That RAW Recap 18.05.15

On June 6 2011 RAW was held in Richmond, Virginia. The most exciting thing on the show was R-Truth marching to the ring in a Confederate uniform to talk about a perceived conspiracy against him. It's fun to look back on but when Truth is the highlight of RAW something is going wrong somewhere in the writing process.

Getting on for four years later and RAW was back in Richmond. There were no Confederate uniforms and only a little R-Truth. What there was was a very solid episode of WWE's flagship show. The kind of episode that is all too rare.

The most notable part of the show was the first main roster appearance from Kevin Owens, in which he shared a ring with John Cena. Whether this was the beginning of a full-time call-up or, as seems more likely, something designed to hype Takeover: Unstoppable and give Cena something to do at Elimination Chamber isn't that important. It was NXT champion Kevin Owens on RAW with his championship belt.

The segment started fairly innocuously with Cena issuing his now standard open challenge for a United States title shot. Owens' music didn't get much of a reaction, probably because it's a bit generic, but the audience popped when he appeared. They popped more when he started speaking, saying that he didn't need to introduce himself because Cena knew who he was, as did everyone in the audience who mattered. This prompted Cena to cut in and introduce Owens to the crowd. Owens responded to that with "Thank you. That was nice", a very Owens ad-lib.

After giving Owens a telling off for saying the paying customers don't matter and plugging Takeover: Unstoppable Cena went to offer Owens some veteran advice. It was Owens' turn to cut Cena off with an emphatic reminder that he'd been wrestling for fifteen years, longer than Cena. That prompted Cena to change tack and offer a warning: he said he could tell Owens was a scared kid and that if he wasn't careful Sami Zayn would beat him for the NXT championship at Takeover.

The champ is here.

Back on the US title open challenge Cena asked if Owens wanted the shot. Owens said he'd a prize fighter but that he already had a prize: his NXT championship. He promised Cena they'd face each other one day but that it would be on his terms before going to leave and then surprising Cena with a kick to the gut and a pop-up power bomb. The segment ended with the onetime 'Mr Wrestling' stamping down his foot onto Cena's US title belt and holding his NXT title belt aloft.

This was a great segment. It introduced Owens's character and immediately positioned him as a big deal by having him hold his own verbally with Cena. Having him power bomb 'Mr CeNation' underlined this, making it clear that Owens is not just another prospect but someone who's destined for big things. The final shot of Owens standing on the United States championship and standing over Cena was symbolic of not just Owens' dominance over Cena but of his perceived dominance of the brand he represents over WWE.

In the main event segment the Rollins v Ambrose feud was revived to provide Network special Elimination Chamber with a world title main event. Ambrose interrupted a shindig held in Rollins' honour, just as Triple H, Stephanie, Kane and the New Stooges were putting him over as the greatest wrestler ever. After being told he'd have to join Roman Reigns and Randy Orton at the back of the line 'The Lunatic Fringe' attacked Rollins and they brawled around ringside.

Over at the announce desk Ambrose revealed he'd pulled a trick from Rollins' own play book and stashed a pile of cinder blocks at ringside. With 'The Future's' head in danger of being caved in (which would have put him out of action for a month, as Ambrose demonstrated last year) Stephanie agreed to grant Ambrose a title match. The brawl then continued and Ambrose wound up taking a Pedigree from the WWE champion. No paperwork was signed to make his title match official but something tells me he'll wrestle Rollins anyway.

These guys reviving their series is a good thing.

This segment wasn't anything out of the ordinary. It's one of WWE's standard approaches for setting up world title matches and gets a lot of use in short notice situations like this one. The reason I mention it is that it's good that we're getting a Rollins and Ambrose match again, and that it was nice to see the continuity at play, both with the cinder blocks and Rollins' continued use of the Pedigree. These things are simple to set up in a wrestling environment but they're so rare in WWE and it's frustrating.

In addition to the WWE title match for Elimination Chamber being set the entrants for both of the cage matches were announced too. King Bad News Wade Barrett I, Sheamus, Ryback, Dolph Ziggler, Rusev and, for some reason, R-Truth will compete for the vacant Intercontinental title. I'd have much preferred Adrian Neville in Truth's spot. It's still a possibility, Sheamus or Barrett could wipe Truth out before the Chamber show for example, but it probably won't happen. With or without Truth match quality should be high and I'm interested to see how Rusev's handled. He's coming off three straight big event losses. Would they do a fourth and give it to someone who isn't Cena? I doubt it, but I also can't see them giving him the Intercontinental title.

Meanwhile New Day will defend their tag straps against Cesaro and Kidd, the Lucha Dragons, the Prime Time Players, Los Matadores and The Ascension. It would have been nice to see the recently reunited Luke Harper and Erick Rowan in the match in place of the one of the latter three teams and I'm surprised (but relieved) WWE didn't go overboard and give the Meta Powers a slot. Rowan and Harper would make this match more interesting for me, but I'm fine with the Dragons, New Day and Cesaro and Kidd being in there. This is another good-looking Chamber match.

Considering Elimination Chamber wasn't going to be a thing until around a week ago a good job was done prepping it here. For the first time in years there are enough teams in the tag division to make a six team match feasible and the company's spoilt for choice when it comes to potential IC champions (which, to be honest, makes the inclusion of R-Truth even more puzzling. Ambrose and Rollins never have a bad match together and Cena v Owens, while unlikely to be a classic encounter, feels like a genuinely important moment: the NXT champ meeting the face of the company.

WWE King of the Ring 2015 review

As part of an effort to load up the Network with original programming for a week the decision was made to resurrect the King of the Ring tournament. The reasoning behind creating a "packed" week on the Network was that it would encourage those experiencing a free trial to sign up as full members. Whether or not a live Chris Jericho podcast with Stephanie McMahon and a Mick Foley comedy special are enough to get that done I don't know, but I suspect they are not.

I also suspect that King of the Ring, done in the style it was, was not a subscriptions winner either. The announcement that what was once a fairly prestigious tournament was made on Sunday night. By Tuesday evening the tournament had concluded. This brevity goes a long way towards explaining what was wrong with the approach. What could comfortably have provided the Network with original programming for a month was crammed into two nights, only one of which benefited the Network.

Had the longer course been taken the tournament would have seemed more prestigious and the accomplishment of winning would have seemed greater. More could have been made of the tourney's history and status as a career launcher. That status is admittedly spectacularly hit-and-miss (for every Steve Austin there's a Mabel) but the less impressive winners could have been downplayed or flat out ignored.

