WWE Smackdown review
November 2, 2012
Taped 10/30/12 in Fayetteville, N.C.
Aired on SYFY
By Greg Parks, PWTorch Columnist (Twitter: @gregmparks)


- WWE Open.

- A “TONIGHT” graphic promised to fill us in on the C.M Punk vs. Ryback controversy, plus the controversy surrounding the A.J./John Cena relationship, and the new World Heavyweight Champion, The Big Show.

- To the arena where Miz was in the ring for MizTV. Miz pretty much reiterated the big news of the week that we just saw in the opening video package. His first guest: Sheamus. Miz talked up the Sheamus vs. Big Show title match from Hell in a Cell, then said Sheamus must feel “embarrassed” and “humiliated” after being knocked out by Show. Sheamus turned the question around on Miz, talking about his loss to Kofi Kingston at the PPV. Miz said the difference is he has beaten Kingston before, but Sheamus has never beaten Show, and he never will, especially at Survivor Series. Is that the announcement for the rematch?

Sheamus said losing the title has humbled him. Miz interrupted Sheamus’s “clichéd” responses and Miz went back to the Wrestlemania tag match that Miz helped win, saying it set in motion Big Show’s firing and coming back angrier than ever, so Sheamus can thank Miz for his loss. Miz wouldn’t tolerate Sheamus’s sass and said he’s never been humbled. Paging the Iron Sheik. Kofi Kingston’s music interrupted after Miz proclaimed that he’d win his rematch over Kofi. Kofi asked how many times he has to kick Miz in the head before he knocks some sense into him. He told Miz to come to grips with the fact that he beat him…and again…and again. Miz said at Survivor Series, he’ll lead his team to victory and eliminate Kofi. Miz’s catchphrase was once again interrupted, this time by Big Show’s music.

Show walked out to the ramp and lectured Miz about taking credit for his victory. Show couldn’t understand why Miz was talking to the former champ and not the new champ. Sheamus interrupted Show’s explanation of how it felt to knock Sheamus out by asking Show how it felt to receive the White Noise on Raw. Sheamus offered to fight Show, but Show said Sheamus will get all of him he’ll want at Survivor Series. When Show walked out, Miz tried to attack Kofi from behind and Kofi dumped him to ringside.

- Tonight, Randy Orton vs. Wade Barrett.

- Sin Cara and Rey Mysterio were walking backstage. Then they showed Darren Young and Titus O’Neil walking in another part of the arena. It’s Cara vs. Young, next.

[Commercial Break]

- Show was seen walking backstage, when Booker came up to him. He complimented him on his match at Hell in a Cell. Booker said it’s his job to give the WWE Universe what they want, and tonight, they want Show and Miz vs. Kofi and Sheamus.

1 – SIN CARA vs. DARREN YOUNG

Cara got the better of Young early on, but Young had Cara down and kept him down with an elbowdrop and a legdrop. Rey and Titus were at ringside to lend support to their partners. Suplex by Young, but Cara turned it into a small package for two. He couldn’t sustain the offense though. Cara made a comeback and barely grazed Young with a handspring back elbow. Another roll-through by Cara and another two-count. Out of nowhere, Young hit his finisher for the win.

WINNER: Young, at 3:37. Just a way to get the Prime Time Players back on the winning side, and to continue their feud with Rey and Cara.

At ringside, Titus took out a whistle and blew it into the microphone. He said just when the fans thought Halloween was over, D. Young just busted open a piñata in the ring. O’Neil said he was going to give someone else the opportunity to get into the ring with a big dog. Rey hopped in the ring, ready to accept the challenge. Titus got on the apron and the referee was in the ring. They might fight next!

[Commercial Break]

2 – TITUS O’NEIL vs. REY MYSTERIO

The bell rang right out of break, and Josh Mathews noted that Teddy Long made this match official during the commercial. Good on them for going to the length of explaining how this match was made. Cara was not as successful of a cheerleader as Rey at ringside. Young got a cheap-shot in on Reye early on. Titus gave Rey a forearm across the chest. Josh Mathews kept bringing up how Rey retired JBL, and JBL would get furious at Mathews. Rey kicked at O’Neil, but O’Neil gave Rey a hard shoulder tackle. Titus got tangled up in the middle rope on a boot attempt and Rey set him up for the 619. Cara stopped Young from getting involved which briefly distracted Rey I guess, allowing Titus to catch him in the move. O’Neil charged at Rey in the corner but missed, allowing Rey to roll Titus up for the win.

WINNER: Mysterio, at 2:58. There’s your 50/50 booking for the night.

Rey and Cara mocked the dance done by the Prime Time Players. That would be worth sitting through the entire show to see.

