WWE Smackdown review
December 14, 2012
(Almost) Live from Pittsburgh, Pa.
Aired on USA Network
By Greg Parks, PWTorch Columnist (Twitter: @gregmparks)


- WWE Open.

- A video package and the voice-over picked up with Big E. Langston’s debut last night, as well as the situation between A.J. Lee and John Cena. Plus, the situation with Big Show vs. Sheamus from Raw was shown in clip form. Tonight, Sheamus and John Cena vs. Big Show and Dolph Ziggler.

- In the arena, The Miz’s music played and he was in the ring for Miz TV. Miz said his guests shocked the world at TLC. No one in the crowd bit on his joke, so he went and introduced Dolph Ziggler and A.J. Lee. They walked out with Big E. Langston. Ziggler wore a leather jacket with a white t-shirt underneath, and black pants. Ziggler and Lee kissed on their way to the ring. No one updated the graphic from Raw, as three stills were shown under the “TLC” logo with “last night” underneath. Then they showed the end of Raw and the debut of Big E. Langston, with “Last Night” again as the graphic. Langston has a bit of a baby face, in that he doesn’t come across all that intimidating if you just look at his face.

Miz asked A.J, “why?” She suggested Miz ask Cena why he toyed with her heart. She said she lost her job as GM of Raw because she wanted to keep Cena’s good name clean. She thought it was all worth it when he kissed her on Raw last month. And they replayed the kiss on the TitanTron. “That won a Slammy Award!” she said hilariously. A.J. said she was wrong about Cena and that he was just playing with her emotions. She showed the gifts she got him, including from three weeks ago, Vickie Guerrero giving Cena what production assistants found in the Divas locker room. She said Cena didn’t appreciate how long it took her to make those bows. She said Cena doesn’t care about anyone but himself. She wanted to support him. She showed his reaction from Raw two weeks ago when she intercepted him in the hallway and told her to stay in the back for his match.

A.J. said Cena wanted to keep her hidden, like she was his dirty little secret. She said Cena was supposed to be different than the other guys. Daniel Bryan and C.M. Punk used her and threw her away like she was trash. Cena was supposed to be better than that. “John Cena broke my heart,” she said. Miz said Ziggler called her trash a few weeks ago, then asked if he was aboard the crazy train. Langston stepped up to stare down Miz for that one. Lee said he is Big E. Langston, a friend of hers, and he doesn’t like it when people use that word to describe her. Ziggler called Miz “hilarious, yet completely clueless.” Ziggler said she isn’t crazy (he asked her to use “earmuffs” before he said the c-word). Ziggler said the kiss she gave him Monday was the hottest kiss in Raw history. Ziggler said he stole the show against Cena…and stole his girl. Miz made fun of Ziggler for his ability to pick women. He called Ziggler “the sixth member of One Direction.” Langston clotheslined Miz to the mat after a pause. He laid out Miz with a gut-buster of sorts. Michael Cole noted it was at the command of Ziggler. A.J got the mic and said “show…off” to Miz. Lee skipped around the ring while Langston stood over Miz and Ziggler surveyed the damage. Miz is still trying way too hard.

- Cole, JBL and Josh Mathews were shown at ringside. Some ringside workers ran in front of the camera to clean up the ring. That’s a rookie mistake.

- Booker T. and Teddy Long were walking backstage. Long said he had a kid he wanted Booker to look at and possibly hire. Brad Maddox and his cameraman walked up to introduce himself. Booker had a sidebar with Long and Booker reminded Long who Maddox is. He called Maddox “creepy,” but Long defended him by saying he has a great social media presence and You Tube show. Dear God. Long said he’s hungry and looking for a match to try to earn a contract. He said Booker of all people knows people deserve second chances. So Booker granted Maddox a match against a surprise opponent. Long relayed the message to Maddox. Maddox thanked him.

- A WWE Did You Know? aired, noting that Raw was the most socially active show on TV last night, beating out Hawaii Five-O and Monday Night Football, amongst others.

1 – DAMIEN SANDOW vs. SIN CARA

Cody Rhodes accompanied Sandow to the ring. Cara came out, then Rey Mysterio’s music played, but he never showed. Springboard dropkick by Cara, then a kick to the back of the head. As Cara tried to hop from the apron to the top rope, Rhodes pulled him down by the leg and Cara tumbled to ringside. Sandow took over on offense back in the ring. The Elbow of Disdain missed and Cara landed a sunset flip for two at 2:52. That was all for Cara’s offensive outburst. The announcers focused more on Cody’s mustache than the match at various points. Jaw-breaker broke a chin-lock that Sandow had applied. Missed charge by Sandow and Cara took over. Springboard jumping back elbow found the mark. Headscissors take-over was next. High cross-body fell a little short, but still caught enough of Sandow to get a two-count. Cara dove through the ropes and knocked Sandow and Cara to the ringside floor. As Cara gestured to get the crowd into the match, he noticed The Shield emerging through the crowd. At ringside, Roman Reigns held Mysterio’s mask and tossed it into the ring. Cara picked it up, allowing Sandow to hit Terminus for the win.