Delaying the opening bracket until Tuesday, instead of racing everything through, would have created time for guys to go out on RAW and discuss their desire to be entered into the tournament and win it. The course actually taken left no time for this, which contributed to the overall rushed feel of the thing.

Finally, there were the entrants. For the most part the choices were fine. Ambrose, Ziggler, Sheamus, Harper and Barrett were all perfectly logical additions. Stardust was a mild surprise, given the writing team's disinterest in him since WrestleMania. Neville, the man who sold his first name for a shot on the main roster, was an obvious addition too. As a newcomer he benefited from being put n the same level as other names involved in the tournament.

The only actively bad entrant was R-Truth. The man is on the same level as the likes of Curtis Axel and Heath Slater, losing almost all of his matches and sticking around on the roster as a featured good guy jobber. There's nothing wrong with a guy having this position (someone needs to fill it) but entering such a guy into an eight man tournament is stupid. It dilutes the meaning of the tournament if someone who loses all the time gets entered and it denies younger, more popular guys an opportunity for more screen time. Damien Sandow, Ryback, Cearo, Tyson Kidd, Kalisto, or any member of New Day would have been a better choice than Truth. In fact, the entire thing could probably have been fleshed out to include sixteen men without any difficulty (although that would have necessitated the longer approach WWE seemed to want to avoid).

Two former Dragon Gate lads getting some King of the Ring action.

Three of the four opening round matches on RAW were enjoyable. Ambrose and Sheamus showed that they work well opposite one another. A series between them wouldn't be the worst thing WWE could do. Ziggler v Barrett was good but a tad on the basic side, perhaps due to the fact that the pair have worked with one another before and failed to give us anything new here. Stardust v R-Truth was bad. It was always going to be but it was made worse by 'The Suntan Superman' winning. Neville versus Harper was a truly great match. Although it was disappointing to see Harper lose again he wasn't weakened by the loss because the match was so competitive. And, y'know, wins and losses mean little in WWE anyway.

The King of the Ring show opened with a video package highlighting past kings. In order, we saw Austin, Triple H, Lesnar, Randy Savage, Booker T, Harley Race, Bret Hart, Edge, and Sheamus. This was a solid acknowledgement to the tourney's history but far more could have been done with more time. Jerry Lawler was introduced to cut a promo explaining how a tournament works (yes, really) and cue up a recap of the four matches the night before. It was filler material as much as anything.

Backstage Sheamus cut a promo designed to show that he was looking past Adrian Neville to the finals. It was basic but it did its job. Elsewhere in the building Nev told Renee Young that he intended win the tournament. He was mostly pretty humble about the achievements he'd made in his month on the main roster. It's a shame that he's not allowed to show the arrogant streak he had in NXT but nuance isn't a thing that guys are allowed on the main roster. He did get to reference NXT though, which was something.

Even though they didn't deviate much form the standard TV formula they produced a good match. 'Great White' knocked Neville about. Neville kept coming back for more because he's plucky. Eventually Dolph Ziggler came out and brought up footage of him beating Shaymo at Extreme Rules. This threw Sheamus off, causing him to miss a Brogue kick which allowed Neville to hit him with a roundhouse and the Red Arrow for the victory. The finish was cheap but that's not a surprise. WWE wanted to have Sheamus lose but they weren't prepared to have Neville beat him clean.

After the match Ziggler rushed the ring and attacked Sheamus. They had a bit of a scuffle before being separated by referees. This was all the evidence needed to show that King of the Ring was just a veil to book the usual stuff around.

Backstage again Bad News Barrett said R-Truth should be more worried about him than spiders. This was in response to Truth saying that if he became King he'd banish spiders from WWE. Barrett ended up saying he'd win. But he wouldn't say anything else, would he? The spider talk was quite possibly the reason Truth got added to the tournament. It's the sort of humour Vince loves. You only needed to watch Truth's promo with Saxton to see that. He spent the entire time talking about his dislike of spiders, instead of putting over his opponent or the tournament he was involved in.

The Truth versus Barrett match was better than I'd expected. But then I hadn't expected much so that's not saying a great deal. Bad News got the most predictable win of the tournament with the Bullhammer elbow.

Backstage one again Renee asked Dolph about his accidental assist to Sheamus on RAW (he attacked Sheamus, giving him a win by disqualification). 'The Show Off' called Sheamus a bully and made it clear he was keen on getting another match with him. Barrett and Neville were also interviewed again. They both predicted victories. That was about it.

The King of the Ring finals pitted two Englishmen against each other in a rematch from the Extreme Rules pre-show. That was yet another blow to the tournament's shaky standing: neither man was important enough to appear on the most recent pay-per-view. In fairness having the finals be a rematch of a recent meeting did add something. We knew that Neville could beat Barrett if things went right for him, which made the match seem more predictable than it likely would have been otherwise.

King Bad News I.

But this was not Extreme Rules. It was Barrett's brutality against Neville's speed and well-placed kicks, and the brutality won out. The story of the match was that Neville's inexperience relative to Barrett and the pasting he'd taken form Sheamus combined to create an insurmountable struggle for him. He had a handful of hopes spots and got in some nice moves, including a lovely top rope Asai moonsault and a deadlift German suplex, but ultimately Neville fell to the Bullhammer after missing the Red Arrow. While the match wasn't bad it could have been a lot better, a fitting end to a rushed King of the Ring.

Although I've knocked this King of the Ring a fair bit there were things to enjoy. Barrett winning, for example, is not the worst thing in the world and while none of the matches were all-time classics the match quality was of a high standard. Having Neville advance to the finals was good too, and he wasn't made to look like a pushover in his final defeat. The King of the Ring format is one that could really work well on the Network. I'd like to see it brought back again next year. If it's given more attention and the winner is given a sustained push (somehow I don't think that's going to be the case for King Bad News) it could be turned into the launching pad it was at times in the nineties.

Streaking Dallas

The July 28 RAW saw the undefeated streak of Bo Dallas end. He’d racked up seventeen victories since his reintroduction to the WWE roster. No earthshattering but a significant enough accomplishment in modern WWE. Who was selected to hand Dallas his first non-NXT defeat in 2014? That would be R-Truth.

That's a winning smile, right there.

Truth being the man to halt Bo’s streak is a perfect example of WWE ineptitude. Bo could have kept racking up unimpressive victories against the jobbers of the roster while challenging a major star (let’s say Cena, for example) to a match. Like Jericho and Goldberg in WCW, basically. Bo could have been ignored for a bit while Cena busied himself with having a proper feud, causing him to interfere in a match and cost Cena a win.

