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The following report originally published 20 years ago this week here at PWTorch.com…
WWE Smackdown review
December 16th, 2004
Taped 12/14/04 in Nashville, Tennessee
Aired on UPN
Report by Paul Madavi, Torch Team Contributor
Hello and welcome to the Smackdown Breakdown, your source for in depth Smackdown analysis. If you own a PS2, do yourself a favor and buy Burnout 3 right away. There’s nothing quite like driving 200 MPH into a series of busses, causing a giant car pile up worth hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage.
This Week’s Episode: Still in Power
The show begins with Orlando Jordan introducing WWE Champion John Bradshaw Layfield, who rides in ON TOP of his limo. On top with him is Amy Weber (happy Prole?). Also, the limo is flanked by the Basham Brother, Danny and Doug. Balloons and confetti then descend from the rafters. Michael Cole and Tazz banter while JBL celebrates in the ring.
The Champ then cuts a promo regarding his successful defense of his championship belt, claiming it was the greatest example of sports entertainment in history. He claims to be the champion of all champions. He then takes a minute to run down General Manager Theodore R. Long, and the fans. Proclamations of 2005 being the year of JBL are made.
The promo is cut short by my boy Kurt Angle, who makes his way to the ring with his goons, Luther Reigns and Mark Jindrak in tow. Kurt tells JBL he’s not out there to congratulate him, but rather to take exception to JBL’s claim to greatest champ of all time. Kurt informs JBL that Our Olympic Hero is the greatest champ of all time. Kurt sites Armageddon 2000, when he overcame The Rock, Stone Cold, Triple H, and a few others in a 6 man Hell in a Cell. He and JBL then go back and forth at each other. This culminates in Kurt challenging JBL to a Championship match. JBL declines the match.
Theodore Long comes out to the ring in order to clarify matters. He books JBL versus Kurt Angle for the WWE Championship. “Holla, holla, holla!”
[Commercial Break]
(1) Rey Mysterio & Rob Van Dam defeat Billy Kidman & Akio Rey Mysterio and Billy Kidman start off the action. Billy hits a tilt-a-whirl back breaker early, and tags in Akio. Rey Mysterio hits a head scissors, but Akio counters the 6-1-9 attempt that follows. Rey gets knocked to the outside, and Kidman nails a dropkick. Back in the ring, Akio applies a headlock on Mysterio. Rey counters out and nails an inverted neckbreaker/facebuster. RVD and Kidman are both tagged in and RVD surges. RVD hits a monkey flip, which Mysterio follows with a dropkick. Rey and Akio go flying out of the ring, which allows RVD to hit a Five Star Frogsplash for the pin
The Breakdown
Psychology: This was pretty much a spotfest, with not much of a build-up. It was go, go, go from the sound of the bell. Not much else to say about the subject really, other than it was probably too quick a match for 4 people to really build a story.
Action: What the match lacked in psychology, it made up for in spades with action. Tons of it. There was hardly a second somebody wasn’t being thrown out of the ring, or otherwise dispensing or receiving a cruiserweight move. Good stuff.
Entertainment: This was entertaining enough for an opening match. Probably a good idea to keep it low on psychology and high on action to start off the show.
[Commercial Break]
Torrie Wilson makes her way to the ring in a ridiculous Uncle Sam get up. She talks about how proud she is to an American, and then we get a video package reviewing the WWE entertaining our troops. She announces that the WWE will be returning to the Middle East to next week to entertain the troops once again.
While Tazz and Cole talk up the WWE, Heidenreich rushes the announce table. Cole makes a break for it. Heidenreich then grabs a steal chair and sets in the ring. He sits and reads a poem about how he’s going to kick Undertaker’s butt. It’s a bad, bad, bad poem, too. Worse than his acting. Worse than his gimmick. Just bad.
Backstage, Booker T and Eddie Guerrero console each other on their loss this past Sunday. They run into one of the newest floozies. They soon argue about who is going to be the bigger star next week in the Middle East. They almost come to blows, but Booker T blows the whole thing off. They head off to the ring in good spirits.
[Commercial Break]
Backstage, Orlando Jordan is not allowed to see Theodore Long, who is meditating. Reigns then sneaks up on Jordan and taunts him. They then argue like the man-children they are over who is better: JBL or Kurt.
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(2) Booker T & Eddie Guerrero vs. Kenzo Suzuki (w/Hiroko) & Rene Dupree (w/ Fifi) Action starts with Booker T and Rene Dupree locking up. They trade offensive spurts to starts the match. Booker T takes control and tags in Eddie Guerrero. Dupree hits a back elbow, allowing him to tag in Kenzo, who is immediately tossed in the corner and beat down by Guerrero. Booker is tagged in and nails a heel kick. He quickly tags Eddie back in, who continues to work Kenzo. Kenzo reverses Eddie off the ropes into a backdrop, then tags in Dupree. Dupree is hip tossed out of the ring by Guerrero.
[Commercial Break]
When we return, Booker T is dominating Kenzo in the face corner. Eddie chokes Kenzo with the rope. Kenzo manages to escape, and tag in Dupree, but he is quickly spinebustered by Booker T. Booker goes for the axe kick, but Kenzo pulls the top rope down, and Booker goes flying out of the ring. He is tossed back in by Kenzo, and Dupree works Booker over. Kenzo is then tagged in, and heels work Booker in the corner. Kenzo applies fish hooks in the middle of the ring, which is the lamest submission I’ve ever seen. He tags in Dupree, who rushes Booker T, but receives a large flapjack. Guerrero and Suzuki are both tagged in, and Eddie surges. Three Amigos on Kenzo. Things break down and all four men are in the ring. Booker T hits the Bookend on Kenzo. Eddie Guerrero backdrops Dupree out of the ring. