By Wade Keller, PWTorch editor

KELLER'S WWE SMACKDOWN REPORT
JUNE 25, 2010
AIRED ON MY NETWORK TV

[Q1]

-Smackdown G.M. Teddy Long stood next to his assistant, Vickie Guerrero, and said it's been a whirlwind week in WWE. He said three new champions were crowned at the Fatal 4-Way PPV event, including Rey Mysterio as World Hvt. Champion. He said Rey will be defending the title at "a new pay-per-view concept." Vickie said she'd take it from there and announced the Money in the Bank match. Long explained the rules that the winner of that match can cash in his briefcase against the champion at any time. Vickie also talked about Vince McMahon being attacked by former NXT members. She said he couldn't speak. Drew McIntrye interrupted. Long smiled. Drew told him to wipe that smile off his face. Drew said he humbled him last week. He then complained about his refereeing at Fatal 4-Way. Long said due to the absence of Mr. McMahon, the WWE Board says he can run Smackdown how he sees fit. He said his first order of business is to reinstate Matt Hardy. Drew said he can't do that. Long said he can, and he'll be wrestling against him. He told Drew to leave. Vickie said, "He said get out!"

-The Smackdown opening aired.

-During Big Show's ring entrance for the opening match, Todd Grisham and Matt Striker were shown at ringside. They said Kane believes C.M. Punk is responsible for the attack on Undertaker, so they have a one-on-one match on this show. When Jack Swagger walked out, he held a mic in his hand and he stopped on the stage, upset that there was no belt around his waist. He said he wants everyone to know he has filed a protest against WWE. He is protesting that he has to battle a 500 pound giant right now, and that he had to defend his title in a Fatal 4-Way. He said it's so unpredictable, it's impossible for a naturally born champion such as him to come out victorious. "It's not fair!" he said. "There were no rules in place to protect me. There were no rules in place to protect the World Championship." He said he was cheated. So he is invoking his title rematch clause at the Money in the Bank PPV. He said his daddy taught him that cheaters never win and winners never cheat. He said until the next PPV, he's going to make everyone suffer the way he did on Father's Day, starting with Big Show.

1 -- THE BIG SHOW vs. JACK SWAGGER

The announcers hyped what would be at stake in the Money in the Bank pay-per-view. Show hit a big superplex early. Swagger rolled to the floor, so they cut to a break. [c]

[Q2]

Show worked over Swagger's arm. Swagger came back and worked over Show's leg. Swagger said he is noticing a new-found mean-streak in Swagger and he's loving it. Swagger countered a chokeslam attempt with a roll into an anklelock. Show crawled over to the bottom rope. Swagger wouldn't release the hold, so he was DQ'd. They showed a close-up of Show in tremendous pain. He tried to stand, but collapsed. Swagger observed with a smile what he had done.

WINNER: Show via DQ in 11:00.

STAR RATING: *1/2 -- Decent match, and it got across Swagger's killer instinct and frustration with having lost the title. [c]

[Q3]

2 -- CURT HAWKINS & VANCE ARCHER & DOLPH ZIGGLER vs. CHRISTIAN & MVP & KOFI KINGSTON

All three faces dove through or over the ropes to hit the heels at 1:00, then they cut to a break. [c] Kofi went for a roll-up on Dolph that didn't go smoothly, but Kofi recovered well. Striker called it "a beautiful roll-up." It was a resilient roll-up, but Hardly beautiful. The heels got a sustained beatdown on Kingston until he hot-tagged in Christian. Christian eventually got a near fall on Ziggler. The other heels broke up the pin. Six-way chaos broke out. Kofi hit Trouble in Paradise to knock Archer out of the ring and MVP knocked Hawkins over the top rope with a flying bodyblock. That left Christian and Ziggler. Christian hit the Kill Switch. Grisham actually said "It's over!" and it was over. Good to see a WWE announcer break from the tired predictable policy of only saying "it's over" to try to create false drama when a kickout is coming.