Cena could come out the next week and agreed to face Bo. Pleased at getting his match Bo could celebrate with a victory lap before announcing he’ll face Cena on pay-per-viw. Cue several weeks of backstage training skits from Bo and a continuation of the streak on SmackDown and Main Event. The PPV meeting itself could go one of two ways: Bo could be jobbed out or, preferably, he could look competitive before getting beaten clean.

I should, at this point, mention that Cena’s not actually the ideal person for this scenario. As much as it would help Bo being the a programme, any programme, with the company’s number one guy, the negatives are pretty obvious. Cena is not generally inclined towards star-making performances at the best of times so placing him in a situation where the appeal lies in him facing someone vastly inferior is probably not advisable. Realistically someone like Dolph Ziggler or Mark Henry-if-he-were-on-TV-and-doing-something would have been a good option, although it’s worth noting that it’s the kind of storyline that a babyface Batista would thrive on.

Anyway, whichever finish they went with (and whichever bigger-than-Bo star they selected) in the pay-per-view bout the winning streak would have ended in a memorable fashion (and it needed to end because he's not the sort of character who goes without losing for long) and Bo's elevated by working with someone higher up the card than him. It would also have set him up for a programme with someone on his level too. A mid-card face could have mocked Bo the night after his loss, setting up a new programme with a clear, easy-to-understand starting point. No it’s not exactly ideal babyface behaviour but it wouldn’t be at all out of place in the WWE of 2014.

Dropping Truth

Over the spring and summer of 2011 R-Truth turned heel. He was a revelation in the role. Gone was the smiling, dancing mid-card babyface, replaced by an engaging and amusing paranoid schizophrenic convinced that being made to pander to children for years had cost him his shot at the big time. He revelled in peppering his promos with strange phrases and audience interaction and adopted a more aggressive ring style (as all WWE heels do). He became a programming highlight and did some of the best work of his career.

What happened to that guy?

WWE fumbled things. Anything they've not got a plan in place for that becomes popular gets fumbled. That's what happens when a wrestling company has no long term plans (or goals) and a creative department who don't understand the wrestling business to a satisfactory degree.

The specifics with Truth are particularly disappointing. He headlined June's Capitol Punishment in a WWE championship match with John Cena and then did absolutely nothing of note until the autumn, despite being one of wrestling's biggest bad guys at the time.

In retrospect he probably got overshadowed by the CM Punk worked shoot promo and ensuing mega push. That shouldn't have been the case but WWE have demonstrated regularly that they're incapable of elevating two acts at the same time. R-Truth drew the short straw.

Autumn saw 'The Suntan Superman' enter into a worked shoot angle of his own. He formed a partnership with fellow loose-ender The Miz and unsuccessfully challenged Air Boom for the tag team titles at Night of Champions. Due to Miz attacking the referee of that match the pair were fired.

The next month’s Hell in a Cell show was main evented by John Cena v CM Punk v Alberto Del Rio in a triple threat Cell match and featured Awesome Truth slipping out from under the ring to attack all three combatants. Their actions were portrayed as unscripted. The show ended with Truth and Miz brawling with COO Triple H in the aisle as the entire roster crowded around. It was a bizarre approach for a WWE card in this day and age

It all seemed to be hinting at something huge. A bold new approach to the way WWE presented its storylines or a massive push for Truth and 'The Awesome One'. It wasn't either. The pair were reinstated on TV in a thoroughly generic manner and went on to defeat Tripper and CM Punk at Vengeance. It was then announced they were the opponents for SuperCena and The Rock at Survivor Series.

Sounds like a good spot? It was, but the twosome were treated like the expendable mid-card talent they were when bell time came in their Survivor Series bout. They were split on the following evening’s RAW and then drifted off into obscurity.

A few months later Truth had morphed back into a bland good guy. That he held the hand of Little Jimmy as he made his way to the ring was a nice holdover from his storyline the previous summer but it was also depressing that nothing else of the period remained. Truth playing the face again wasn't a problem in itself: he was and is good in the role. It was disappointing that nothing had come of some of wrestling's best antagonism of the year.

If you were being charitable you could point out that 2012 saw Truth form a popular team with Kofi Kingston and reign as a tag champ for over four months. The tag title reign is a fact but only came about because there were no alternative teams available. The popularity claim would be pure fantasy: nobody was clamouring to see Truth and Kingston teaming together.

 

Push this guy... and Little Jimmy too

Since he and 'The Wildcat' went their separate ways Truth has sunk to his lowest point since before his heel turn. He's had a string of meaningless TV and pay-per-view matches and was never in any danger of wrestling on the WrestleMania card. He didn't even appear in the Royal Rumble. That says it all.

R-Truth proved in 2011 that he could be a valuable part of the WWE product. As the company is desperate for reliable guys right now they should be making more use if him.

Another heel turn wouldn't work. Having initially been done so well two years ago a repeat performance would have very little impact. More to the point, Truth is one of only a handful of faces that can be regularly sacrificed to Wade Barrett and Antonio Cesaro. If there were a mid-card scene to speak of he could be put to good use there. But there's not, and creating one doesn't seem terribly high on WWE's list of priorities.

I think the best thing that could be done with R-Truth now is to have him reform Awesome Truth. The Miz will soon stop playing movie star and become a full-time wrestler again. There's nothing obvious for him to return to as a singles guy and we've established Truth's doing nothing interesting so pairing them up again would give both a purpose. They had good chemistry during their original run and as they’re both faces now it would be easy for them to put a fresh spin on their act.

Stick them in a feud with the Rhodes Scholars for two months, have them win the programme, and it's just about conceivable that they could be used as challengers to The Shield over the summer. Like the idea it not it's a better use for two name talents than having them tread water.

Real American

Anyone who's watched WWE over the last twelve months will be able to tell you that Antonio Cesaro has been a great success story. He's carved out a niche for himself as a rising star and enjoyed ring time with several of the company's top acts. Nobody gets to have competitive matches with Randy Orton, Sheamus and The Ryback unless they're being presented as something of worth.
 
The crowning achievement of Cesaro's WWE run so far is arguably his United States title reign. He won the strap on the SummerSlam pre-show, broadcast on YouTube, from comedy act Santino. Since then he's been presented as a fighting champion, working surprisingly enjoyable matches with the likes of R-Truth, Zack Ryder and Justin Gabriel.
 
