Friday Night SmackDown Review - December 30, 2011

Wade Barrett unleashes his fury of offense on Orton.

Strong segment to kick off the show featuring Intercontinental Champion Cody Rhodes, Booker T and the returning Goldust. Both Cody and Booker did well here, and adding Goldust, otherwise known as Dustin Rhodes, into the mix added even more drama given the fact that Dustin is Cody's brother. Hopefully, this is only a sign of things to become between the two bitter siblings.

Interesting choice in having Jinder Mahal go over Ted DiBiase, as Mahal hasn't picked up any significant victories in quite some time. The match was fine for what it was, but it looks like they're finally getting behind Mahal as a credible heel. If not, then this was completely pointless in ruining DiBiase's recent momentum.

Brief Divas tag team match that was nothing out of the ordinary. The post-match attack with Tamina turning on Natalya left me confused as to which of the two will be turning babyface, but hopefully it's the former Divas Champion given how we're supposed to feel sympathetic for her losses.

Good match from Hunico and Justin Gabriel, but it needed more time in order to be considered something special. Obviously, both guys can work, so I'd thoroughly enjoy a program between the two high-fliers. Additionally, Hunico and Camacho's gimmick feels extremely stereotypical, as well as a combination rip-off of Cryme Tyme and Mexican America. At least Hunico can wrestle, so it will be interesting to see where he goes from here.

Painless match between Big Show and David Otunga that was a complete squash, but was able to establish Show in a dominant fashion. Mark Henry played his role well at ringside, but came off as foolish when he chased off World Heavyweight Champion Daniel Bryan. The World title picture isn't as intriguing as it once was, but at least they're killing time until Show's expected heel turn. 

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Jinder Mahal takes out Ted DiBiase with a high knee.

Baffling booking with Ezekiel Jackson cheating to defeat a returning Drew McIntyre. The match was whatever, but the finish was a bit odd. If Creative has any intentions of getting behind McIntyre on the blue brand, then this was surely not a good first step to doing so.

Meaningless segment featuring Sheamus, Hornswoggle, and Heath Slater, three Superstars who mean nothing at the moment. As stated numerous times before, Sheamus is in desperate need of some direction on Friday nights, as defeating under-card talent in order to buy time for the Royal Rumble just won't cut it. Sheamus's new friendship with Hornswoggle is groan-worthy as well.

Solid Falls Count Anywhere Match between Randy Orton and Wade Barrett for what we were given. They didn't fully utilize the stipulation until the very end, but got creative with the spot in the elevator as well as in the hallways. Barrett tossing Orton down the stairwell came off as phony, but it at least gives the Englishman mega heat now that he can claim he put the Viper out of action.

Overall, a decent show that successfully hyped next week's huge edition of SmackDown, but lacked a significant amount of action throughout the night. With it being the holiday week, it's logical for them to provide a middle-of-the-road show, but it managed to entertain this viewer with it being the final edition of 2011.

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