Friday Night SmackDown Review - May 3, 2013

The Shield attack WWE Tag Team Champion Kane.

Great match between Ryback and Daniel Bryan. To my knowledge, this is the first time we've seen these two clash since Ryback's return to the ring last year, so this bout felt fresh. Ryback looked dominant throughout and Bryan sold extraordinarily well for his offense. It was given a substantial amount of time and the right guy went over. Furthermore, I always like when the show kicks off with in-ring action rather than the standard promo that we've accustomed to seeing each week.

Fine squash match with Fandango defeating Zack Ryder. It was mind boggling to me that Ryder received mic time and an actual entrance on this week's Raw rather than SmackDown, but that was simply nitpicking things. The match was only within mere minutes, but it served its purpose in furthering Fandango's momentum. However, I still continue to question what rivalry Fandango will engage in next, as he can't face enhancement talent forever.

Fun Triple Threat tag team match with Alberto Del Rio and Ricardo Rodriguez defeating World Heavyweight Champion Dolph Ziggler and Big E Langston as well as Jack Swagger and Zeb Colter. The previous two matches were harmless, but they were long enough to amount to anything. Granted, the third and final tag match wasn't given much time either, but everyone was able to get involved at that point. I'm not fond of Ziggler tapping out to Del Rio, but I was fine with it given Ziggler's various victories in recent weeks.

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Randy Orton nails Damien Sandow with an RKO.

Good match between Randy Orton and Damien Sandow. We've seen these two battle one another countless times since September, but that didn't take away from the fact that they have nice chemistry together. It was well-wrestled with Sandow scoring enough offense over Orton to look strong in defeat. I'm glad he was able to get the upper hand over The Viper following the bout, which also helped further the feud between Orton and Show going into Extreme Rules.

Meaningless arm wrestling contest between Sheamus and Mark Henry. Their tug of war on Monday's Raw was no different, so I didn't see the point in repeating that same exact segment in the form of an arm wrestling contest. I can't remember the last time an arm wrestling contest actually ended without chaos, so Sheamus attacking Henry after failing to beat him didn't come as any surprise. If anything, it made him come off as a bully and a sore loser for attacking the World's Strongest Man for no apparent reason. I have faith that the eventual match between these two will be good feud, but the feud thus far has been horrendously built.

Solid match between WWE Tag Team Champion Kane and Dean Ambrose. It wasn't anything all that special, but both guys looked good throughout the bout and kept a consistent pace going. Ambrose scoring the victory over Kane was smart booking and the post-match ambush on the Big Red Monster was strong as well. The WWE Tag Team titles haven't meant anything in the longest time, so I'm hopeful that this will be the program that puts the straps back on the map.

Overall, a good show that featured some enjoyable action and successful story-line progression going into Extreme Rules. While it wasn't able to surpass last week's edition, it was an above average show that we aren't accustomed to seeing more often than not. In all honesty, this week's SmackDown seemed to be much more entertaining than this week's Raw. Here's hoping they can keep the strong streak of amusing editions going in weeks ahead.

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