He has proven himself to be a reliable wrestler and a reliable promo. Practically anyone on the roster could be put in a match with him and be made to look at least decent. He got something passable out of The Great Khali. Twice! If that doesn't prove his talent I don't know what does.

Zips are cool

 
Over the last few months Cesaro has dropped the anti-America shtick that characterised the early weeks and months of his US title run and instead started embracing the country. Coming to the ring waving Old Glory and wearing trunks patterned with stars and stripes while disingenuously endorsing the US has proven a far more effective way of having fans turn on him than merely proclaiming himself (and Switzerland) better would in 2013. It's been a smart, enjoyable move.
 
I'd like to see Cesaro take things even further and begin emulating Hulk Hogan. Throughout the 80s 'The Hulkster's' chief gimmick was that of the uber-patriot. It was a clever move back then. The Cold War was still an ongoing thing and the US fans were generally happier to cheer a guy wrestling in a singlet interpretation of the national flag than they are today. It was cheap but it didn't matter. It worked.
 
Have Cesaro wrestle decked out in red and yellow tye dye trunks with a Swiss Cross or the Stars and Stripes on them. Let him keep the flag and the championship he's restored credibility to and add the Hogan pose routine to the act. Even if just for one night, say WrestleMania, I think it would be great. The heel European rubbing the embarrassing, overly-patriotic image of Hogan, a man who has since become somewhat of an embarrassment to the wrestling business in general, into the faces of fans. I can hear the boos (and ironic cheers) now.

SmackTalk 14.12.12

The heavy push of Sheamus is getting out of hand. Desperate to turn him into a valuable, money-drawing superstar WWE are trying every trick in the book to convince fans that he belongs at the top and is deserving of their support. The tried and tested roadblock method has been trotted out numerous times throughout the year in an effort to portray him as the valiant underdog battling insurmountable odds.
 
In theory it's a shrewd move. Overcoming adversity is one of the key attributes that makes someone a good guy in the wrestling business. Unfortunately WWE have used the trick so often with 'The Celtic Warrior' that it's become meaningless. We know heels are going to try to place limitations on Sheamus or weasel out of matches with him but we've seen several times that the Irishman always gets his way in the end. There's no reason to back him. He’ll succeed whether we support him or not.
 
The latest setback suffered by 'Great White' was an unintentional nudge to Big Show. 'The Giant' deliberately misinterpreted this as Sheamus disregarding their no contact before TLC agreement and demanded the match be scrubbed. Yep, schoolyard level antics between two men feuding over a world championship.
 
Naturally Sheamus didn't take kindly to this cowardice. He marched to the ring clenching a chair and (loudly) announced that if the match was off he'd have no reason not to attack Big Show. The champion, of course, backed down and the bout will take place as planned.
 
To my mind this made Sheamus look weak. He had to have a chair with him to be taken seriously by Big Show. It may be part of a storyline that started at Survivor Series but it doesn't do the challenger any favours. The scenario also made him look like a whiner. Again. Why would fans want to get behind a man who complains so much? That's what the bad guys are supposed to do.

This guy gobbles up screen time like there's no tomorrow

 
The ending of the episode seemed unsatisfactory too. This also involved Sheamus. 'Great White' had been facing Antonio Cesaro but had become distracted when Big Show appeared on the stage with an injured William Regal. Shaymo left the ring and minced up the ramp to confront Show, only to be stopped by Regal (the no contact clause, remember?), who was then smacked with a chair by Show.
 
The programme went off the air with Show and Sheamus glaring at each other. It was a complete anti-climax. When you remember that this was the final show of note before TLC it seems an even more ridiculous ending. In these situations we should see a fight, not intense glaring.
 
What should have ended the show was the Miz TV segment. That saw the incredibly over Ryback make an appearance (WWE have remembered that less is more with him at least) to fend off The Shield alongside Team Hell No. Not only were more popular acts involved with this portion of the show but it's also the bout that will headline TLC. It may have been another stare-off but with some of the men in the crowd it would have been more acceptable than the Show and Sheamus one. They weren’t within touching distance and it was booked to get Ryback over rather than to further a nonsensical clause.
 
SmackDown wasn't without its high points.  The Cesaro v Sheamus main event was very good until the end sequence begun. I'd like to see a proper feud between them at some point. The return of Cody Rhodes to Friday nights was also very nicely handled. Giving him and Sandow promo time helped them re-establish their tag team and get some heat. 'The Intellectual Saviour' was particularly good in this segment.
 
And that was SmackDown. A decent broadcast that didn't quite pull off the job of a "go home" show. But, sadly, that's normal.

Opening video

Tweet 1: Let's talk some Smack.

Tweet 2: These Shield guys seem to be catching on.
Tweet 3: Sheamus on the other hand...

R-Truth v Big Show

Tweet 4: Opening shot features Antonio Cesaro (Heeeey!) and his satchel. Lovely way to kick off the show.

Tweet 5: It's been ruined by the arrival of Big Show.
Tweet 6: JBL and Mathews don't seem interested in putting over the US title feud. It doesn't matter. Antonio doesn't need their help.
Tweet 7: There's a reason four man annoucne booths have never caught on.
Tweet 8: Sheamus thinks his match at TLC will be one of the toughest of Show's career. Um... Didn't Hogan once throw Show off a roof?
Tweet 9: In a car?
Tweet 10: #satchelbump
Tweet 11: That match existed only to highlight two singles feuds. It was okay for what it was.
Tweet 12: Sheamus lightly brushed Show and that will, in the heel's mind, be enough to have the title bout match cancelled. I can't see it somehow.
Tweet 13: This no contact thing is very similar to the banning of the Brogue Kick during the ADR programme. I didn't like that either.

Big Show and Booker T backstage

Tweet 14: Big Show fears no man.

Tweet 15: Booker hasn't cancelled the match. How predictable.

The Rhodes Scholars v The Usos

Tweet 16: #Sandowpop

Tweet 17: Sandow and Rhodes are best friends. Classic.

Best friends

Tweet 18: Sandow's reaction to the crowd's noise was brilliant. He needs a title in 2013.
Tweet 19: "Cody's moustache!" - The audience on Cody's moustache
Tweet 20: Why push a pay-per-view that will make you money when you can push the Slammy Awards?
Tweet 21: The Usos have "day one" written on their trunks. They are also brothers. Could it be more obvious they're stealing from the Briscoes?