- We’ll get the details on the alleged John Cena/A.J. relationship.

- Up next, the fall-out from the WWE Title match at Hell in a Cell.

[Commercial Break]

- Mathews and JBL were shown at ringside. They discussed C.M. Punk vs. Ryback inside the Cell, then threw it to stills and slow-mo replays of the match. Afterward, they discussed that on Main Event, it was announced that referee Brad Maddox was suspended and he’ll be on Raw Monday to explain what happened. Then they sent it to clips from Raw of Punk being confronted by Mick Foley, then being run off by Ryback at the end of the show.

- A graphic aired for Team Foley vs. Team Punk at Survivor Series.

- Backstage, Teddy Long told Booker T. that everything is out of control under Vickie Guerrero on Raw, and it won’t be long until the locker room rebels. Natalya walked in and said that while Eve was competing on the European tour, she suggested she take over Eve’s role for the night. David Otunga butted in saying Nattie doesn’t know anything about leadership. Booker said he needs Otunga to compete against a returning Superstar tonight: The Great Khali. Otunga did a spit-take with his coffee, spitting it on Natalya. Booker told Otunga to get his gear. Otunga insulted Natalya, saying the coffee on her was an improvement. He took another big swig and Nattie slapped him. This time, Otunga’s mouth full of coffee found its home on Long’s suit.

- Wade Barrett vs. Randy Orton is next.

[Commercial Break]

- Alberto Del Rio and Ricardo Rodriguez made their way to the ring. Del Rio was to join the commentators for the next match.

- Wade Barrett came to the ring for his match. Hey, this match took place in this exact same segment last week. During Barrett’s entrance, they showed clips of his match with Orton on Raw. Before the match could begin, Del Rio entered the ring in an attempt to attack Orton. Orton caught him first and sent him out of the ring. Rodriguez shoved Orton into the ring post and Del Rio took control. He put the boots to Orton as a number of referees tried to pull him off. He shoved Orton into the post again before finally relenting.

[Commercial Break]

3 – WADE BARRETT vs. RANDY ORTON

The match was joined in progress out of break. Mathews made sure to note that the referee checked to ensure that Orton was well enough to start the match. Barrett was clotheslined over the top rope and Orton went to work on him near the fans. Back in the ring, Orton ran into a big boot. Barrett caught Orton in the ropes and delivered knees, then a boot that sent Orton to the floor. Back in, Barrett registered a two-count. Orton suplexed out of a chin-lock. A slugfest broke out and Orton got the better of it, that is, until Barrett caught Orton with a knee-lift. Elbowdrop into a cover for two. Second-rope elbow-drop found the mark for two. Bodyslam by Barrett after working over Orton some more. He wanted one more elbowdrop off the second rope, but he never got the chance as Orton met him with right hands. Superplex by Orton and both men sold the effects of the move. Orton began his comeback and scoop slammed Barrett. As Orton readied for the RKO, Del Rio emerged from backstage. Rodriguez came down and hopped on the apron. Orton’s attention diverted, he fell victim to a Barrett roll-up for the win.

WINNER: Barrett, 8:42 shown. Not a ringing endorsement of Barrett, but it furthered Orton vs. Del Rio, and Orton is the priority since he’s in a feud and Barrett isn’t.

- Still to come, Kofi Kingston and Sheamus vs. Big Show and The Miz.

[Commercial Break]

- Mathews talked about WWE’s partnership with Susan G. Komen for the Cure. They cut to a video package of Superstars talking about the fight as well as Layla discussing losing her mom to breast cancer. They also spliced in video of John Cena giving $1 million to the Foundation on Raw.

- Del Rio was walking backstage with Rodriguez, who was holding his eye where Orton hit him in the last segment. As Matt Striker approached Del Rio to explain his actions, Orton attacked from behind. It’s funny to see guys walking in the background as if nothing is going on. The two fought in catering, but Del Rio touched a hot coffeepot, momentarily stinging him. Orton took the pot (using napkins to protect himself) and went to pour it on Del Rio, but missed and it ended up on Rodriguez. As Del Rio and Orton continued to brawl (look out 3MB!), Orton poured what appeared to be hot chili onto Rodriguez. Orton back-dropped Del Rio onto a table and hammered away. Mid-carders such as JTB, William Regal, Ted DiBiase, Kaitlyn, Yoshi Tatsu and others looked on, not interested in stopping the brawl. Striker interrupted to get a comment, and his face was shoved into a table of food.

[Commercial Break]

- In two weeks, Jerry “The King” Lawler returns to Raw. The way Mathews talked, he’d be returning to announcing, not just making an appearance.