WINNER: Sandow, at 6:18. The guys looked like they were going half-speed on a few moves, but it didn’t negatively affect the match all that much.

After Sandow left the ring, The Shield attacked Cara. Loud “Feed Me More” chants from the fans. Seth Rollins came off the top rope with a knee-drop right across the leg of Cara. Cole reminded fans that Cara’s knee was banged up from his match at TLC. After a replay, the ringside trainer checked on Cara’s condition.

- The Flo Rida/Miss Piggy Tribute to the Troops commercial aired.

- The exterior of the Consol Energy Center was shown.

2 – SANTINO MARELLA vs. TENSAI

This match was brought on because of the Santino-Tensai interaction at the Slammies last night, which was shown. “Albert” chants by the fans as soon as the match began. Shoulder knock-down by Tensai. Santino hit the ropes and did his power walking routine. Tensai dropped Santino and elbowdropped him. Marella escaped from Tensai’s shoulders but fell trying to slam the big man. Headbutt and another elbowdrop from Tensai. A cross-body attempt by Santino went nowhere. Tensai trash-talked Marella, but Santino came back with rights. He finally did bodyslam Tensai to a nice reaction. After a diving headbutt, he set up the Cobra. Tensai blocked it and hooked on a sleeper. The cobra failed to sleep though. A cobra shot to the top of the head did nothing. Back splash failed and Marella went for the pin, getting it.

WINNER: Marella, at 4:19. I expect Tensai to become Santino’s new Vladimir Kozlov before long.

A replay of the finish aired.

- Cole relayed the message from the trainer’s room on Sin Cara, saying he has “serious knee damage.” The announcers discussed The Shield’s attacks and JBL again implored either man to stand up and ask Shield what Cara did to deserve the attack.

- They replayed Ric Flair handing out Superstar of the Year last night, and the action that ensued.

- Kofi Kingston, Kane, and Daniel Bryan were shown watching the monitor backstage. Kofi complimented Team Hell No for taking out The Shield. Kane said Kofi needs eyes in the back of his head for their match tonight, because the Shield can strike from anywhere. Kingston wanted payback on Wade Barrett for what happened last night, but Bryan stared a hole through Kofi. He was still upset about missing out on the LOL Moment of the Year. Kofi showed off his Slammy, which caused Bryan to nearly erupt in anger. Kane said at least Bryan got to hang out with Ric Flair. Kingston said Flair would win a Slammy for best Catchphrase, but Bryan disagreed and offered his as an alternate.

3 – WADE BARRETT & THE PRIMETIME PLAYERS vs. KOFI KINGSTON & TEAM HELL NO

Cole said Mysterio was in fact assaulted by The Shield in the locker room prior to the show, and suffered a neck injury because of said attack. Kingston assaulted Barrett at ringside right off the bat, but Titus O’Neil got involved and physical subdued Kingston. Bryan tagged in and applied a surfboard to Darren Young. Kane tagged in and dropkicked Young while he was still stuck in the move. Running dropkick in the corner on a whip from Kane, and it got a two-count. Barrett hammered away on Bryan in a neutral corner. Cole and JBL discussed Boogeyman beating JBL at a PPV several years ago, and then him biting off Jillian Hall’s mole. Kingston made the hot tag and shined against Barrett. Young caused a distraction as Kingston set up for the Trouble in Paradise. That allowed Barrett to clothesline Kingston over the top rope. Barrett whipped Kingston into the barricade and barked to signals his success. A camera focused on the aisle in the crowd, but no Shield member was shown. Young worked over Kingston as the latest word on Mysterio is a “severe” neck injury, passed along by Cole. Also, Mysterio and Cara are being rushed to the UMPC, the medical facility in Pittsburgh.

The heels continued to dominate Kingston, alternating tags to keep the fresh man in. Kingston finally evened things up at 8:56 of the match. O’Neil and Kane both tagged in for their respective teams. Kane got the better of the exchange and went to the top rope. He missed a clothesline, as Titus barely ducked. Impressive Clash of the Titus for two, the pin broken up by Bryan. The match broke down at this point with all six men involved. Kane booted Barrett down and O’Neil nailed Kane from behind. Young called for a tag and it was granted. They were going to double shoulder-tackle Kane, but Bryan tripped up O’Neil and pulled him outside. This distracted Young and allowed Kane to close in for the chokeslam and the win.

