Friday Night Smackdown
July 21, 2013
Dayton, Ohio
We see the same Payback montage we saw on both Raw and Main Event. Michael Cole welcomes us to Dayton for Smackdown. We open with the very frustrated Daniel Bryan. He was yanked from his match with Randy Orton after being injured Monday. He’s wearing the YES YES YES shirt again. Which, in my opinion, proves he’s staying a babyface. Bryan says, “Something happened Monday night that has never happened in my career. A match stopped due to injury.” He says the company took the high road and stopped the match. He still thinks he’s the weak link. He says, “The worst perpetrator is Randy Orton.” We look back to Monday night when Bryan was facing Randy Orton. The referee stopped the match. Orton tended to his opponent. Bryan says, “Instead of fighting to keep the match going, Randy Orton treated me like a little dog.” He says, “In Randy Orton’s eyes, I saw nothing but pity.” He will beat Orton tonight, and that brings out the Viper. Randy Orton has a mike and he says, “This is all wrong. People were concerned for your well being. I respect you for wanting to fight.” He says it wasn’t pity, but respect. Bryan doesn’t believe him. “I will take this respect and shove it down your throat.” Orton says, “Fine, but tonight I’m gonna hurt you.” Great promos by both men, and I’m looking forward to the match later.
MATCH: Sheamus vs. Cody Rhodes
I will ease up on the Sheamus vitriol to focus more on the matches, but I’m not going to kiss that Irish ass either. On the WWE App Team Rhodes Scholars drew straws to see who would face the Celtic schmuck tonight. Ok I’m not easing up on the vitriol. I know Sheamus is #2 on the sugary babyface chart behind Cena, but does he have to decimate all the heels to? Even amongst this throng of losses, Cody has improved every week in the ring. He will eventually be a better wrestler than his dad (and maybe brother). The resume of championships? Time will tell. Sheamus makes them look silly as usual and he makes Cody tap to the Clover Leaf for the win.
After the match Sandow attacks and beats down Sheamus.
Our next vignette is of the great Wyatt Family.
INTERCONTINENTAL CHAMPIONSHIP: Curtis Axel © vs. Wade Barrett
This is Barrett’s return match from losing Sunday at Payback. Why don’t they just make Miz an announcer? He’s on every goddamn week on commentary anyway. Miz says, “I was ripped off. Curtis Axel took advantage of the rules.” No shit Sherlock, you did for 3 friggin years and we all cheered it then to. I’m not sure if Barrett is turning face or anything, just to get his rematch. That’s why the crowd is pretty dead. Axel wins with a spinning neckbreaker. That’s great, a much needed clean win for Axel to build up his cache. Heyman or not, Axel’s aura is growing.
The Miz is going to get in the ring to piss and moan. Actually Miz is ready to fight but Heyman pulls Axel away.
We go back to Monday night and Mark Henry’s “retirement”, then the splatting of WWE Champion John Cena to the mat.
MATCH: AJ vs. Natalya
I do like AJ’s “Chuck Taylor boots.” Kaitlyn and Layla are looking on in the back. They go back and forth and AJ hooks the submission move (Black Widow) she beat Kaitlyn with at Payback with for the win.
Backstage Aksana gets in Kaitlyn’s face and calls her “trash”. So Kaitlyn jumps her and beats on her. At least they’re adding juice to the Divas division.
MATCH: Chris Jericho vs. Alberto Del Rio
This show is like Impact, just rattling off matches with not much in-between. Ricardo goes back to that smug face he had when he was a heel instead of all the giggling. Del Rio now brings back the heel white scarf. Hilarious how he totally slipped back into the Mexican rich asshole gimmick. I wonder if the cars will return. Jericho dominates the action early. Del Rio deserves credit for slipping in and out of face/heel style in the ring so easily. Del Rio has gotten the shit kicked out of him in this match. Del Rio recovers and actually gets the Arm Breaker hooked, but Jericho counters it into the Walls. Ricardo interferes and Jericho stupidly puts him in the Walls. That’s dumb. Meanwhile Dolph Ziggler runs into the ring and starts beating down Del Rio, causing the DQ win for the Champion.
Jericho’s pissed at that and gives Dolph a Codebreaker for his troubles. Dolph is down and then Ricardo holds him up and Del Rio cracks him with a kick to the head again. He’s a better heel, pure and simple.
MATCH: Drew McIntyre vs. Christian
Well we know where this is headed. Christian is going to build his cache back up after a year long injury rehab. Then turn heel, cause he’s better at it. No, I don’t want everybody on the roster to be heels. However, there’s more guys than not on the roster that are just better heels than faces. It’s fact. Christian wins in a glorified squash.
Christian takes the mike and loves being back on Smackdown and with the “peeps”. He keeps talking, but then The Shield comes out, this time down the ramp. They beat him down 3-on-1 and then hit the Power Bomb.
Before break, the RVD vignette. July 14, Philadelphia. Wow.
Returning from break, and we go back to Payback and the return of CM Punk. He defeats Jericho, then on Monday night faces Alberto Del Rio, and ends up eating a shocking F-5 from fellow “Heyman Guy” Brock Lesnar.
After that Renee is with Paul Heyman. She asks about CM Punk, but he instead rips into poor Renee for asking too many “personal” questions.
MATCH: Randy Orton vs. Daniel Bryan
After an early Bryan flurry, Orton has beaten Bryan down throughout the early portion of the match. After the break Bryan took over with endless kicks to the torso. Bryan goes to the top rope but Orton crotches him. Orton with a superplex. They brawl outside and Orton was going for a DDT on the floor but Bryan kicks out. Bryan does his patented dive through the ropes. He gets in the ring before Orton and wins by count-out.
Bryan won’t take the count-out and wants the match restarted. The ref says no and Bryan chants “Yes!”. With that the show ends? That’s an odd ending.
SCOTT’S TAKE: The show was fun with a lot of action, but the ending left no explanation. Very strange.
Scott’s Smackdown Top 5:
1) Alberto Del Rio
2) Dolph Ziggler
3) Dean Ambrose
4) Randy Orton
5) Reigns/Rollins