David Otunga promo, featuring Big Show, Booker T and Sheamus

Tweet 22: Who do you go to if you're a WWE wrestler and you have a legal problem? Why, David Otunga of course.

Tweet 23: Oh good. We're getting a legality-based Otunga promo.
Tweet 24: Otunga is recapping a fake legal document. I can almost hear the ratings soaring.
Tweet 25: Booker should just make a match between Otunga and Show. It's what I'd do in this situation.
Tweet 26: Sheamus gets way too much air time. Less is more. If we're to embrace him as a top guy his appearances need to be kept to a minimum.
Tweet 27: Otunga sold that kick like he'd had an anvil dropped on his head.

The Shield assault Randy Orton backstage

Tweet 28: That's Orton off TV. Again.

Kaitlyn v Aksana

Tweet 29: Aksana's a wrestler again? Since when?

Tweet 30: Why is Kaitlyn wrestling in combat fatigues? Where is her wrestling gear? WHAT IS GOING ON?
Tweet 31: This match, like the Bret Hart v Shawn Michaels match at WrestleMania XII, is based around a headlock. I don't rate either.
Tweet 32: "Ask her!" - Aksana Jericho
Tweet 33: Kaitlyn overcomes a fearsome headlock to get the win with a generic move.
Tweet 34: It's worth noting that that match was a payoff to something that happened three months ago. Who says WWE doesn't treat the Divas seriously?

Matt Striker backstage

Tweet 35: Matt Striker standing outside a room containing Randy Orton there. Like a ruddy stalker.

Miz TV, featuring Daniel Bryan, Kane, The Shield and Ryback

Tweet 36: Miz TV. #boredface

Tweet 37: I miss Bryan's entrance music.
Tweet 38: Talking of Team Hell No's anger management therapy where's Dr Shelby?
Tweet 39: Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes!
Tweet 40: Dean Ambrose's facial expressions remind me of Scott Hall. I hope he enters with a toothpick in his mouth at TLC.
Tweet 41: I think Ryback's hungry.

Hornswoggle, The Great Khali, Tyson Kidd and Justin Gabriel v The Prime Time Players, Epico and Primo

Tweet 42: Khali can't even walk convincingly!!

Tweet 43: I've changed my opinion on Titus O'Neil. I now think he's pretty entertaining. He's just not a very good wrestler.
Tweet 44: "I will be heading south tonight" - Josh Mathews, offering us a glimpse into his personal life
Tweet 45: Please can someone fire Hornswoggle?

Rosa Mendes takes a crisp bump...

Kofi Kingston v Alberto Del Rio

Tweet 46: Albertooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo Dellllllll Riiiiiiiooooooooo!!

Tweet 47: ADR sporting some nice white trunks here. Perhaps a precursor to a babyface turn? That'd be a stupid move...
Tweet 48: How great would it be if Wade Barrett was disguised as the referee and attacked Kofi mid-match?
Tweet 49: Kofi wins a surprisingly good match on a rollup. It was portrayed as a fluke victory, natch.
Tweet 50: Barrett DOES attack, but he's not dressed in ref garb. Pity.

William Regal and Sheamus chat backstage

Tweet 51: This faux friendship between Regal and Sheamus makes me think less of Regal.

Tweet 52: Look into Regal's eyes as Sheamus is hollering. He looks bored.

Sheamus v Antonio Cesaro

Tweet 53: Antonio Cesaro. Heeeey!!

Tweet 54: Who covets the United States title, Josh?
Tweet 55: Cesaro is making Sheamus entertaining. Witchcraft?
Tweet 56: JBL is referencing football (soccer) on a wrestling broadcast. Practically nobody in the US will understand who or what he's talking about.
Tweet 57: Cesaro just powered up Sheamus. The big question is can he lift up Tensai without botching?
Tweet 58: Cesaro wins a stop-start match by count out. The right guy won in the wrong way.

TLC 2012 preview

For the record I don't think there's any way Ryback would have left TLC as WWE champion had the original advertised main event taken place. Punk versus Rock is the match that will headline Royal Rumble. If WWE decision makers wanted to have 'The Great One' battle 'Big Hungry' then they could have put the belt on him at either Hell in a Cell or Survivor Series. They wouldn't have left it until December to swap the gold.
 
The new main event is thankfully a lot less predictable. Will WWE have Ryback suffer a third straight supershow job or will new act The Shield suffer defeat in their debut outing? Whatever happens a heavily pushed act is going to have to take a loss.
 
What makes this match interesting is that it will be fought under Tables, Ladders and Chairs rules despite there being nothing to hang above the ring. Nothing logical anyway. Perhaps WWE will have a really big chair or a solid gold table dangling from the rafters. Unless that happens we're stuck with the peculiar formula of having a TLC decided by pinfall or submission.
 
I think The Shield will win this. While that will be another loss for 'The Human Wrecking Ball' he doesn't necessarily have to be the one losing for his team. Rollins or Ambrose can pin Bryan to protect Ryback as much as possible. The hungry one can be rebuilt with a strong showing, or perhaps even a victory, at the Royal Rumble.

There are seventeen bodies buried in that rubble

 
The rest of the card seems pretty average by current standards. That's fitting considering current standards are best described as pretty average.
 
WWE's two mid-card championships will be defended in matches that should help to provide some solid wrestling action. Wade Barrett will challenge Intercontinental champion Kofi Kingston and R-Truth will get a second pay-per-view crack at Antonio Cesaro's United States gold.
 
The IC title match could be won by either man. 'The Wildcat' retaining seems a little likelier as he's lost a fair number of non-title outings since winning the belt for the fourth time. If Barrett's to get a second reign it could just as easily happen on television or at the Rumble. The feud feels like it still has mileage left in so a Barrett victory can be held off for a bit longer.
 
The US title seems safe with Cesaro. WWE seem to be giving him a long reign to help distinguish him from the pack and restore something resembling prestige to the title. What would be the point in R-Truth winning? We've already seen WWE have no intention of pushing him of making the title mean anything. Things are best left as they are here. 'The Swiss Superman' is my pick to win.

WWE’s most entertaining tag team, the Rhodes Scholars, will put their number one contendership on the line in a tables match. A mildly interesting note here is that this will be Sandow’s first gimmick pay-per-view match. That’s a sign that WWE view him as an asset. They should. He’s great.

