I for one was quite pleased with Smackdown. The main event really had me going, and I'm ready to see more Edge-Jericho. They seem to have good chemistry, knowing how to create some intrigue in the match.
Rey vs Chavo was a lot of fun too. That revolving kick Rey does through the ropes is one of my favorite moves. Also, his entrance KICKS ASS!
I like Cena vs Test as well. I find that though I'm not amazed by Cena's moveset, the psychology of the match was solid. His Test impersonation is pretty good too.
I also thought the backstage segments flowed smoothly, furthering storylines and explaining certain post-match shenannigans (like Rey in the aftermath of the main event).
If the Fed churns out material like they did this week on a consistent basis, I shall doubt no more.
WyldeWolf1 The Man of 1,007 holds, making him 3 holds better than Chris Jericho!
Looks like this will be the thread to survive (as there are four other Smackdown thought threads)...
What was up with Marc Lloyd turning to the camera and interpreting Kurt's cell phone comments for the audience? How f'ing stupid do you think we are? Shouldn't, instead, Cole said; "Eric? Tazz, do you think Angle was talking to Eric Bischoff?!" That would have accomplished the same thing without that stupid little moment.
Other than that: FANTASTIC show! What a great week for the WWE.
Tonight's commercial was Greyhound with 4 (that dog can't sing) with the runner-up being Haunted with 3 (what's that song?).
Kurt's camoflague tights are freaky. Just as freaky as Lesnar doing the F5 on Mark Henry. Dang run-in.
Stacie goes to Steph's office (hmm, does she sleep with all the Smackdown! owners?). Steph has a PLAIN dress and STRAIGHT hair (meaning she's a face). Abuse those flowers, girl!
D-Von and Val have a nice match, also getting Holly and Bautista into it. D-Von's outfit conceals weight, but is crappy for overall looks.
Stacie is your Blonde-in-Peril. Thinking hurts, so she'll call Steph to figure-out the situation. Then Steph talks to Edge and they take us on a field-trip to the Production Truck so we can meet Ann (whose sole job is to do Jericho's entrance, I assume). Morale of the story: if that clock's accurate, we'll have an over-run.
Mark Lloyd wants to play detective, too! Too bad he's not blonde. (according to the Maxim commercial all us blondes get the chicks; what's this have to do with wrestling? Well, Maxim DOES advertise on this show...)
Rikishi/Albert was a good match, but ugly. Ugly in a "needs Stacker2/Albert's been laying off the Nair" kind of way. Oh, and now on Smackdown! is the time when we dance.
Storm/Christian vs. Rock/Hogan was a HOT match. Too bad for the run-in. But we can all hope that run-in enhances the storyline heading into Summerslam. Oh, Christian wears the same shirt he's worn FOREVER. And Hogan hunts Bigbird to get those yellow feathers for his boa. Rock STILL refuses to wear the (now bigger) belt 'cuz his undies hold themselves up. To add insult to injury, Brock will take Hogan's limo.
Chavo's music is mucho more latino than Eddie's, but he's only half as latino in the looks. Rey's mask is red with white wings for sideburns and a white cross on the forehead (oh, and I don't like the music). The match was fluid (almost too smooth, but that IS the lucha style, right?).
According to Cole, Indianapolis is THE heartland of America. I'll remember that when you get to the next city.
Test punks out Rey later. Cena and Test jaw earlier. Then they wrestle. Cena's white and blue trunks aren't nice, but at least they're not the white and green. Test, meanwhile, goes with vinyl pants. Test is deliberate, Cena is action-packed; afterwards, deliberate kicks more butt. Hmm, I got a feeling this grudge will continue.
We get a commercial and head into the Main JIP. (This ticks me off!) Jericho's pants are vertical today. The match is EXCELLENT (Edge must've lost lotsa blood from the way the commentators were going on, but I didn't see too much; mabye his hair hid it). After match affairs kick butt; I can se SO many story possibilities here; is Jericho and Anti-American? will Rey, Cena and Edge gang-up to face the threat? will a fourth guy join them?
Then, to a limo. I love the Angle looking on wondering "huh?" bit. So, hey, who WAS in that limo? Hold that pose.
A dang good show. Steph's backstage bits really are better than Bischoff (maybe 'cuz she's not trying to be overbearing and annoying). Stacie as Steph's assistant seems corny (the who-dunnit gang); throw-in the wannabe Mark Lloyd, some other guy and a dog, and you've got the Mystery Gang! Really, though, a solid show; maybe they're actually planning stuff now.
Fashion Reporter Extraordinare
and Offhand-Remarks Maker
Who just happens to be wierded-out by Skittles Commericals.
