Smackdown! Feedback:
Glad that the show started with a match, as really the only big promo that I see happening is the one between Austin and Lesnar, one that should be saved until the end of the night. I totally expected Angle to go over Cody in the fashion that he did, as it’s obvious that Rhodes needs to head back to OVW and get more polished before returning to the roster. ‘Taker actually coming down after the match to battle is something we don’t often see, but this is a very special feud. So glad that ‘Taker finally got his in this feud, actually beating Angle up pretty good after Kurt got the best of the Deadman so many times during their build. The throw into the steel steps and then the Chokeslam on the mat were great ways to put over ‘Taker’s aggressiveness. I see Angle coming back with an epic beatdown next week, something that really sends a message for WM23.
Good call on letting Atlas in, as you’re sure to have a tremendous class heading into the ceremony. Very interested to see who inducts there seven individuals. HBK inducting Iron Mike, plz.
Glad that Jericho gets some time to talk about his huge win against ‘Taker last week, seeing as his two opponents for WM23 are in a match against each other. Gotta love when he talks about becoming the first ever Undisputed Champion, that’s pretty much classic Chris Jericho. He’s moving back toward the heel side of his character, being totally self-centered when talking about Edge and RVD being in cahoots to try and prevent him from winning the WWE Title. Interested to see what he does as a lumberjack tonight, as he will obviously looking to do some real damage to both men.
I’m assuming that we are going to see Jeff/Storm next week? Good way to get this Title feud some more hype, as this is as generic as it gets when heading into a PPV Tag Title match. Good win for Matt Hardy, as it’s obvious that the Hardyz are going to take the Titles at WM23, even though a win by AMW would make them look like the absolute best on the planet, imo. Nice little touch with the Titles being grabbed by Matt and Jeff, sending a definite message to their ‘Mania opponents.
MVP watching clips of Umaga? Porter must have something up his sleeve, right?
Good interview from Matt and Jeff after they seemingly grabbed all the momentum in this feud. Loved the way aggression that they are showing, talking about AMW taking out Moore (something I forgot all about, btw
) and saying that their luck is going to run out at WM23. The ripping off of the catchphrase at the end was the perfect touch, tbh.
Not much more time to hype up the CW Title match, but this was a good way to get it done. Kash proves that he is still one of the smartest wrestlers in the company and he can still get the job done. Hopefully Crazy doesn’t fall off the face of the earth after this loss, as he still has probably the most talent in the CW Division. Good way for Kash to build off his win last week, and you still kept Kendrick looking strong, which makes sense considering he will probably take the Belt in nine days. Interested to see what is done in the final week of this build-up.
You gotta give MVP more in-ring time to cut promos, as you obviously know what you’re doing with him. Even though he was only in the ring for a very short period of time by himself, he’s got the talent to cut fantastic promos. He and Carlito better continue this feud past WM23, as they have been at each other’s throats for weeks. Pretty generic between these two, even though I am always a mark for the “BALLIN’!” comment, before Charlie Haas comes down to the ring?! He thankfully only gets a few lines in, as his talent is obviously in the wrestling department, not the talking part. He did stay in character pretty well, being very straightforward when talking to MVP, letting him know what he thinks. London comes out just for the hell of it, just in time to hear that MVP has the same idea as Finlay. I see that plan being acted on, but Umaga probably won’t be all that hurt by it. The ending was priceless with Carlito hitting MVP after asking why he didn’t just ask the question right away. Great way to transition from promo to match!
Pretty much what I expected in the four-way between these guys, as they all do something different very well in the ring. The Tower of Doom sounded insane, with MVP coming out as the only stable guy, making unsuccessful covers on all three of his opponents. Ending was very quick and that’s what we like to see in matches like these, with Carlito and MVP ending up sprawled on the outside, while Haas scores the huge upset, pinning London! This was a huge win for Charlie, who has been pretty much ignored in this build, and now he’s proven that he can win a big match. Hopefully we get London/Porter and Haas/’Lito next week, as that’d give us some great final build.
Lesnar is the most pissed off man on the planet, so it’s good for him to basically just shove past Arn Anderson. Austin probably won’t arrive until the promo actually starts, imo.
Hell of beatdown given by Big Vis last week, as now he actually has to face Batista in a match, something that probably won’t end well for the big fat ass. Yep, that match went down pretty much as I expected, with Vis getting some early offense and then Batista just dominated after that. The Batista Bomb would be the only thing that made this match worth watching. Brent only has nine more days before he has to put the Belt on the line, something that he’s got to be much more worried about after Batista just showed off his incredible strength.
Great way for the match to really get going, as the Hardyz attack Edge on the outside when he tries to leave the ring, sending him back in and he’s at RVD’s mercy. Loved the way that the heels took it to Van Dam, with Jericho finally joining in and nailing a stiff kick to the ribs! The rest of the match went down pretty well, as it was good to see Edge dominate this one for the most part, before Van Dam makes his comeback, taking down both Jericho and Edge on the outside. I always liked the way that you showed off the feuds between the Hardyz and AMW, as well as the CW Title. Finally, we get settled back in the ring, as Jericho really takes advantage of being a lumberjack, throwing RVD off the top rope! Edge then picks up the huge win but Jericho was really the star tonight, taking out both men and ending it all with a beatdown on Edge. Jericho definitely has all the momentum heading into WM23 at this point, which sadly means that he won’t be winning the Belt. Too bad.
Again, great WM23 card. Raw should be something special with the huge main event, and then we will also have a LIVE Smackdown!? That is a great final touch to end the road to WM23.
Brock is certainly ready to face off with Austin, but then Arn Anderson comes down? Austin isn’t here tonight!? Lesnar thinks that this is all a set-up, and now it looks like it’s going to be … the McMahon Family Empire! Triple H has the trusty sledgehammer and now it looks like he is going to beat the shit out of Lesnar. Very cool for this to happen like this, as Lesnar is going to take them all on! He’s got some balls and it’s a great way for him to move more toward being a full-fledged face. Holy hell, that’s a ton of people coming along with the McMahons! Lesnar already takes out the first five men that get in his way, as they all eat the steel chair, as Lesnar looks good so far. Lesnar actually did much better than I imagined in this vicious assault, as he is able to withstand the first beating before taking out everyone in the Brotherhood! But the rest of the assault went Triple H’s way, as this was one of the best beatdowns I have ever seen in BTB, as everything was perfect, with Triple H using the sledgehammer, hitting the Pedigree, laying Lesnar out cold to end the show, with this feud officially the best in this thread.
A very good show, with a smaller amount of segments but a better quality for each segment. The Main Event and the ending “promo” (if we wanna call it that) were done very well. Now we are down to the final two shows, as it looks like we are in for quite a treat with Raw and SD! combining for both shows. Can’t wait for the last episodes of each show!