I’d rather see the Scholars challenge for the tag team titles than Rey Mysterio and Sin Cara but there are long standing rumours that the masked men will be facing one another at WrestleMania. If that’s to happen WWE are going to need to get the ball rolling on the descent of the partnership fairly soon. It would be more impactful if that started happening in a championship match than a number one contenders match. Reluctantly I’ll pick Mysterio and Mr Cara to win.

Sheamus and Big Show will once again do battle for the World Heavyweight championship. After a clean win for Show at HIAC and a dodgy finish, including a post-match chair-fuelled beating, at Survivor Series the two are finally getting to face off in a gimmick match. Big Show's so limited that I'm surprised it's taken this long to come about.
 
The two will battle in a chairs match because of the aforementioned chair assault. An interesting note is that Big Show captured the WHC from Mark Henry in a chair collision at last year's TLC... then lost the belt to Daniel Bryan in a surprise Money in the Bank cash-in bonus. Expect the announcers to mention that. A lot.
 
How often in WWE does someone lose a title to someone they're feuding with and then regain it a few weeks or months later? It's rare. I don't remember it happening since Christian and Randy Orton's excellent 2011 series. As Sheamus lost the title to 'The Giant' two months ago the odds seem against him becoming a two time champion at TLC. Nevertheless I'm going to predict 'Great White' will overcome 'The World's Largest Athlete' and leave as the new champ because, realistically, who else is there for Show to face?
 
What will be interesting is whether or not Dolph Ziggler cashes in his Money in the Bank briefcase. He's due to defend it in a ladder match with John Cena but if the Sheamus v Big Show match were to go on first 'The Show Off' could cash-in and become champion (or lose, I suppose) before his scheduled clash for the case. Looking at WWE's long term booking it's very possible they'll want the secondary world title around Cena's waist heading into WrestleMania XXIX for a match with Undertaker, Brock Lesnar or The Rock. This would be an enjoyable, fairly surprising way of bringing that about. It would play up Ziggler's misfortune with short world title reigns too, turning it into a plot point to be picked up later.
 
Cena v Ziggler is a tough match to predict. I think it will be one of 'The CeNation Leader's' most enjoyable outings in a while and it will largely be thanks to some big, impressive bumps from 'The Sole Survivor'. If Ziggler heads in as World champ I think Cena will beat him to set up a title feud for WrestleMania. If it's for the briefcase I think AJ will scamper down to ringside, get involved in an altercation with Dolph, Vickie Guerrero or both and take a bump of some sort, distracting the valiant, lantern-jawed Super Cena and allowing Ziggler to steal a win.
 
As I think it's slightly more likely this match will be for the case than for the title I'm going to predict a Ziggler win. I want to see him continue his run as 'Mr Money in the Bank'. There's some genuine mystery as to when he'll cash-in.
 
There are likely to be more matches added to the card. Alberto Del Rio is currently without an opponent. He’ll probably be used. The Divas will likely get some air time to furnish us with a disappointing match too. They’ve got a number one contenders battle royal on the YouTube pre-show. A title match on the PPV would make sense.
 
TLC has the potential to be a memorable event thanks to the debut of The Shield and the possibility of a Ziggler cash-in. It will also be interesting to see what CM Punk gets up to. He will be on commentary for the main event match and it's said he wanted to wrestle but is being held him off the card as a precaution. They don't want to jeopardise their Rumble main event. I think it's the right decision. Punk could interfere in a match though, or provide commentary. It's a show that really needs an appearance from him considering his next big programme.
 
Predictions summary:
The Shield to defeat Ryback and Team Hell No
Sheamus to defeat Big Show for the World Heavyweight championship
Dolph Ziggler to defeat John Cena

Rey Mysterio and Sin Cara to defeat The Rhodes Scholars
Kofi Kingston to defeat Wade Barrett
Antonio Cesaro to defeat R-Truth

SmackTalk 07.12.12

Old feuds were the order of the day on this week’s SmackDown.

The opening match was a non-title bout pitting World Heavyweight champion Big Show against tag team champion Daniel Bryan. They were programmed against one another at the end of last year and the beginning of this year in a three way feud that also involved Mark ‘The Shark’ Henry. As ever Bryan was utterly believable despite facing a man three times his size. It was a solid match that flattered both men. If only more guys could work this well with the blubbery world champ.

Later on in the show was a bout pitting Randy Orton against Wade Barrett. As the (alleged) former bare knuckle boxing champion happily pointed out before the match he and ‘The Viper’ had a heated rivalry twelve months ago. The Brit also reminded us that he chucked Orton down a flight of stairs, one of the most ridiculous sights in the history of SmackDown.

As with Show versus Bryan it was a very engaging match. The finish saw Kofi Kingston distract Barrett, allowing ‘The Apex Predator’ to sneak in an RKO for the victory. It was a nice way to advance the IC title programme, although it did highlight (at least to me) the fact that Orton seems to be without a regular opponent right now.

The final high profile rematch saw Sheamus face with Alberto Del Rio. Yes, WWE revived their most irritating, tiresome and uninspiring feud of 2012 for us! I thought this was easily one of their better outings. Had they had more matches like this over the summer I wouldn’t have complained so much.

Interspersed between these three big name matches was the usual blue brand filler. A six man tag match pitting the Three Man Band against Brodus Clay and the Uso brothers was never going to set the world on fire but it did at least have the right result (the heels went over). At this point the popularity of the ‘Funkasaurus’ character seems like ancient history. That’s a shame. WWE could have had something special had they stuck with it.

The rivalry between R-Truth and Antonio Cesaro was advanced with an in-ring promo. Truth had to resort to pro-America posturing to entice a reaction from fans. ‘The Swiss Superman’ did a better job, digging at the crowd with some classic anti-American heel statements. Even better was the inclusion of his ridiculous bag. Only JBL referenced to it. I liked that. There was no need for it to be there. I hope it becomes an Antonio signature.

The standout performance of the week once again came from Damien Sandow. His interaction with the planted member of the audience was brilliant. A perfect example of why ‘The Intellectual Saviour’ has etched out a regular spot on both RAW and SmackDown.

Finally I feel I should mention the programme ending groin bump. There’s no better way to close a wrestling show. Lou Thesz swore by ‘em.

Opening video

Tweet 1: Smackdoooooooown. Yes?

Tweet 2: When Rollins was the ROH champion he secretly dreamed of working with The Miz on RAW.
Tweet 3: Vince isn't even bothering to turn up on TV when re-booking everything now.

Big Show and Sheamus contract signing, featuring Booker T

Tweet 4: Is this a contract signing? Great way to start a wrestling show!

