WWE SmackDown – 31st August 2012 – Will Ziggler ever win a “big” match?

WWE SmackDown

Date:                  31st August 2012

Commentators:   Michael Cole, Josh Matthews

Another week, another SmackDown. Forgive me for just saying that, but the show has been below average for months now and there’s no signs of it letting up anytime soon. Especially with Del Rio still the no 1 contender for the World Title at Night of Champions. Orton versus Ziggler is the main event tonight, which should be decent at best. Let’s begin.

Sandow confronts Sheamus… but runs?

Interesting matchup made when Booker T made Sheamus v Damien Sandow, after Sandow ran down the champ and spared him an “intellectual thrashing”. So we got a physical thrashing, with Sandow holding his own…. then running away when Sheamus took over for the countout loss. I know Sheamus is the champion and they want to protect Sandow, but that was a bit too cowardly for my liking. Couldn’t they have just done a Del Rio run in instead for a DQ result? Then again, it was different I suppose. Rating: C-

Ziggler jobs again

I know WWE likes to build someone up slow when they win Money in the Bank (e.g. Edge, Bryan, etc), but it is still frustrating to see Ziggler job to every big star, from Sheamus to Jericho (although he beat him ONCE) and now Orton on SmackDown this week. Why should I take Ziggler seriously if he becomes World Champion if he keeps losing big matches? Let’s hope this changes very soon, otherwise Ziggler’s current push will be seen as a joke overall.

Before anyone say’s: “Oh Edge lost a few matches when he was Money in the Bank as well”, he actually won some good feuds (Matt Hardy for one) and defeated some great talent on the way (Chris Benoit and Shawn Michaels) before becoming a WWE Champion. You see the difference a good build up can make to a future World Champion? Fortunately, there is time for Ziggler to turn it around. Rating: D

More RAW recaps take over the show

It’s fine to recap a previous show, but does it need to take up a good seven to ten minutes every show? I’m sure they can find a better use for that time, such as a good promo or another match. Or even give another match more time to develop? Makes little sense to me and brings the whole show down for me. Rating: D

Tag team division given more time to flourish

This week’s match featured the Prime Time Players against Kidd/Gabriel (who are also wearing matching outfits as a sign of unity), with a small Tout promo by the Uso’s on the inset screen. The match was average, but the important thing here is the tag team division is being given time to develop with new teams facing off against each other. It’s about time WWE takes the division seriously, with reports saying this division is Triple H’s special project. Rating: B

Rhodes has a mask obsession… we already knew!

Considering Rhodes spent most of 2011 in a mask (which was FINALLY mentioned on WWE TV by Michaels and Matthews tonight), it seems reasonable Rhodes wants to also unmask other masked wrestlers, like Cara and Mysterio. Problem is, everytime he tries, he loses a match and that happened tonight when Rhodes lost to Mysterio via a rollup. If you think about it, the storyline has some sense, but the execution of it to the audience has been poor so far. For example, what is so important about the masks to the wrestlers? It has been touched on, but not focused on, which is a shame. This angle could have been so much better. Rating: C-

Another announcer is a victim this week

After Lawler got his head kicked in by CM Punk on RAW earlier this week, announcer Josh Matthews is attacked by Kane for a second time (after Kane had apologised for attacking Matthews at SummerSlam). The reason for this attack is after Kane lost to Del Rio this week (well, Del Rio had to show up at some point I suppose), he turned angry and took Matthews out of commission. So much for the anger management classes then, but I am interested in seeing where this angle will go. Rating: C+

Overall: C+ This show is becoming synonymous with average lately. There are a few good moments, such as a good main event and the Kane/Daniel Bryan anger management classes skits (another recap from RAW really) and the tag team division, but otherwise nothing much here. A better show than most recent SmackDown’s, but not by much. Still much work to be done with rising superstars and in particular, Dolph Ziggler.

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WWE SmackDown – 24th August 2012 – Please find someone over than Del Rio!

WWE SmackDown

Date:                  24^th August 2012

Commentators:  Michael Cole

The first SmackDown after SummerSlam is upon us and after the controversy of the World Title match, Booker T is expected to address that here. This has been done a few days later than the episode aired so apologies to everyone for that. Let’s begin.

Josh Matthews is recovering from injuries

A noticeable absentee on the commentary table this week is Josh Matthews, who was attacked by Kane after his loss to Daniel Bryan at SummerSlam, and is still recovering from those injuries. Guest hosts, such as Sheamus and Teddy long, joined Michael Cole all evening for the matches, which was a good thing, as a whole evening of Cole by himself would have sent me mad.

Alberto Del Rio is No 1 Contender? Again?

What is it about Del Rio, apart from him being Mexican and appealing to the fans there, that WWE love so much, so they keep giving him so many World Title matches? The only good thing about this time is he actually beat Randy Orton clean to become the No 1 Contender, in a match made by Booker T, so that already makes him look stronger than last time. I’m still not wild on the impending title match between Del Rio and Sheamus, which just shows the lack of depth on the SmackDown roster right now. Rating: C-

WWE Tag Team Division is looking up

A tag team match on SmackDown is nothing unusual, but a backstage brawl between FIVE tag teams is an unusual site these days. The tag champions (Kingston/R-truth); The Usos; Prime Time Players; Gabriel/Kidd and the Colons. This division is looking better already, so all they need now is some feuds to get going and some segment time to develop themselves as teams. Nice surprise for me and a lot of fans here and I have some optimism about the division now. Rating: B-

Cody Rhodes is obsessed with Sin Cara’s mask.

Is this feud going to end in a mask match, where Sin Cara loses his mask? If so, that match should be made into a big deal, as it is a huge deal in Mexico. Other than that, no reason was given for this feud, which is the norm for WWE today. Rating: C-

Dolph Ziggler fails to cash in

I like how WWE keep teasing that Ziggler will cash in his Money in the Bank contract on Sheamus, but I don’t like how they’re building him up to be a threat in the long run. He’s not winning any matches against the big guys (except Jericho on RAW last week) and he is coming across as a major cheater who can only win on luck. Not a great way to build a world champion for the future if I’m honest, but it’s not the worst build ever. Rating: D

Feed Ryback more!

Now that Ryback has finished with Mahal after beating him this week on SmackDown, how about a title run with either the US or Intercontinental titles? Might bring some relevancy to those titles again.

SmackDown is the new RAW!

Can WWE please stop recapping RAW on SmackDown in such detail! It wastes a lot of time, which could be used on a meaningful promo or more wrestling time, so we as the fans are being royally screwed here (I know it’s free TV but still). We as the fans demand more quality wrestling!

Santino and The Cobra have issues

Watching Santino talk to his sock, The Cobra, reminds me of Mankind and Mr Socko and Al Snow and Head. It just seems weird but normal for Santino, with The Cobra seemingly interested in Aksana (Cesaro’s girlfriend) more than the matches. Ok then. It also seems as his feud with Antonio Cesaro, the new US Champion from SummerSlam, will continue, which is a great way to keep these two busy for a while. Rating: C+ (Weird but watchable)

Overall: C A watchable episode tonight, but apart from the tag team division looking up and Del Rio being named No 1 Contender for the World Title (again. *sighs*), there’s not much here to remember. SmackDown is WAY down on where it was last year, which is a shame, as it was the WWE show to watch for a while. The lack of talent depth has caught up to them, which is a shame to see overall.

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