Randy Orton and Big Show stand tall over Mark Henry. Despite it being billed as the biggest battle royal in WWE history, the match itself was completely pointless and predictable. How many of those Superstars do you think the crowd actually recognized, since most of them don't appear on television on a regular basis? The ending few minutes was fun, but it was an absolute waste for the first half of the show. Throwaway Divas match between Divas Champion Beth Phoenix and Kelly Kelly. Although I am glad Phoenix the match cleanly, it wasn't clearly established whether the bout was for the title or not. These two have had better matches in the past, but here's hoping this is the end of a horribly booked rivalry. Once again, I could honestly care less about this Sin Cara vs. Sin Cara rivalry. Sure, they established why it's occurring on commentary, but having Sin Cara Negro steal the other's mask confuses the audience tremendously, as Sin Cara Negro was cheered regardless when he made his entrance. The match was fine, but seeing Justin Gabriel take the loss here does him no favors. Solid match between WWE Champion Alberto Del Rio and Sheamus, but nothing to go back and watch for. Christian's interference was logical, and obviously kept this match from being better. As much as I enjoy seeing Del Rio pick up victories, his presence in this match felt worthless. I expect to see Sheamus and Christian to compete in a rematch at Vengeance, so it was a smart move in getting heat back on Captain Charisma going into next Sunday.
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Mr. McMahon informs Triple H of his replacement. Sketchy promo to say the least from Triple H to open the show. I enjoyed the words of CM Punk of all the men that came out for sure, but HHH criticizing the Superstars apart of the walk-out is just what he is known for. The idea of this whole walk-out had greater potential, but making it realistic was key here. Having Vince McMahon return in a anti-climatic manner during a match between John Cena and Sheamus completely went against what Triple H said moments earlier about wrestling being the focus of the show. McMahon was useless here, and the move of John Laurinaitis as interim Raw General Manager couldn't be more logical. Given WWE is losing ratings in recent weeks, you would think that they would appoint a more popular official to attract more viewers. Logically, it made sense for Christian and John Morrison to compete in their street clothes with them coming back from the walkout minutes earlier. However, Christian defeated Morrison in under a minute, and I am more confident than ever at this point that the Shaman of Sexy is leaving the company. Christian's stable of conspiracy victims looks very intriguing on paper, and has great potential to be something of main event caliber if done right. With World Heavyweight Champion Mark Henry taking on Randy Orton for the third time last night, their match did nothing for this viewer despite the star power it included. I saw the Cody Rhodes interference coming, but it was very well-done. Rhodes has finally added that extra layer to his character that he needs to progress, and I believe his upcoming rivalry with Orton could solidify the Intercontinental Champion as a true main event player. Absolute train wreck of a match with Kelly Kelly and Eve defeating the SmackDown team of Tamina and Rosa Mendes. Even Eve, the best worker in this contest by far, had a few sloppy spots. It's painfully obvious Creative has no idea where they're going with the Divas division until Kharma returns next spring. Big Show chokeslams Mark Henry through the table. I'm liking the rebellious heel stable, but their promo to start the show was primarily focused on the aftermath of Raw, not SmackDown. Cody Rhodes received the most heat of all the heels, but that was about it. Nice way to hype matches for later in the show. Very short, but fun match from WWE Champion Alberto Del Rio and Sin Cara. These two have excellent chemistry, and could have easily gone for another ten minutes. However, I'm glad Del Rio was able to score a clean victory over Sin Cara. The dark Sin Cara attack post-match progress the rivalry, but I'm not sure if that's a good thing or not given their lackluster match at Hell in a Cell. Good tag team match from WWE Tag Team Champions Air Boom and the team of Jack Swagger and United States Champion Dolph Ziggler. The pre-match attack from the heels was a smart move in getting heat back on them. It was hard to take this bout seriously seeing their previous match together was nearly eight minutes this past Sunday, but it's a great way to continue the rivalry between the two teams. A thirty-second Divas match does not benefit anyone nor the division by any means. Sure, it makes Phoenix come off as a dominant beast and recuperate from this past Monday, but people won't care about the matches if there is hardly any actual wrestling involved. Isn't that what the championship is supposed to be for? Boring, yet truly emotional promo from the returning Big Show. Having World Heavyweight Champion Mark Henry decline an offer from Show for a title match contradicted what he said a while ago about taking on all challengers, and it's also not smart to have Henry scurry away in the fashion that he did. Nonetheless, the segment provided a nice hook for the remainder of the show. WWE referees speak out on COO Triple H. Refreshing way to open up the show with a match between Randy Orton and Drew McIntyre. Surprisingly enough, McIntyre was able to get some offense in before being squashed. This bout was a dream match of mine, so seeing it come to fruition was a nice surprise. Although it was no shock that John Morrison would be coming up short in his match against World Heavyweight Champion Mark Henry, he looked good in defeat after hitting a close Starship Pain. The World's Strongest Man continues to dominate, and his incredible promo following the contest succeeded in hyping the Big Show's return on SmackDown. Triple H's promo cut with the conspiracy victims of the WWE regarding their legal action did absolutely nothing for me. Each heel was given the chance to speak, but nothing definitive was really said. The Game ended it by burying all the men in the ring along with the current product, which is not something you want to hear from a high official in the company. How many times do you think WWE will continue to book Kelly Kelly and Eve vs. Beth Phoenix and Natalya before they realize it's gotten beyond boring? I strongly disliked the barbaric side of Kelly, as having a Barbie doll so to speak dominate the Glamazon in a crazed fashion has the roles reversed. Giving Kelly the Mark Henry-like edge is obviously out of the question. Alberto Del Rio outsmarts the Champ out of the WWE title. Great opening match between Sheamus and Christian to start the show, but the crowd didn't really kick into second gear till the closing few minutes. The Celtic Warrior's victory was an obvious one, but it gets him one step closer to challenging Mark Henry for the World Heavyweight Championship down the line. A huge letdown with the Sin Cara vs. Sin Cara match, as the crowd couldn't have cared less. The audience is what took away for the match, but I can't blame them given this program has been so horribly written. Not sure where it goes from here, but Hunico must reveal himself to differ his character from Mistico before both are ruined. Fun WWE Tag Team Championship match with Air Boom successfully retaining against the team of Jack Swagger and United States Champion Dolph Ziggler. It would have meant a bit more had the match been announced a few days prior, as it was obvious it was going to transpire anyways. I'm enjoying the tension between Ziggler, Swagger and Vickie Guerrero, hopefully leading to a U.S. title match between the two bleached blonde Superstars. Solid World Heavyweight Championship match between Mark Henry and Randy Orton inside Hell in a Cell. The stipulation wasn't all that useful, but this bout was much more hard-hitting than their previous at Night of Champions. It told an intriguing story indeed, and having Henry kick out of the powerful RKO finishing maneuver made the World's Strongest Slam look extremely strong. I'm glad Creative didn't screw up by giving the title back to Orton, and the post-match beat-down at the hands of the Viper did no harm. |
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