Mike Tedesco’s Smackdown Thoughts
March 16, 2013
By: Mike Tedesco of Wrestleview.com
Smackdown kicked off with a very good opening tag team match. This was a very good tune-up match for Sheamus and Randy Orton. They need to show that they’re a united front heading into WrestleMania, and they showed that off against Team Rhodes Scholars with a convincing victory. Rhodes Scholars look good in defeat. They got their licks in and controlled the match for a bit, so they certainly don’t look like chumps. The Shield’s challenge was well done as well. The only thing I didn’t particularly care for was the awkward way Orton and Sheamus accepted it.
This match was a foregone conclusion as of pretty much two weeks ago, but Sheamus and Orton’s tag partner was not. Big Show would offer his services only to be turned down. They chose Ryback to be their partner instead in a surprising move. But will he still want to partner with them by the end of the night?
The Divas had a tag team match that was ok. I was more surprised that this match was kept on the show in lieu of the Miz versus Darren Young match, which was broadcast exclusively on the WWE App. The reason that surprises me was they’re having an Intercontinental Championship match on RAW this Monday between Wade Barrett, Chris Jericho, and The Miz. I know RAW promotes itself, but that seems like a match you could still promote anyway. Barrett was on commentary for it as well. I guess they kept the Divas match because of the fight between the Bella’s and the Funkadactyls right after it. The Bella’s had me cracking up with their insults about Brodus Clay and Tensai, or Sweet T. It’s good to have them back.
I really enjoyed the Kane versus Dolph Ziggler match. Kane looked really dominant in the match and was coming off a big win on Monday, so it was surprising to see him losing to Dolph Ziggler. It was a good surprise, though. Ziggler does need some wins as he’s been in some sort of mini-slump. He now owns a singles victory over both members of Team Hell No in under a week, so could this be a budding WrestleMania match? Big E. Langston taking Kane down after the match sure makes me think so.
Well, they’ve officially run out of ways to get Fandango out of fighting. The announcers now know how to say his name, the commentators can say his name, and now the one guy on the roster that hasn’t mastered the English language has been run through. Maybe he’ll finally fight on RAW or something. I’m really looking forward to it. I don’t know why.
Before the start of the Ryback versus Mark Henry match, Matt Striker was interviewing Sheamus and Randy Orton. All of a sudden, Roman Reigns murdered Sheamus with an absolutely awesome spear through the interview set. The Shield demolished them both before running off. Ryback and Mark Henry then began their match when The Shield interrupted after a simple lock-up. Ryback fought them off at first, but Henry distracted him, causing him to be taken down by The Shield. Henry then picked the bones of Ryback with three consecutive World’s Strongest Slams. That makes you wonder if Ryback will forego teaming with Orton and Sheamus to take on Henry instead. This is a simple six-man tag team match heading into WrestleMania, but they’re making the storyline interesting by taking it to places you don’t expect and stretching it out through the weeks. This is some very good writing.
Chris Jericho and Jack Swagger closed the show off with a very good main event. They went back and forth over two commercial breaks before Swagger finished him off decisively with the Gutwrench Powerbomb. It was a pretty clean victory for a heel as well. Zeb Colter got involved toward the end of the match, but he factor into the finish. Swagger looks strong heading into his match against Alberto Del Rio.
Speaking of Del Rio, I thought it was a smart idea to keep him off Smackdown tonight. He’s been more than disappointing on the promo aspect of this feud, so keep his actions to a minimum. He’s better off just punching Swagger in the face. After all, he should be pretty upset with the things he’s been saying about him. If you can’t verbalize it, just make it physical. Zeb Colter will do all the promo legwork for this feud. That’s the best decision they’ve made pertaining to this feud in a few weeks. Keep Del Rio off the microphone.
Overall, this was a strong Smackdown. Storylines were advanced and we got three quality matches. With all the RAW recaps throughout, that’s more than you can ask for during WrestleMania season.
Bump of the Night: Roman Reigns spearing Sheamus through the set!
Match of the Night: Jack Swagger vs. Chris Jericho ** ½
Final Rating: ** ¾
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