WINNER: Christian & MVP & Kingston in 12:00.

STAR RATING: ** -- Solid six-man tag match. [c]

[Q4]

-Grisham threw to a replay of the full Vince McMahon-NXT rebels beatdown. Grisham and Striker read the statement issued by email from the new anonymous G.M. saying: "These actions will be met with the appropriate consequences."

-Kane banged on a casket backstage and he vowed to "decapitate the head of the Straight Edge society." He slammed the door shut.

-They showed a smiling Matt Hardy warming up backstage, shaking hands with WWE workers and J.T.G. who were welcoming him back. Nice touch to get across the idea he's been away and been missed and everyone is happy to see him back.

3 -- DREW MCINTYRE vs. MATT HARDY

Grisham said Hardy might not have been officially part of WWE at Fatal 4-Way, but he made his presence known. Didn't Long establish that the suspension of Hardy was only for Smackdown? So Grisham is overstating the scope of Hardy's suspension, right? It's not worth trying to figure this out... Hardy tackled Drew threw the ropes early in the match, knocking him to the floor. Drew fought back at ringside.

[Q5]

Drew got in sustained offense for several minutes, stopping repeatedly to run his hands through his hair and expressing the "seething" emotion. [c] Back from a break, Drew was still in control. At 13:00 Hardy backdropped out of a Future Shock DDT attempt and then dropped down with a forearm onto Drew's back. Striker said, "Matt Hardy is not in a good way" (that phrase makes no sense). Hardy swept Drew backwards onto the steps and then rolled him in the ring for a two count. Drew tried to fight back, but Hardy cut that off with a Twist of Fate for a sudden win.

WINNER: Hardy in 15:00.

STAR RATING: **1/4 -- Nothing spectacular, and at times it felt drawn out, but overall a decent average lengthy TV match. It was what you would expect from these two, but nothing that raises your expectations for either to win anyone over that they have can't-miss matches.

[Q6]

-Long announced on the big screen that he did some research and Drew's visa had expired. He sent security to the ring to drag Drew out of the country, apparently. Striker explained what a visa is. Drew told Striker that he is not going anywhere because Vince McMahon wouldn't stand for it. Striker said that Mr. McMahon is inaccessible. Drew still insisted he wasn't going anywhere. Striker said someone should file paperwork to extend his stay in the U.S. Grisham said it's time for Drew to go back to Scotland. Drew made a big production of his leaving the stage and returning to the back. [c]

-Cody Rhodes walked out with Husky Harris. Cody said everyone is trying to get a good look at his naturally sculpted facial features. "Take a look at WWE's most attractive Superstar," he said. "All of you know now what the WWE Divas knew when they voted in a very special WWE poll." He put up evidence of a poll asking who is the most handsome: Cody, John Cena, Randy Orton, Chris Jericho, and MVP. He claimed the results were him winning with 35 percent, with the others listed getting 28, 15, 14, and 8 respectively. He said Cena is up there "and he's a movie star, but he's not the most handsome guy in the WWE." He then asked Husky to step up. He asked him to show off what he's working with and take his vest off. Cody said Husky represents the average male with his "horrible tattoos" and his "really dirty hair." He said: "I can't help it that I was born this good looking. It isn't genetics. Have you seen my father? Have you seen my brother? I mean, come on." A few fans chanted "Boring!" at him. Cody said, "Sometimes a blessing can be a curse."

