Last week, Dan-e-o gave me the green light to rip him off anytime. So, guess what? I'm cashing in again this week.That being said, I give you the "hey, if ain't broken don't fix it" (or as Big Daddy Donnie often says: If it's fixed, don't break it!!) second edition of Tha O's and NO's edition of "Talkin' Smack!".
Tha O's:
Kennedy and Finlay
Here's the team that Rated RKO was/could've been/should've been. There is such a unique and dynamic dicotomy between these two top shelf performers. I won't even delve into the well documented work rate of these two guys.
Kennedy is a lock as a future world champion and potential saviour of pro wrestling. I've always maintained that if the E played their cards right, Finlay could be in that same position. Meanwhile, these two have formed in an alliance in a post-King Booker world that has captured my attention for sure.
They took out Batista and Taker in one night. When's the last time anyone's been able to do that? I figured, hey it's the European tour edition of "SmackDown!", so the babyfaces will be going over on in both of their matches. I was thankfully wrong again. Hats of to "SmackDown!" creative for furthering this intriguing storyline.
Tha Wrestling
I mention it every week, but it bares repeating: the actual wrestling on "SmackDown!" has been nothing short of phenomenal. It's a breath of fresh air each and every week. This week was absolutely no different. There's no better example of this than the six man tag match involving the Hardys and Benoit VS. Helms, Chavo Guerrero and MVP.
Since the show took place in Italy, I'll give the E a free pass for once again using the Hardys on a "SmackDown!" event. Having said that, the Hardys have not looked this good since 2000. Both of these guys have stepped up their respective games considerably.
Not to mention the other guys in the match are Benoit, MVP, Guerrero and Helms! There wasn't one guy booked in this six man that can't and doesn't work his ass off. We all know what an MVP mark I am. Seriously, I want to hear from you if you're still not convinced about this guy!
Helms is arguably one of the best workers in that locker room, or any locker room for that matter. I actually like the team of Guerrero and Helms. It reminds me of the Cruiserweight and tag team hey day of WCW in the late 90s. Both of these guys are amazing performers, yet they seem to be missing that ingredient to really get them over with the fans. Perhaps teaming the two will be able to accomplish that.
Then there's Atlanta, Georgia's own (greetings to my friends in the Great White North) Chris Benoit. What more can be said about Benoit that hasn't already been said a million times before? He's literally in the top ten workers of all time in my opinion. Last week, I mentioned that Benoit hasn't been using his cross face to finish off his opponents.
He's been using the swan dive headbutt as of late. Perhaps it hasn't caught on, because this week we saw him use the Sharpshooter to finish the match. Does that disprove my conspiracy theory about Cena and the STFU? Not yet.
Yes, the Sharpshooter is a submission hold but it doesn't involve the arm and/or the crossface the way the STFU does. Therefore, the conspiracy theory stands. Let him use the damn crossface!
New tag champs!While, I've been predicting it for months, I'm not taking any credit for the title switch this week. Sure Deuce and Domino won the tag straps from London and Kendrick, but I had no idea when it was going to happen.
They proved me wrong so many times, and I thoroughly enjoyed being kept guessing.
How many times does that happen anymore? London and Kendrick are actually the real story here as they went damn near one year defending those tag titles and proving every naysayer wrong. They had the most impressive tag title run in recent memory and they worked their asses off each and every time they defended those belts.
I'm not talking about just on television either. I attened a "SmackDown!" house show recently where they tore the roof off the building. These guys deserve all the credit in the world for what they've accomplished so far. I sincerely hope they don't get lost in the shuffle now that they've dropped the gold.
As far as the new champs go, I like Deuce and Domino. I can't help but liken their style to the Nasty Boys style in the early 90s. These guys are two tough as nails smashmouth ass kickers. I still get a kick out of how vastly different Jimmy Snuka Jr.'s style is from his father's. This is the guy to keep your eye on in the team, as I have no doubt Deuce has a huge upside in the company for years to come.
Regal and TaylorSure they walked out of the match, but how many times have two guys successfully taken the fight to Kane the way these two legit tough guys have? Kane has yet to decisively defeat Regal and Taylor. This is another great example of the quality writing on "SmackDown!" as of late. They continue to keep me guessing.
We all assumed that this match would end in a double chokeslam with Kane going over as the dominant monster babyface that he is. Wrong.
Instead, after taking the fight to Kane for over ten minutes, the Brits decided to live to fight another day and took a page out of the Ric Flair/Honky Tonk Man's book.
This furthers the storyline. This proves that Regal and Taylor weren't simply booked in a program with Kane just to be squashed because they have nothing else for them to do. This furthers my assertion that "SmackDown!" is the best damn wrestling show on television today.
JBL's obscure reference of the week
The incomparable JBL likened Kendrick and London to Shawn and Steve Simpson from the World Class territory days. First Kendo Nagasaki, now the Simpsons. I can only wonder what percentage of the viewing audience knows who the hell JBL is talking about. Hell, I wonder if Michael Cole actually knows who JBL is talking about. JBL is indeed a wrestling god.
The UndertakerI haven't been giving Taker the credit he deserves here as of late, but this guy is absolutely incomparable. I am hard pressed to come up with a man who is more respected, beloved and iconic as The Undertaker.