Tweet 5: Love that supermarket line from Booker.
Tweet 6: If Sheamus was a real man he'd have blasted Show a with the steel chair 459 times.
Tweet 7: Careful how you pronounce contract, Booker.
Tweet 8: The fella's wearing a new T-shirt. Looks like a poor imitation of Punk's old design.
Tweet 9: Sheamus pretending he can read there.
Tweet 10: I hate Sheamus and his smug promos. I hope he regains the belt and then Ziggler cashes in on him.
Tweet 11: Sheamus went to WWE for a fight. Much like Finlay. #racialstereotyping
Tweet 12: Sheamus v Del Rio? How fresh...

Big Show v Daniel Bryan

Tweet 13: No.... No... No... No... No...

Tweet 14: Big Show's flying bump off the dropkick to the knee was ridiculous.
Tweet 15: Big Show versus Grizzly Redwood has been enjoyable so far.
Tweet 16: The Shield make their not at all anticipated SmackDown debut.
Tweet 17: The crowd are chanting "Feed me more!" If that doesn't show how over Ryback is I don't know what does.

Damien Sandow searches for an apprentice

Tweet 18: #Sandowpop

Tweet 19: "Silence the music. I am about to speak" - Damien Sandow
Tweet 20: Heat for Obama there.
Tweet 21: Is Miz going to be Sandow's apprentice?

Bad form

The Usos and Brodus Clay v Three Man Band

Tweet 22: Brodus sighting. I wouldn't describe him as over anymore. I don't think anyone would. I hope he does his creepy dance with kids after this.

Tweet 23: Drew McIntyre seems VERY keen on himself.
Tweet 24: The Funkasaurus character needs to stay the same for at least two more years and then Brodus should turn heel.
Tweet 25: It would be akin to Hogan's nWo heel turn.
Tweet 26: Women and children would cry. Grown men would ask how they could have been so trusting.
Tweet 27: 3MB won by the way.

Anyone else thinking King of Trios 2013?

Randy Orton v Wade Barrett

Tweet 28: I think water could trickle down that ramp quicker than Orton.

Tweet 29: BARRETT RING COAT ALERT!!
Tweet 30: Barrett and Orton have good matches with one another. Most guys have good matches with 'The Viper'. He's one of WWE's best.
Tweet 31: Barrett has clearly been watching some Chris Hero ROH outings lately.
Tweet 32: Orton's pre-RKO taunt is pretty camp.

Hornswoggle and The Great Khali v Epico and Primo

Tweet 33: Khali and Natalya together backstage. I wonder how Tyson feels about that.

Tweet 34: KHALI CAN'T EVEN WALK CONVINCINGLY!!
Tweet 35: This has to be one of the worst matches of the year. Who have Epico and Primo annoyed to get lumbered with Khali?

Antonio Cesaro promo

Tweet 36: Antonio Cesaro... Heeeey!

Tweet 37: Cesaro is not a fan of 'The American Dream'.
Tweet 38: You want to know what's up, Truth? That weird headgear of yours.
Tweet 39: The way this is going I think Cesaro's going to cheat to win at TLC. A clean victory seems unlikely.
Tweet 40: Why is Cesaro wearing a satchel? What's in it? A sixth language perhaps?
Tweet 41: "When you kick my dog, I'm going to kick your cat" - R-Truth, unveiling another random line that's sure to catch on

Alberto Del Rio v Sheamus

Tweet 42: The highlight of this main event will be Ricardo. I've seen them wrestle each other too often this year to care anymore.

Tweet 43: Albertooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo Dellllllllllll Riiiiiiiiiiiiiooooooooooooooo!!
Tweet 44: I DON'T CARE ABOUT THE CAR!
Tweet 45: Sheamus used the chair "over 31 times" did he, Josh? 32? 33?
Tweet 46: Josh just explaining the no contact clause there. Nobody cares.
Tweet 47: Nice moonsault from ADR.
Tweet 48: This is one of the better matches these two have had. It's still only average though. Yes, I'd actually rather watch Big Show wrestle...
Tweet 49: Are we supposed to believe Sheamus has only just seen Show? The lump's been stood on the stage for at least five minutes.
Tweet 50: #groinbump

SmackTalk 23.11.12

This is what SmackDown should be every week: an exciting collection of matches and segments (more of the former than the latter) that help to create and advance feuds and acts. It’s rare for the programme to achieve it but it did so this week, and in style. Time was allocated to acts WWE is going to rely upon in the future and there was more than one good match. It was the best episode in a very long time.

Damien Sandow v Kofi Kingston, Dolph Ziggler v Randy Orton, and Sin Cara v Alberto Del Rio were all above average for WWE television. The battle of the former CMLL employees was the masked man’s best outing since joining the sports entertainment group. While he and ADR have clashed in WWE before they have never set such a quick pace. It’s a shame we’ve had to wait a year and a half for a passable outing from Triple H’s star signing.

The appearances from John Cena and Ryback were welcome too. Cena, as the company’s leading man, lent the show some star power. I could have done without the continuation of his dreary relationship saga with AJ and Vickie but at least Ziggler is getting to work with the number one guy. Meanwhile ‘Big Hungry’s’ star will continue to rise thanks to the back to basics approach of having him squash a defenceless mid-carder.

The show’s central strength was the prep work done for various feuds. The Big Show and Sheamus programme rumbled on with the two men taunting each other after the World champ had won a handicap match. It was a strange booking decision. Being the tag team champions Team Hell No should not have been jobbed out to a singles competitor. The fact that they’re babyfaces meant the match had an odd dynamic (heels being disadvantaged never makes sense). It was a good match nonetheless and did at least keep the story of Bryan and Kane being dysfunctional alive.

 

R-Truth got a non-championship victory over US champ Antonio Cesaro, setting up a title match at some point in the future. Finally, Wade Barrett made it very clear he wants to take the Intercontinental gold from Kofi Kingston.

 

A great deal was packed into the ninety minutes and the majority of it made sense and entertained viewers. Again, this is what SmackDown should be every week.

e

 

Intro video

Tweet 1: "Tonight, on SmackDown... Vickie Guerrero continues her crusade against AJ and John Cena's scandalous relationship." Yeah... STAY TUNED!!

Tweet 2: I watch wrestling for storylines about scandalous affairs. It's what drives me. That and the uppercuts.
Tweet 3: Epic recaps are boring. Take note, WWE.

