-- 4/2 WWE Smackdown Reax

Henry Jenkins of Seattle, Wash. (9.0): Best Segment: Jack Swagger's push. Worst Segment: Cryme Time breakup. Smackdown capped off the best week of WWE programming this year. I've known all week that Jack Swagger's win was coming, but I still liked being in the moment for it. Now that the WWE has stopped undercutting Swagger at every turn and instead put their resources behind him, I think he'll surprise people. I can't wait to see the full-fledged headliner he becomes. The Divas match was a great example of why the women get unfairly criticized. When they get more than 60 seconds, they can actually wrestle an athletic match. Besides, LayCool cracks me up. Las Vegas was a natural city for the SES to do an extended promo in. Here's my concern: I like Punk's hair. C.M. Punk looks like Charles Manson. That's part of what makes him creepy. Shaving his head would be good for a big pop, but then he'd just look like The Big Show or Kurt Angle. ... The comparisons to Shawn Michael's exit are unfortunate, but I was a little saddened by Great Khali's goodbye anyway. He's a terrible wrestler but he's grown on me as a backstage goofball. Lastly, the Cryme Time split was eventful, but this ended one of the few decent tag teams with upside. This is not analogous to Shawn Michaels throwing Marty Jannetty through the Barber Shop window, though. Shad Gaspar will be exclusively on Superstars before you know it, and JTG will be among the next payroll cuts. WWE should have left well enough alone there.

Jarel Barnes of Norfolk, Va. (8.9): Best: Hart Dynasty and Swagger pushes. Worst: Laycool (knockoff Beautiful People). I really enjoyed Smackdown last night, as it was something fresh and new. It started out great with Chris Jericho and Edge interacting with each other before Jack Swagger's involvement. I'm glad that Jack Swagger is getting a push; I think it's a bit early, but it's still a lot better than Sheamus's sudden rise. I think it would have been more effective for Jack to go back and forth between Smackdown and Raw for a month or two and then take the title, but it still works. John Morrison and R-Truth are being heavily underutilized right now; both are over with crowd and will make a great tag team. Their moves and personalities translate well in the ring. C.M. Punk's interaction with Rey Mysterio felt "done before," but it made sense because a bald, under-the-mask Mysterio (Punk's crew are bald as well) and a profusely-shagged Punk sets up the Hair vs. Match program perfectly. I absolutely love the Cryme Tyme angle except it would have been the right thing to turn both men heel. These guys both have potential to be individual stars, but are not over enough to be split apart. WWE has a huge problem with properly booking the tag division with too many breakups occurring prematurely. A split should not happen until the tag team has won at least two lengthy championships with strong face pushes. Also, I liked Kane vs. NXT match because it showed off the individual potential of each NXT superstar. For example, from their interaction in the ring, Justin Gabriel and Daniel Bryan will have great matches in the future with Kane or any other big-man performer. David Otunga was good because he didn't actually wrestle. He still needs work to have a decent moveset. Wade Barret has "it" and everybody else needs to go back to developmental. NXT is amazing because this prevents WWE from wasting their time on talents like Michael Tarver and Darren Young. Hopefully Kane will comeback and get revenge on them, although he still looked strong by chasing the roster. Very unique main event and good concept.

We welcome your 0-10 score and comments on this show for a "WWE Smackdown Reax" feature in the Torch Feedback section of PWTorch.com. Just to add a twist to this feature, include not just your hometown, but also your occupation (mechanic, lawyer, stay-at-home-dad, college student, etc.) so readers get a flavor for what everyone does as "day jobs." To contribute your thoughts on SD, click here.

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