WINNERS: Team Hell No and Kingston, at 10:43. Solid enough, but the commentary (discussing everything but what was going on in the ring) signaled that the match didn’t matter.

- An ad for WWEShop.com was shown.

- The announcers talked about Miz TV from earlier in the evening. They showed a clip of Big E. Langston’s debut last night, then his attack on Miz tonight.

- Cena and Sheamus were talking about their match later tonight. Cena said Langston might be the strongest person he’s ever been in the ring against. Sheamus liked the challenge of having the strongest men challenging them tonight. Sheamus asked Cena about A.J. and said no one was around so Cena could tell him. Yeah, no one, except for the camera right in front of them. So Cena whispered some secrets into Sheamus’s ear. Sheamus seemed disgusted, then hilarious, then shocked, then hesitant to hear more, then disgusted again. “Really?” he asked. “Absolutely not, just kidding,” said Cena. Sheamus’s facial reactions weren’t too exaggerated there, but the bar is pretty low.

- C.M. Punk and Paul Heyman came out, with Punk still on crutches. Punk talked up his long title reign and said the history books will look upon him as the greatest of all-time. And yet, the fans couldn’t put aside their disrespect toward him and vote him Superstar of the Year. Punk said the fans are the kind of parents who enroll their kids in T-Ball where they don’t keep score so no one loses. Punk said not only shouldn’t women be able to vote, but now men shouldn’t too. He called the fans “losers,” and said he expects that kind of behavior from them, but not John Cena. Cena knew he wasn’t Superstar of the Year, claimed Punk. He said Cena sucked up to and gave his Slammy to Ric Flair. He wanted the fans to support the relics from the past, usurping time from those who are the Best in the World. He said what’s more impressive than winning a title 16 times in a 95-year career is winning the title once and not losing it in almost 400 days. He called Flair a “loser” who has lost more title fights than he has won. Punk, meanwhile, does not lose in title fights. Not to Cena or the “knuckle-dragging” Ryback. He said he was a real man.

Punk said he has set the bar so high, no one will be able to reach it. He said most people wouldn’t be in the arena a few weeks after emergency surgery, but he’s doing his job to entertain people. Punk said no one else in Pittsburgh can entertain them, since the women they call the Penguins are on strike. He said he doesn’t go on strike and doesn’t have an offseason. He’s the guy people to tune in to see every Monday and Tuesday. What channel is he on Tuesday nights? Punk said no one will beat him, not Cena, Rock, Stone Cold Steve Austin…but then Ryback’s music hit. Ryback entered the ring and circled Punk and Heyman. Heyman, his voice quavering, told Ryback Punk is not medically cleared to compete. Ryback said, according to doctors, Punk will be cleared soon. And on the first Raw of the year, he wants a shot at Punk for the WWE Title. Ryback (and the fans) chanted “feed me more.” Punk’s promo was so natural; didn’t feel scripted or anything. Smooth, and with just enough disgust and vitriol for the fans.

4 – RYBACK vs. ANTONIO CESARO

Cesaro was knocked to ringside rather quickly. He came back in and headbutted Ryback, but Ryback jumped him with a Thesz Press. Cesaro tried to leave just like he did last night, but Ryback came out and pressed him over his head. Cesaro got down and shoved Ryback into the ringside steps. He wanted the count-out win, but Ryback re-entered at nine. Ryback missed a corner charge and Cesaro went to the middle rope. He came down with a European uppercut for a two-count at 3:25. Ryback caught Cesaro with a big back body-drop and then set up for a running clothesline. It knocked Cesaro off his feet. Cesaro was finished with Shellshocked.

WINNER: Ryback, at 5:08. Had to keep Ryback strong going into his title match with Punk in a few weeks. Cesaro didn’t lose much jobbing to the juggernaut that is Ryback.

- A sneak peek of Tribute to the Troops aired. It was Miz
prepping for a ride on an FA-18 jet.

- Kaitlyn was walking backstage when A.J came up and wished her good luck. Kaitlyn just kept walking and A.J. asked what that “look” was for. Kaitlyn said A.J. does this over and over again, making it really hard to be her friend. A.J. broke down in tears. Then she broke out of it when Kaitlyn showed concern. Kaitlyn said she had a title match and A.J. asked if she was choosing the title match over a friend. Kaitlyn said she was choosing the match over a lunatic. A.J. attacked her and the two fought into a vending machine and a table. Referees had to pry A.J. off of Kaitlyn.