He jumped to ringside and approached a fan and asked if he knows how hard it is to maintain his delicate, baby-smooth skin. "I can see the popcorn grease seeping out of your skin." He turned to a lady and said, "I can literally hear you getting fatter?" He asked Grisham if he knows how many countless hours he spends in the gym while he's reading comics and Rotten Tomatoes. He turned to Chimmel and said he hasn't had a carb since Clinton was president, whereas Tony hasn't had a carb since, well, the first match. Cody re-entered the ring and said, "To the WWE Divas, I say thank you. You ladies have exquisite taste. He lay on the top rope in the corner and said he can't he;p he has a God-given ability to excel in the ring. He said there aren't enough adjectives to cover his looks. He asked Long and Vickie to considered the man with the "money face" for the Money in the Bank. He said from now on the people should call him "Dashing" Cody Rhodes. He sang those words repeatedly a dozen times, maybe more. Grisham said the WWE Universe would like to be bashing Cody Rhodes. That's one of those segments that "brings out the mark in everyone" as he was really conceited and full of himself plus it was accentuated by going on and on and on. This is one of those WWE skits - and they've done this forever - where they want a new character to really stick so they put him in a deliberately overly long segment to really make it memorable even if it's a little tough to endure at the time.

-Backstage Dolph said he has a problem. Vickie asked what was wrong. He said he gives and gives, but he wants something in return. He said he wants gold. She said she gave him a gold chain and thought he liked that. He said he wants an IC Title match or else they may be through. He told her to make it happen. Vickie seemed taken aback, worried, and hurt over about the ultimatum.

[Q7] [c]

4 - ROSA MENDEZ vs. KELLY KELLY (w/Tiffany)

Rosa jumped rope in the ring before the match. Grisham said that's good exercise. Striker said it's good for his eyes. LayCool walked to ringside with Kaval. They had dressed Kaval in a pink sleeveless sweatshirt. Kelly attacked Rosa at the bell and executed her finisher for the instant win.

WINNER: Kelly in 0:10. That gives new meaning to the phrase "ridiculously short Divas match." That wasn't long enough for LayCool to get in any good lines.

-Afterward, Kelly threw Rosa's jump rope at LayCool at the announce table. They took exception and were going to enter the ring, but Tiffany stood next to Kelly, so they backed out.

-Clips aired of the finish of the Swagger-Big Show match earlier. Then they plugged the Punk vs. Kane main event. [c]

-A vignette aired with Alberto Del Rio. He said he refuses to lie. He said is the world's only honest man. At first I thought it was a Viagara commercial or something as there wasn't anything indicating it was a WWE vignette as it flowed right out of a commercial break. He was sitting in a house with a nice kitchen in the background. He said nothing about being a WWE Superstar. Grisham and Striker reacting to the vignette was the only thing identifying that it was a WWE segment. Grisham excitedly congratulated Rey winning the World Title again. Striker said he will be on Smackdown next week to address the WWE Universe.

[Q8]

-After his ring intro, C.M. Punk pointed at his mask-covered face and said, "You are looking at the face of an innocent man." The irony wasn't meant to be lost on us. They cut to a break before Kane's ring entrance. [c]

5 -- C.M. PUNK vs. KANE

Kane tossed Punk around ringside in the first minute of the match. Grisham said Kane has been on a rampage since finding his brother Undertaker "in a vegetative state." Striker wanted to know where the evidence is against the Straight Edge Society. When the mystery masked man appeared, Kane beat him up. Serina covered the masked man and pleaded with Kane. Luke Gallows joined in and the S.E.S. attacking Kane. Punk threw Kane into the ringside barrier. The masked man mounted and pounded Kane. Kane made a comeback at 4:00. He threw Gallows into the ringpost. Gallows tried to fire back, but Kane chokeslammed him through the announce table. He turned back toward Punk in the crowd. He pursued him among the fans, up the steps into the concourse. The camera followed. Punk exited into the lobby. Kane threw him onto a souvenir table and then a make-shift concession table. It wasn't exactly believable as the fans had been cleared out of that area first and the concession and souvenir tables looked more like something you'd see at an ROH show. Punk escaped outside of the arena and ran away. Striker said if he was Punk he's never show his face in WWE again.

WINNER: No contest in 8:00. They never even established whether the match began or ended or had any rules. That stuff is annoying where they just disregard the whole concept a match being a vehicle to solve something. The lobby brawl bordered on cheesy since it was obviously make-shift for the brawl and the fans had been cleared out first.

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