Smackdown before the Rumble

[d-d-d-dAz]

So, they finally hooked me.

 

After weeks of thinking CM Punk was great but really not fancying seeing The Rock swoop in and end his title run, The Rock goes and delivers his best (see; short, simple, believable, passionate, effective, free of unfunny shite) promo in yonks and I'm now well and truly in.

 

In part, my interest stems from the fact they've made a small part of me believe Punk might actually retain. Aside from that, the segment as a whole made CM Punk look like a killer; The Rock look like he actually gives a shit and threw the result, slightly, up in the air a little bit.

 

I know the subtext is that Punk is working with The Shield but he looked great calling them out and standing his ground. Sometimes, the stars align, and the fortunate position he's been put in blends with his ability to talk his way out of a paper bag and the confident way he carries himself, and he really does look like a megastar.

 

So, yeah, that was great.

 

That's really it for Smackdown. The rest was neither here nor there.

 

The end was hilarious.

 

After years of being conditioned to believe that the announce table is as flimsy as a fat kids will power, we get treated to Big Show struggling to move the thing before finally overturning it (a bit too much) to reveal that it wasn't at all solid. They could have at least fitted a bottom to make it look like it was a solid body table.

 

They all sold it like death, too.

[hallicks]

Fairly good wheeze all in all, although the way they set up tag team/6 man tag main events now is more predictable than the outcome of a Cena-Ziggler match on TV. Thought it was a nice twist making it an elimination tag though, as it allowed Big Show to get a bit of momentum.

 

Punk and Rock on the B show, well, well. Punk was excellent, and I agree with daz that it was the Rock's best promo since returning. Even though it's been written for God knows how long that Rock is supposed to win on Sunday, they've sold it (to me at least) that it's not the foregone conclusion you expected. I would still be amazed to see Punk walk out with the title but anyway.

 

Kane and Bryan have had a great run, but they need to lose the belts soon. I'm just disappointed it's Rhodes Scholars instead of PTP that got the push. Sandow has no need of being in a tag team with a perpetual mid-carder. He was starting to get noticed and getting some good heat as a singles guy, when they suddenly decided to flush him into a pretty dull tag team (Cody's moustache notwithstanding). Titus O'Neil has show glimpses of what he can do on the mic, but seems to have severely limited air time.

 

Josh Matthews, though. He sounds like a pre-pubescent Michael Cole. On helium. Thank God JBL is there to rip the piss out of him from time to time.

[zep81]

Credit to another member for this spot, WWE edits the Rock;s promo lol: adding in the phrase 'Candy Ass' where The Rock just said ass in the actual promo:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6swqt6kWovo

 

TV version

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XzZpacQ3gEQ