WrestleRant
  • Home
  • Columnist Corner
  • Reviews
  • Interviews
  • WRR
  • Audio
  • Videos
  • Photos
  • About
    • Contact

Columnist Corner

Friday Night SmackDown Review - February 7, 2014

2/7/2014

0 Comments

 
PictureRandy Orton takes control of Christian.
By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Daniel Bryan Called Out Kane

I always enjoy seeing Bryan in a cheerful mood, but shouldn't he be more aggressive like he was when confronted The Authority last week? At least he upped his anger a little later in the promo. It was cool to see him acknowledge his history with Kane and the had a good verbal exchange, but I surely hope this doesn't mean we are getting a match between the two at WrestleMania. This segment help set up Bryan vs. Antonio Cesaro for later in the show as well.


United States Champion Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns def. Dolph Ziggler and Kofi Kingston

It really pains me to write "United States Champion" before Ambrose's name, as he hasn't defended the title in over three months. What gives? At least JBL made mention of that commentary. Speaking of such, Seth Rollins performed well behind the booth and addressed the growing tension between Ambrose and Reigns nicely. Ziggler and Kingston make for an interesting tandem, but it is too bad they are nothing more than enhancement talent at the moment. It was a good match while it lasted with the crowd getting into the near-falls down the stretch. Bray Wyatt's post-match promo was also excellent.

PictureDaniel Bryan forces Antonio Cesaro to tap out.
Sheamus def. Ryback

I have been anticipating this first time ever match for quite a while now, and it surprisingly lived up to my expectations. The match consisted of hard-hitting action and their two very physical styles meshed perfectly. Granted, they weren't given much time, but they impressed in the small window of time they were given. Say what you will about Ryback's in-ring ability, but he can flat out go when working with the right opponent, and Sheamus is certainly that guy. This was Ryback's best performance in ages, and I surely hope I get my wish of these two working against each other at 'Mania.


Daniel Bryan def. Antonio Cesaro

Not counting their Gauntlet match from last August, this was the first one-on-one match between Bryan and Cesaro in WWE. That being said, I found their initial encounter to be slightly better, but this was still a very good matchup from both men. It had a slow start early on, but they picked up the pace down the stretch and delivered a fun final few minutes. It could have used some more time, but they made the most out of what they were allotted. Similar to Raw this week, Bryan picked up a nice win only to get left laying by Kane. What was the point of this if Bryan won't be feuding with Kane going into WrestleMania? This is why I fear we not be getting Bryan vs. Triple H at the event after all, but here's hoping I'm wrong.


Divas Champion AJ Lee def. Nikki Bella (Non-title)


It felt like the millionth time we have seen this match in the last few months, or AJ vs. any star of Total Divas for that matter. AJ carried Nikki to an exceptional match, which was thankfully kept short and relatively painless. Nikki has come a long way in bettering her in-ring skills over the years, but there is still room for improvement. It was a win for AJ, sure, but no storyline progression took place and it was essentially worthless.


Bray Wyatt def. Goldust

It was a nice match for what it was, but it was basically an extended squash for Wyatt. Goldust's pre-taped promo was fine, but it didn't explain the logic behind this match all that well. I fear that now the Rhodes brothers are out of the tag team title picture, they will reduced to enhancement talent for other stars. They were the best thing going just a few weeks ago, so I hope this doesn't become the norm for them. As I have stated in the past, I hope to see them turn on one another sooner rather than later to set up their rumored 'Mania match.


WWE World Heavyweight Champion Randy Orton def. Christian (Non-title)

Orton vs. Christian was one of my favorite feuds of 2011 (next to John Cena vs. CM Punk), so seeing them face off once again was a treat for me. It was a well worked match that was given good time and had the crowd engaged in the entertaining action. The finishing sequence was very well done and Orton hitting the RKO on Christian to win the match was a nice nod to their first world title match from three years ago. It was pretty predictable that The Viper was going to emerge victorious, but he needed the win more than Christian considering he lost to Bryan this week on Raw. I expect him to lose to John Cena and possibly Sheamus in coming weeks but beating Cesaro.


Overall Show

WWE television has been almost extruciating to watch as of late, so I saw this show as a nice, refreshing change of pace. The three top matches (Bryan/Cesaro, Ryback/Sheamus and Orton/Christian) definitely delivered and were well worth going out of your way to see. There wasn't much hype for the upcoming pay-per-view outside of the Elimination Chamber match, but at least the action was enjoyable enough to make the show feel somewhat meaningful.

0 Comments



Leave a Reply.


    Categories

    All
    #AskGSM
    Battle Of The Belts
    Cruiserweight Classic
    Halftime Heat
    Hidden Gems
    Lists/Rankings
    Mae Young Classic
    Mixed Match Challenge
    News
    NJPW
    NWA Shockwave
    Opinion
    Previews
    Retro Reviews
    Reviews
    RJ's Two Cents
    Satire
    SummerSlam Recall
    The Deadly Draw
    Tribute To The Troops
    Women's Eliminator
    Worlds Collide
    WrestleMania Recall
    WWE Draft
    WWE Starrcade


    Archives

    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    April 2011
    March 2011
    February 2011
    January 2011
    December 2010
    November 2010

    RSS Feed

©2023 WrestleRant. All Rights Reserved.
  • Home
  • Columnist Corner
  • Reviews
  • Interviews
  • WRR
  • Audio
  • Videos
  • Photos
  • About
    • Contact