4 – THE GREAT KHALI vs. DAVID OTUNGA

They showed a clip from earlier in the night of how this match was made. Otunga posed, which didn’t impress Khali. Otunga went after Khali’s legs and trash talked. Otunga got a running start, but Khali slapped him hard in the chest. Mathews said Khali’s hands were the size of laptops. That’s a new one. A smiling Natalya was shown watching a monitor, and smiling, backstage. Otunga hit the ropes again and was crushed by the Khali chop. That ended it.

WINNER: Khali, at 1:33. Khali didn’t improve his wrestling skills while he was gone, in case you were wondering.

Back to Natalya, who seemed smitten with Khali.

- WWE 13 was plugged by Mathews.

- Next, the A.J./Cena scandal from Raw will be shown.

[Commercial Break]

- Walking backstage, Khali came upon Natalya. Nattie said she was impressed by Khali putting away Otunga after what he did to her earlier. Nattie was amazed at the size of Khali’s hands. She then walked away.

5 – JUSTIN GABRIEL vs. R-TRUTH

The two were already in the ring. They shook hands before the bell. Truth did some dancing after avoiding a leap-frog attempt. Gabriel danced a little himself, which didn’t seem to impress Truth. Lie Detector by Truth for two. Mathews put JBL on the spot by asking if he thought Gabriel would be a future World Champion. JBL was as diplomatic as he could be in answering that question. He then later used WCW’s former catchphrase, “where the big boys play,” when describing WWE. Gabriel was on offense for the bulk of the middle part of the match. Back heel kick by Gabriel for two at 2:54. Springboard, but Gabriel missed. Truth gave Gabriel his finisher for the victory.

WINNER: Truth, at 3:27. Decent mid-card match that probably won’t mean much. Just a way to get these guys on TV.

After the match, the two men shook hands.

- Mathews sent it to the Raw Rebound. Then they scrolled Tweets from the WWE Universe reacting to the A.J./Cena scandal. Oh, and Vickie Guerrero has security footage of A.J. in a state of undress, heading to Cena’s room. I guess that will be unveiled on Raw.

- Miz and Big Show were talking strategy backstage. Miz told Show to follow his lead. Show brought up their former partnership, saying they were partners then, but now, he’s Miz’s superior. He told Miz that if he isn’t careful, he’ll be on the receiving end of a knockout punch too.

- The main event tag match is next!

[Commercial Break]

- They showed clips of Rodriguez and Del Rio costing Orton his match, then the brawl that ensued backstage. Because of this, next Tuesday on Super Smackdown Live, Del Rio vs. Orton will take place with a Falls Count Anywhere stipulation. Bad timing for that show to air on Election night.

6 – SHEAMUS & KOFI KINGSTON vs. THE MIZ & THE BIG SHOW

The heels couldn’t decide who should start the match. Finally, Miz and Sheamus were the lucky two. Short-arm clothesline by Sheamus. Kofi tagged in and hit a double axe-handle to Miz’s arm with Sheamus holding him. Kingston hopped over Miz then took him down and clotheslined Miz over the top and to the outside. Suicide dive by Kingston. Big Show looked like he wanted to get involved, but Sheamus evened the odds. They went to break 2:01 into the match.

[Commercial Break]

Back at 4:57 of the contest. Show was in control of Kingston out of break. Sidewalk slam by Show, who was in the habit of looking over at Sheamus following each high-impact move. Miz took over offense on Kingston with a running boot. Miz kept Kingston grounded until Kofi broke out of a chin-lock. Kingston neared a tag and tried to escape Miz’s grasp to make it. Finally, at 8:11, he did. Miz took the brunt of Sheamus’s offense. Kingston tagged back in and hit a springboard cross-body. the pin was broken up by Show, who was knocked out of the ring by Sheamus. The ref tried to get control, and in doing so, missed Show giving Kofi a knockout punch. Miz rolled him up for the win.

WINNERS: Show and Miz, at 9:37.

An angry Sheamus seethed as Show headed to the back. Miz was on the receiving end of a Brogue Kick, since Miz unwisely stuck around to celebrate. Mathews gave a plug for Super Smackdown Live before the show closed.


Did you watch Friday's Smackdown episode? Send your 0-10 score & Reax to pwtorch@gmail.com for our TV Reax feature.
Greg Parks has been covering WWE Smackdown for PWTorch.com since January of 2007. Follow him on Twitter @gregmparks for live Tweeting during Raw, Impact, and PPVs, as well as other bits of wisdom. Comments, questions and feedback are welcome, and can be sent to g_man9784@yahoo.com.

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