WWE Smackdown 23/12/2011 Review

This week’s Smackdown kicked off with Big Show addressing the audience about the sudden turn of events at TLC. Eventhough Big Show whined about his very short title reign, he invited Daniel Bryan to congratulate him on his win. He was interrupted by the world’s strongest man Mark Henry who ridiculed Show for being the holder of the record for the shortest title reign in history. Daniel Bryan came out next and the three men went back and forth on the effects of TLC. Teddy Long came out and announced a No.1 Contender’s match between Show and Henry.

It was logical to start the show focusing on the aftermath of TLC. Mark Henry and Big Show demanded a rematch that they deserve and got what they wanted. However, it seems that Henry-Show feud will continue for some more weeks.

Big Show, Daniel Bryan and Mark Henry in a heated argument

Match 1: Zack Ryder Vs Cody Rhodes

Singles Match

The reigning Intercontinental Champion – Cody Rhodes, and the new United States Champion – Zack Ryder, faced off in a singles match. Both men were victorious at TLC and put on a good fight in the first match of the night. Zack Ryder dominated initially but Cody bounced back. Eventually, Zack Ryder won the match after hitting the Rough Ryder on Cody. The funny part of the match was when Booker T got a mic midway through the match and sang ‘Cody the Broken Nosed Reindeer’ to distract him. It was awful. But Zack Ryder was awesome. While it is known fact that Zack Ryder is good on the mic, he seems to be working hard on developing his in-ring skills and he seems to have succeeded in mastering them.

Winner: Zack Ryder

Match Rating: 8/10

The winner: 'Long Island Iced Z' Zack Ryder

Match 2: Mark Henry Vs Big Show

Singles Match to determine the no.1 contender for the World Heavyweight Championship.

Both men make their entrances but the match did not happen as David Otunga brought in a note from John Laurinitis which said that Mark Henry was injured and hence he wasn’t fit for a fight. Big Show was pissed off on hearing this and punched Otunga in the face. Obviously, Mark Henry’s injury on last week’s raw was the reason for this, but why did Teddy Long make this match in the first place? Kudos to the WWE for pissing off the crowd.

No contest.

Match 3: Sheamus Vs The Miz

Singles Match

‘The Great White’ Sheamus faced The Miz in a impromptu match made by the Smackdown General Manager Teddy Long. Sheamus emerged as the winner in this short match. Sheamus doesn’t seem to be involved in any feud for a while now. He has had matches with Jinder Mahal and Jack Swagger in the last few weeks, winning all of them. This match with the Miz is another one of those pointless matches that Sheamus has won, in the last month or so. If he continues this trend without a feud, the crowd might lose interest in him.

Winner: Sheamus

Match Rating: 6/10

Sheamus hits the backbreaker on The Miz

Wade Barrett gets RKO-ed on the top of a car:

Wade Barrett came to the ring and addressed the crowd about his Barrett Barrage. He highlighted his victories over Randy Orton at Survivor Series and last week’s Raw and spoke about him being dominant over Orton. Orton interrupted him, which prompted Wade Barrett to run for cover. Orton caught Wade backstage and attacked him. He hit a lethal RKO on the top of a car and left.

Wade Barrett has been improving and has gained immensely from this feud with Orton. While Orton has put him over on many occasions in the past few weeks, Barrett returned the favor this week.

Match 4: Primo (with Epico & Rosa Mendes) vs Kofi Kingston (with Evan Bourne)

Singles Match

Kofi Kingston won this short match after hitting the trouble in paradise on Primo. Both men are great athletes and it would have been nice if more time was given for these two men. But I do not see why singles matches are held between tag teams. There are just 3 tag teams currently in the WWE and why not emphasize on the team rather than a single wrestler of the team. Bad booking, to say the least.

Winner: Kofi Kingston

Match Rating: 5/10

Match 5: Dolph Ziggler and Jack Swagger Vs Daniel Bryan and Big Show

Tag team match

A singles match between Daniel Bryan and Dolph Ziggler was on initially, but was converted into a tag match by Teddy Long after Jack Swagger and Big Show got involved. It was unfortunate because Ziggler and Bryan where putting on a good show until the match was stopped. The tag match started with Big Show taking on Jack Swagger. Big Show dominated Swagger before the latter tagged Ziggler in. Show attacked Ziggler with several chops to the chest. Bryan came in and finished off the match by putting Swagger in the La-Belle lock. A good tag-team match with lot of back and forth action. It was a brilliant way to showcase the new champion – Daniel Bryan, by letting him to wrestle for almost 20 minutes.

Winners – Daniel Bryan & Big Show

Match Rating: 8/10

Jack Swagger taps out to Daniel Bryan's La-Belle lock

The Bottomline:

Overall, it was a good show with 2 wonderful matches. However, there were two negatives about the show. The build up to a Big Show and Mark Henry match that did not happen was just a means to kill time. Another disappointment was that little or no time was spent towards the holidays. It’s a pity that the WWE didn’t even have a short segment about the holidays which are right around the corner, whereas they spent an entire show focusing on the holidays in November itself.

Smackdown Rating: 7/10