison. He was dressed like William Wallace. I've actually got a friend with that name. Everybody calls him Braveheart. Maybe he should wrestle in the sandals. It's a hell of a look. He spoke in a Scottish accent, and then threatened McIntyre with his sword, which looked like a $3 one I might buy for my nephew at Wal-Mart. They ended up brawling a bit with McIntyre bailing to the floor before Morrison could hit him with a Flying Sandals Kick. I liked this. It showed Morrison's personality, which is what they need to do, and I'm looking forward to Sunday's match.
Kane d. Mike Knox (1/2*)
It was so average last week that we got it again this week. And Kane won with a chokeslam in under just three minutes. Will this continue? Does anybody care? No. By the way, it's been a few weeks. Better turn Kane heel now.
Mickie James & Maria d. Michelle McCool & Layla (1/4*)
The video package from the week before and the intros were longer than this match. Basically, Mickie couldn't get her hands on Michelle because Michelle kept running away. After about 90 seconds, Mickie won by pinning Layla with a rollup. I love how Layla is surprised when she loses. She's won maybe two matches all year. It was fine, but way too short. I need more Mickie.
They ran down the PPV lineup. My preview is coming up in this column right after the SD review.
Batista d. Rey Mysterio in a Street Fight (**)
It was a street fight that was contained in the ring for like 95% of it. What a fight. I guess it was booked this way to emphasize how dangerous Batista is once he gets his hand on a chair. After about ten minutes of mostly Batista on offense (with a brief comeback by Rey), he got the chair and finished Rey off with a shot to the head, which Rey smartly blocked with his hand. Taking unprotected chair shots isn't worth the health risk. Predictable booking, but also the right booking.
Post match, Batista was going to injure Rey some more until the lights went out and Undertaker showed up to throw some punches at him. He went for the chair, which allowed Batista to bail out to the floor before Undertaker to get him again. Good way to end the show because it makes you want to see the PPV to see what will happen when Undertaker does hit him with that chair.
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Three Stars of the Show
1. CM Punk - Another strong promo/match from him. He's really thriving in his role and I really liked when he said "Straight Edge" after R-Truth asked "What's Up?"
2. Batista - The heel turn is working.
3. John Morrison - Good promo. The look? Not so much.
It was an average show, typical of what we usually get on the week before a PPV.
I'll end with this. It's disappointing that WWE doesn't pay any kind of tribute to Umaga on Raw or Smackdown this week. Not even a graphic for the guy? I understand Linda McMahon's in some campaign and her opponents will use anything they can to go against her, but is this how you thank somebody that busted their ass for your company? Throw in the fact that he's part of a big family that has contributed a lot to WWE over the years and it stuns me that they would ignore it. They have no problem spending $50 million or more on a campaign that isn't going to lead to an election, though.
Ter 2 Fev 2010 - 20:38