I really enjoyed this show. Momentum is being built. Something seems to have woke WWE up. And it's fun to watch.
Rey was cool. Seeing him fly off the cage reminded me of when Shane did the same thing to the Mean Street Posse. Which reminded me of the classic "love her or leave her" match between Shane and Test. Which reminded me of a time when Test was very over with the crowd. Which made me wonder what the hell happened to Test?
This weeks build for Brock vs. Rock couldn't have been any better. I get the feeling Rock is going to help make Brock a superstar during the next month. The slow build from ignoring Rock, to staring him down, to taking out his tag partner has been good t.v. I hope these two don't end up in a tag match against each other before summerslam. If they can keep them out of the ring against each other until then it could be huge.
Anyone else see Hogan laying down for Brock on a Smackdown before Summerslam?
I don't know the last time I saw two great main events on one week. I've watched more wrestling this week than I have in five months - at least an hour each of Smackdown and RAW.
Eddie/Rock has been talked to death, and IMO it was VERY good, let's say ***+. I don't understand why they didn't give Eddie a shot at the title next week. No reason to push the storylines 100 miles per hour if you don't have to, and it gives Rock more chance to knock off ring rust.
Edge and Jericho put on a PPV-caliber match. ****+. If Jericho had opened up hardway, I would have to go *****, for those of you that hate star ratings. Anyone that slags Jericho for that match should have their eyes put out and their broadband access taken away. Why couldn't they end up getting out at the same time and setting up a finale at SummerSlam?
I liked Cena vs. Test - I can't help but compare Test to Nash, and every time I do, I just have to say too bad Big Greasy couldn't ever show that much emotion or effort. Putting good ol' Stinger face paint on Cena would be a hoot.
The match I was disappointed with was Mysterio/Gurrero. I think Buff worked faster than that in the WWF. It was slow for a WWE match, even slower for a WCW match, even slower compared to a cruiserweight match, and absolutely snail's pace compared to a lucha match. Rey-Rey made up for it with that plancha from the top of the cage, though.
[Was anyone else waiting for them to repeat history for us and have Test make Rey Jr. into a lawn dart again right there at the garage door?]
Bruce Wayne: "We've met." Selina Kyle: "Have we?" Bruce: "Sorry, I mistook me for someone else." - Batman Returns
And throwing him into the final match with that BEAUTIFUL top of the cage dive.....FANTASTIC!!!
I was a little concerned about his bad wheel but he seems to be running at 110%
Storylines, storylines, storylines! They're logical, coherent and are intertwined!
Great RAW, very good SD! has the WWE turned the corner? I'll wait till after SS to decide but things sure look to be headed in the right direction. Only thing is, the end of the show left me with such a feeling of an nWo-rehash angle. Still, when the screen goes black and my first thought is, "Can't miss next weeks RAW", you've gotta say it was a successful program!
Originally posted by WyldeWolf1That revolving kick Rey does through the ropes is one of my favorite moves. Also, his entrance KICKS ASS!
I think it's called the "650" or some other three-digit number.
But anyway, break out the mask and curse those lousy cellphone connections, cuz here comes THE GREAT THOMAS AND THE SMACKDOWN! REPORT!!!
The Intro: It's Steph! Steph! Ste-Ste-Ste-Steph! On her first official Smack-Smack-SmackDown! SmackDown! SmackDown!
Angle vs. The World's Strongest Man Mark Henry: Pretty much a near-squash, but WOW! Lookit how beautifully Mark Henry sells that F5! I'm astounded!
Angle Talks to Eric: I knew it was his brother all along! Speaking of which, when IS Eric gonna come to WWE?
Hogan/Rock vs. The Anti-Americans: Like I said. The Anti-Americans are the greatest stable ever. They might even outdo the WWE nWo, destruction-wise.
Cena vs. Test: Cena wears BLUE this week. Decent match, but the real highlight was the "WOODCHUCK!" chant. Maybe Test is the new Bobby "WEASEL!" Heenan?
Rikishi vs. Albert: Anyone remember a time when Albert constantly WON matches? And where the blue Hell does that HAT KEEP COMING FROM?! Maybe it's alive?!
THE GREATEST CRUISERWEIGHT OF ALL TIME: I was astounded. Period. From his kickass entrance (as WyldeWolf put it), to the corkscrew tope, all the way to his (I don't know what the hell that was he used to get the pin), The whole match was awesome. Lotsa credit to Chavo Guerrero as well, for also pulling off a lot of sweet manuevers.
FOZZY: Steph got a free CD! Cool.
The Main Event: A lotta huge bumps, high spots, excellent top-rope bulldog from Jericho, plus the finish with Edge, Cena, and Rey getting revenge on the Anti-Americans.