Miz TV, featuring John Cena, AJ Lee, Vickie Guerrero and Dolph Ziggler

Tweet 4: Miz TV opens ANOTHER SmackDown? Stuck for ideas much? How about opening with Kofi Kingston versus any athletic heel.

Tweet 5: Wow. Cena's on SmackDown. This week's top of the ramp comment is "Miz TV: let's go!" Brilliant. That's why he shifts so much merch...
Tweet 6: I do like the fact that Cena's sitting on the couch. Nobody else does...
Tweet 7: Miz needs to sort his tenses out.
Tweet 8: Beautiful recap of Cena botching walking there.
Tweet 9: Wait... Cena and AJ Styles are having an affair?!
Tweet 10: This is how to get Miz over as a babyface: book him as a tweener. He can use all his catchphrases but isn't a heel. Good call.
Tweet 11: It sounds like AJ's music contains the line "Slut it up" over and over again.
Tweet 12: I wonder what Cena's ex-wife makes of all this.

Cena's expression says a lot about his feelings on this current storyline

Tweet 13: The way this is going AJ's going to be involved in WrestleMania XXIX's main event.
Tweet 14: Vickie Guerrero bragging about kissing Dolph Ziggler there. She won't be removed from her spot as RAW Managing Superviser though.
Tweet 15: Cena shakes Miz's hand, cementing 'The Awesome One's' face turn.

Ryback v Darren Young

Tweet 16: Ryback's on too? All the big names are on this week's show.

Tweet 17: 'Mr No Days Off Except When He's Suspended' is the opponent. I hope Titus is on commentary again.
Tweet 18: Titus Alfonso.
Tweet 19: The new feud: Ryback versus the Prime Time Players.
Tweet 20: That feud didn't last long. Could've stretched for months. WWE blew it by having Titus go down to a single Muscle Buster.

Note the large kneepads on Darren Young

Antonio Cesaro v R-Truth

Tweet 21: Antonio Cesaro... Heeey!!

Tweet 22: I agree with Cesaro's feelings on Thanksgiving.
Tweet 23: I'm surprised that Truth won that but it does follow the trend of Cesaro losing non-title matches.

Medical notes and a backstage meeting between Sheamus and Booker T

Tweet 24: On a side note I think I have a broken toe on my left foot. It's been tender for a while now and doesn't flex well.

Tweet 25: I don't want to go to a doctor about it. My assumption is it well mend itself if it's broken.
Tweet 26: Anyway, Booker and Sheamus are chatting backstage. They are standing very close to one another.
Tweet 27: Chairs match at TLC. Predictable but still a good move. Also, I like the way Booker pronounces pint as "paint".

Sin Cara v Alberto Del Rio

Tweet 28: I like Sin Cara's new blue and red outfit. He should have introduced a wider variety of outfits far earlier.

Tweet 29: Albertooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo Dellllllllllllllllllllllllllllll Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiioooooooooo!
Tweet 30: Sin Cara should enter wearing old style scuba diving gear. It would explain the bottom-of-the-ocean lighting his matches are subjected to.
Tweet 31: This is one of the best Sin Cara matches I've seen. Put him against Spanish speakers more often.
Tweet 32: Josh Mathews channeling Vince McMahon there. #whatamaneuver
Tweet 33: Handspring elbow. I honestly think Tajiri did that better than anyone.
Tweet 34: It slowed down a bit in the middle but I think that was the best Cara match I've seen. Very good.

A new outfit and his best WWE match. It was quite the night for Sin Cara

Kane and Daniel Bryan backstage

Tweet 35: Why has WWE started cutting to crowd shots during backstage segments?

Tweet 36: Kane and Bryan spending Christmas together is a vignette waiting to happen. #goldJerrygold
Tweet 37: "Can I beat up Santa Claus?" – Kane

Team Hell No v Big Show

Tweet 38: How many times are they going to cut to Sheamus in the skybox during this match? Double figures shouldn't be a stretch.

Tweet 39: Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes!
Tweet 40: Why is the heel at a disadvantage? Why is this match happening?
Tweet 41: Sheamus and Regal shot one. They're chatting amiably. I reckon they're talking about charcoal.
Tweet 42: "I'm not totally sure why Booker T did this" - JBL on the nonsensical match taking place in the ring
Tweet 43: Kane's getting the night off.
Tweet 44: It is firmly established that Kane can create and control fire. So why doesn't he just set his opponents on fire to win every match?
Tweet 45: Another shot of Sheamus looking simple.
Tweet 46: Bryan goes down to the rarely seen choke slam. Decent match but I still don't know why it happened.
Tweet 47: I'm warming to Big Show as a heel champion. He's grown in the role. In every sense. #gut
Tweet 48: Sheamus cutting a promo without a microphone. Forget fighting, he loves to shout.

Intercontinental championship – Kofi Kingston (c) v Damien Sandow

Tweet 49: Fans of Wade Barrett's ring coat will be disappointed again.

Tweet 50: This match could and should have been the opener. Kofi is popular. Sandow is hated. They'll have a good match. It would have made sense.
Tweet 51: "I'm a real man" - Wade Barrett
Tweet 52: I had a dream last night that Kofi Kingston turned heel.
Tweet 53: There's something a bit David Brent about Barrett on commentary.
Tweet 54: All this talk of eye gouging makes me think they're building towards Wade and Kofi in Eye Poking's Legal match at TLC.
Tweet 55: Kingston wins an enjoyable match. Meanwhile Wade takes off the headset and stands on a desk.
Tweet 56: Booking a feud between two guys who want the Intercontinental title is a good idea. Why has it taken so long to do?

Randy Orton v Dolph Ziggler

Tweet 57: Ziggler v Orton would normally be guaranteed to be the best bout on SmackDown but it has some competition tonight. It's been a good episode.

Tweet 58: Who is Orton feuding with? And why?
Tweet 59: There's a fat guy with an embarrassing beard wearing a Ziggler T-shirt in the front row. His presence is inappropriate.
Tweet 60: An update on my toe: I clicked it and it feels better. For now...
Tweet 61: "He's a viper!" - Josh Mathews (sounding aroused) on Randy Orton
Tweet 62: That was a high superplex. Nicely done.
Tweet 63: Ziggler defeats Orton clean on a roll-up! That was tremendous.
Tweet 64: Less tremendous is a post-match run-in from Ricardo Rodriguez. ADR is now on the apron. The boring rivalry continues.
Tweet 65: Meanwhile Cena has attacked Ziggler from behind and applied the STF. Isn't he meant to be the good guy?