That's not even mentioning his work rate. The Undertaker is definitely in a postion to never put on a decent match again and still retire an absolute legend. Instead, Taker personifies his leadership role in the locker room and serves as a prime example of everything that's still great about the business we all love. While he's no spring chicken, Taker continues to elevate his game every time he performs. The man is legit 6'10 and 300 lbs and can soar around the ring like a man half his size. He truly is one of the premier strikers in the history of the E, and has a shoot tap-out arsenal as well.
I literally can't give Undertaker enough credit. He has the ability to connect with the audience in a way that only a handful of his peers have ever been able to match. He is an absolute legend and he continues to impress me on a regular basis. There truly is only one legit phenom in professional wrestling history and it's the Undertaker.
Tha NO's:
Head scratching booking
The one complaint I have about the booking this week involves the Taker/Kennedy main event. Again, I realize this a European tour and the E wants to put on a big event feel for the live Italian audience, but putting the guy who has a guaranteed title shot against the champ before he cashes in his opportunity, is a bit puzzling to me.
Granted, it was a non-title match and it ended in a run-in disqualification, but I can only imagine that this steals a little sizzle from the steak. Unless Kennedy is planning on jumping ship to "Raw" to challenge Cena for his strap, a showdown between Kennedy and Taker should be saved for the big payoff.
Tha OH's?:
That's right, I added a new category to the iconic "O's and NO's" segment. This third category encompasses all things professional wrestling programming that is neither good nor bad, but simply worth mentioning.
This week the E apparently has changed Batista's machine gun style pyro entrance to a more generic one. Of course I can only assume this was due to the tragic event that took place at Virginia Tech this past week.
Yes the E has a responsibility to their share holders, but I think they took the classy route albeit a bit on the politcally correct side. There is, of course, also a huge chance that there was no scripted change to Batista's pyro at all and he simply botched it.
9 comments: on "Talkin' Smack! - Tha O's And NO's: Round 2"
Good article, the only disagreement I have is that Jimmy Jr, and his buddy Dolph Lungdren aren't ready. I don't think Michael Cole has a clue about half what JBL says.
They may not be ready yet, but SmackDown is certainly the right show for them to be on if the E wants them to develop while being able to utilize them as an on-air team.
Plus, following Umaga losing the IC Title, there were NO heel champions. While I would prefer to have seen MVP take the US title instead of the tag titles changing, I definitely don't want to see all face champions. Plus Deuce and Domino entertain me, so fuck all the haters. Sit on it, bitches!
'jbl: commentator' marks are nuts!!
"the undertaker :emphatic pause: emits :emphatic pause: fear."
emits?
the undertaker possesses fear in him?
enough to emit?!
try 'elicits'... 'educes'. how about a thesaurus "english god".
eric young emits fear.
if jr said that- he'd be crucified.
jbl is highly overrated as a commentator.
Even though you made an intelligent point and backed it up with valid evidence, you posted as anonymous, so your entire argument is regarded about as highly as a John Cena promo.
Busfucker.
.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ...
JBL has one grammatical screw up and he's overrated. Wow. John Cena has one decent match and he's viewed as the man. What in the name of God are you people smoking? I sure don't want any of that, if it screws perception up that bad, it must be either really really cheap, or really really expensive.
Anonymous dramatic pause, emits, dramatic pause, ignorance, dramatic pause, busfucker-I like that one Brian.
I hope the SD/ECW show coming to Erie will be as good the one you saw Boudreau.
jbl has NOT had one grammatical screwup.
"michaels and hbk" in regards to hbk and cena in the ring when they tagged on smackdown pre mania.
i could throw a few more out there.
and yeah he's overrated as a commentator and ppl are way to hard on jr.
and sorry. for some reason it won't let me log on under my name.
get over the gang mentality. i have the same viewpoints under my screenname and everyone is ok w/ it.
i have to post anonymously and i'm a "busfucker"... whatever the fuck that is.
yawn mackles.
Okay, I'll give you that, several people have mentioned they've had problems logging on lately, sorry for jumping down your throat about it. I don't remember where I got the busfucker line from, but I figured I'd use it since I had the chance.
Here's the deal with JBL-nobody is perfect. That's why actors have multiple takes when they film a show or movie. That's why people practice for any sort of performance. Even with all the practice in the world, you will inevitably screw up.
Here's what separates JBL from JR (I'm using JR since most people tend to use him in comparisons), though-
Yes, they both make grammatical or informational mistakes while doing commentary. However, the mark of someone who is great at talking is that, on the occasions they screw up(which tend to not be often), they just go on as if they hadn't. JBL does that almost all of the time. If he uses the wrong word, he will either a.)just keep going, or b.)re-word the original phrase he screwed up to make it seem like he's placing heavy emphasis on it while not giving people the chance to realize he screwed up. JR, on the other hand, will stop mid sentence and point out the fact that he made an error by stopping mid-sentence.
If he makes a grammatical error every now and then, so what? He still is far more entertaining than Tazz, Jerry Lawler, or Don West combined, and that's what a color guy is supposed to be-entertaining.
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