Friday Night SmackDown Review - July 29, 2011

Smart move by opening the show with Triple H, but somewhat burying World Heavyweight Champion Christian isn't a great way to get him over. R-Truth made sense in his coming to SmackDown, and the comedy continues to entertain.

Pretty decent match from Christian and John Morrison, but it wasn't everything I had hoped seeing this was the first time these two have locked up. The finish was very-well done, and shows that Captain Charisma can pick up a victory without using dirty tactics. This was a loss-loss situation, as Morrison needs to look strong upon his return to the ring and going into his upcoming SummerSlam encounter.

I'm ecstatic to see Daniel Bryan and Wade Barrett finally feuding with each other, as both have history together in NXT and excellent chemistry. Not to mention both Superstars shined on the mic, and this could certainly be a strong feud if given enough time and development.

A quick and painless match from the Divas of SmackDown. Although the viewers aren't given any reason to care about them, the match itself was wel-done. Alicia Fox has showed fire in victory the last few weeks, which leads me to question whether she will soon be involved in the Divas Championship picture.

Mark Henry is easily the hottest heel in WWE today, and the past few months have to be the best work he's ever done in his lengthy career. His dominant skills are finally being recognized, and the fact that no one wants to face him makes him much more "badass". I'm liking the idea of a feud with newly turned Sheamus, as their chemistry would be interesting to say the least. Hopefully Sheamus continues to shine as a face while still keeping Henry legitimate.


The tag team match was throwaway, and I wish really hoping for a title change here since the Usos hold more talent than the boring New Nexus. On a side note, I'm a little disappointed in seeing Nexus take Justin Gabriel's entrance music, as it fit him better.

None of the three men involved in the handicap match did anything for me here, as nothing was really out of the usual. Giving Cody Rhodes the win gives me hope that the Intercontinental Championship is not far from his grasp.

A solid main event match from both Randy Orton and R-Truth, but most of the action was more predictable than not. Truth has indeed improved in the ring since his heel turn, but was completely overshadowed by the interfering Christian. I'm still confused as to who the crowd is supposed to be cheering, seeing Orton using dirty tactics and acting insane. The easiest thing to do is to execute a double turn, since both men work better that way.

Overall, a decent show that had a lack of great in-ring action as opposed to last week, and the promos served their purpose. As much as I love Zack Ryder, I'm not really sure being the assistant to Teddy Long is best for him right now. Adding Jinder Mahal in small bits such as the box seats will help him gain heat and get over with the crowd. With the World Title match now confirmed for SummerSlam, hopefully we can start to see the top programs start to shape up for the upcoming pay-per-view.