5 – EVE TORRES vs. KAITLYN – DIVAS CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH

Kaitlyn was disheveled coming out and they replayed the attack by A.J. from literally a minute ago. Eve took Kaitlyn down and kicked her in the chest. Cover by Eve for two at :31. Eve continued beating up Kaitlyn and slammed her head off the apron. Kaitlyn made a mistake in her comeback and felled Kaitlyn for a two-count. Kaitlyn worked out of a rest-hold as Mathews said Kaitlyn has been waiting for this opportunity for months. Didn’t she just get a shot last month? A couple roll-ups for near-falls. Kaitlyn came off the second rope with a sunset flip for a two-count. Kaitlyn did not look comfortable at all up there. Shoulder tackle for two at 4:08. Kaitlyn put Eve on her shoulders but Eve pulled herself to the apron. Kaitlyn kicked her off. From the apron, Kaitlyn dove onto Eve with a Thesz press. Mathews is just taking a beating on commentary. All night. Kaitlyn went to the top rope, but Eve grabbed the leg of the ref. Kaitlyn got down and tried to pull her off the ref. Eve tripped the ref, drawing the disqualification.

WINNER: Kaitlyn, via DQ, at 5:40. It was an almost six-minute Kaitlyn match. Enough said.

- A.J. was complaining backstage to Dolph Ziggler about Kaitlyn attacking her. She claimed Kaitlyn had always been unstable. Ziggler calmed A.J. down until Big Show walked up. Langston was with Ziggler and A.J. also, for what it’s worth. Show said Ziggler could be spending the holidays in a body cast. Ziggler tried to get on Show’s good side for their tag match. But Show said neither of them like each other. He said if he gets any kind of premonition that Ziggler will try to cash in against him, show will knock him out.

- An ad for WWE Week on USA Network.

- The announcers were shown at ringside. Sheamus and Big Show’s interaction from Raw was shown. They also showed Cena stopping Ziggler from cashing in his MITB briefcase last night. A graphic aired for Cena & Sheamus vs. Ziggler & Show tonight.

- Brad Maddox walked to the ring doing some mic work, saying no one will ever forget Maddox’s name. He said tonight is the night he’ll finally become a WWE Superstar.

6 – BRAD MADDOX vs. BRODUS CLAY

Clay shook off an early Maddox attacked, then slammed him. Overhead suplex by Clay. Long and Booker were watching this match backstage. Maddox hit a dropkick on the apron for a near-fall. Maddox peppered Clay with elbows and when Maddox yelled at the ref for breaking it up, Clay went on offense. Corner splash, then another overhead throw. Running headbutt, then he asked fans to call his momma. Big splash for the win.

WINNER: Clay, at 2:07. WWE has sapped all the crowd reaction they could out of Clay. There’s nothing left.

Before Clay could dance, the Shield attacked him and left him lying in the ring.

- A Tribute to the Troops ad aired, starring Kid Rock.

7 – DOLPH ZIGGLER & THE BIG SHOW vs. SHEAMUS & JOHN CENA

During Ziggler’s entrance, we saw AGAIN Langston attacking Cena last night. It was also announced that Santa Claus will be hosting Raw on Monday night. Doesn’t he have more important things to do that night? Langston and A.J. were ringside with Ziggler. Big Show worked over Cena to start and even speared Cena as Cena jumped in the air. Tag to Ziggler, who dropped a number of elbows into the chest of Cena. Rear chinlock from Ziggler, but Cena worked to his feet. Cena crawled toward his corner after a back body-drop to Ziggler, but a fresh Show intercepted him by dropping an elbow. Sheamus did tag in, only to be knocked down outside the ring by Show before long. Ziggler tagged Show, who tossed Sheamus back in. Cena tried to get the fans into the match as Show continued working over Sheamus. Sheamus fought out of an arm-bar, but Show knocked him down and tagged Ziggler. Ziggler held Sheamus for Show, who gave Sheamus a right hand to the gut. Inverted DDT by Show for two. Show grabbed Sheamus for a chokeslam, but Sheamus countered, as all wrestlers do, with a DDT. Ziggler and Cena both tagged in at 10:09 of the match. Cena winked at the camera as he began his Five Knuckle Shuffle. Show broke up an Attitude Adjustment attempt so Sheamus got involved, clotheslining Show over the top. They began to brawl to the back. Zig Zag by Ziggler back in the ring for two. Ziggler argued with the ref, allowing Cena to hit him with the AA. Langston ran in and took out Cena for the DQ.

WINNERS: Cena and Sheamus, via DQ, at 11:28.

Langston stood over Cena after giving him his gut-buster finish, allowing A.J. and Ziggler to make out in front of him. A.J’s music played and again she skipped around the ring. They replayed the final seconds of the match. A.J. got in Cena’s face as Cena was still out as the show went off the air. They did get one more video plug in for tomorrow night’s Tribute to the Troops.

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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