Aftermath-Who's In The Limo?: Why is it when Bischoff popped out of the sunroof it reminded me of Megatron? Probably because that black coat matches the limo so nicely. "Uncle Eric...TERRORIZE!"
Well, that's all I've got to say for this week's SmackDown! Until then, good night, take care of yourselves, and watch for me being Wienerville's next CRUISERWEIGHT!
(edited by The Great Thomas on 25.7.02 1955) JAMIE NOBLE CAN POWERBOMB KIDMAN!
Originally posted by ScreamingHeadGuyThen, to a limo. I love the Angle looking on wondering "huh?" bit. So, hey, who WAS in that limo? Hold that pose.
A dang good show. Steph's backstage bits really are better than Bischoff (maybe 'cuz she's not trying to be overbearing and annoying).
Too bad she completely blew it when she had that goofy-a** grin on her face before she even turned around to see who was talking behind her. So sad - have to give her an 'F'. She had a 'C' up to that point.
Bruce Wayne: "We've met." Selina Kyle: "Have we?" Bruce: "Sorry, I mistook me for someone else." - Batman Returns
I'm watching Cena cut his promo, in walks Test, who proceeds to stand VERY close to The Prototype ...
and then starts looking down a little TOO intently ...
and I'm thinking, "Is Test checking out Cena's package, or what?"
And I just know that, in living rooms across this great country of ours, thousands of wrestling fans were once again muttering those immortal words: "OH MY GOD, THEY'RE GONNA KISS"
You're not wrong, he was gazing WAAAAAAAAY to intently towards Cena's crotch.
And not to knock TGThomas, but dude, did you perhaps not follow WCW when their cruiserweight division was at it's pinnacle? Chavo/Rey was certainly the best CW match on WWE in well over a year, but it can't even come close to the classics put on by Malenko/Eddy/Jericho(pre-Y2J)/Rey and the assorted other CW's (Damien/El Dandy/Silver King) WCW had back in the day.
Yeah, Test being gay, that's hilarious. Note scarcasm.
Moving on, tonight's show was solid, again. I thought there were four, four, four, FOUR good matches. Mysterio/Chavo, Tag Team match, Edge/Jericho and Angle/HENRY!
That was by far Henry's best work. His taunts made me chuckle. I just want to see where they're going with this Angle/Brock stuff.
I got two blips on my Ha-dar. Shoot 'em down!
The next time I hear you say "glass ceiling" or you complain about someone being shoved down their throats, I'm gonna take that glass ceiling and shove it down your throat.
Originally posted by StephanieSince I missed the WWE credits - was Steph in them like Bischoff was on RAW (as the last image before the actual credits roll)?
Steph
Yuppers -- just no "Fuck you, Eric."
Show by show... she's getting more tolerable, until she starts shrieking.
Mysterio is the man is all I had to say. I don't know about you put does it seem Rey is pulling off a stronger super hero vibe in one night than Hurricane has in a year?
Originally posted by StephanieSince I missed the WWE credits - was Steph in them like Bischoff was on RAW (as the last image before the actual credits roll)?
Steph
Actually, no, the WWE logo just flashed by at the end like usual..
I'm watching Cena cut his promo, in walks Test, who proceeds to stand VERY close to The Prototype ...
and then starts looking down a little TOO intently ...
and I'm thinking, "Is Test checking out Cena's package, or what?"
And I just know that, in living rooms across this great country of ours, thousands of wrestling fans were once again muttering those immortal words: "OH MY GOD, THEY'RE GONNA KISS"
tell me I'm wrong
And how did Cena finish the match? WITH HIS HEAD IN TEST'S CROTCH.
Hmm... hyping Angle as the leader of Smackdown, setting him up with Brock... could they be teasing a face turn?
Speaking of face turns -- hell, if you'd told me a two weeks ago I would have laughed my ass off, but Project: Steph is turning into the biggest surprise. Stephanie McMahon as a believable face? Who'd have ever thought it could be?
Originally posted by Phantom Stephanie McMahon as a believable face? Who'd have ever thought it could be?
Anybody who watched the WWF in 1999.
Originally posted by ScreamingHeadGuyTonight's commercial was Greyhound with 4 (that dog can't sing) with the runner-up being Haunted with 3 (what's that song?).
Um, isn't it the song they used to hype the most recent PPV? No? Yes?
The Sayama feint into the kick is called the "613". As Guru could tell you, its the San Diego area code. It was also stolen by Black Tiger III (Silver King)
With La Res, and especially Dupree, getting so much heat the other night, I wonder if Lance shouldn't retool his old Anti-American gimmick from WCW, maybe in a mentoring role to La Res or some such thing.