This week’s SmackDown started with the lights out and a casket in the ring, as Undertaker does a promo about his Survivor Series casket match with The Big Show. Then the casket opens and Taker sits up. Jeff Hardy appears on screen and he’s made up to look like a darker character. He says Taker should be worrying about the extreme rules main event match tonight.

The opening match is a good long bout between ECW Champion Matt Hardy and US Champion Shelton Benjamin. Hardy had an armbar on for what seriously felt like about three hours and it was SO fucking dull, but once Shelton kicked away at Hardy’s leg it got really good. Hardy won with the Twist Of Fate and the ending continued the development of that move as something that can win a match from absolutely nowhere.

The Brian Kendrick beats Carlito in a short match when Ezekiel Jackson runs down Primo, and that distracts Carlito enough for Kendrick to hit The Kendrick to win. Kendrick was very good here, especially with his kicks which got a good reaction and his heelish mannerisms are very good, he’s definitely growing into that role. Carlito, despite a renewed push, is still really lazy in the ring, and where it’s most noticeable is when he’s running the ropes. I’ve seriously never seen anyone run the ropes so fucking slowly.

EXCUSE ME! EXCUUUUUUUUUSE ME! Vickie Guerrero is in the ring and introduces the WWE Title Match contract signing for Survivor Series between HHH and Vladimir Kozlov. HHH cuts a promo with fat jokes on Vickie and anti-communist babyface promos like it’s 1985 again. Then Jeff Hardy interrupts, lays out Kozlov with a leaping dive sending Kozlov through the table, then rips up the contract and throws it in HHH’s face before walking away.

Kung Fu Naki beats MVP after Khali comes out for the distraction and the dirty Jap attacked him from behind with some karate move. Then Khali hosts the Khali Kiss Cam, kisses some fat ugly woman who then kisses MVP who is still laid out on the ground. Wow they’re burying him.

Michelle McCool beats Maria in a bad match with the anklelock.

Jeff Hardy beats The Undertaker in an extreme rules match. And as far as extreme rules matches go it was fairly clean. The story of the match was basically that Hardy wouldn’t stay down, and Taker kept beating him down with lots of cool hardcore stuff such as draping a chair over Jeff’s chest before the legdrop on the ring apron. There was a Big Show run-in, but after Taker took him out with a chairshot, Jeff grabbed the chair and laid out Taker, before hitting the leapfrog legdrop off the top rope over a ladder onto Taker for the win. The match was good, but if I’m being super critical you’d maybe have expected better, but it definitely did the job of having Hardy’s new more extreme character get over as a big deal with a major win over Taker, as well as helping the build to Taker-Big Show at Survivor Series. The show then ends with Vickie Guerrero backstage telling Jeff that if he beats HHH next week in a non-title match she’ll change the Survivor Series main event to a Triple Threat Match, which isn’t a good sign for Kozlov’s push.

This was a very wrestling-heavy show with very little in terms of angles and promos besides the Kiss Cam segment, which depending on what you like from your televised wrestling either makes this a great show or a dull one.

Mark Bright
mark@ifight365.com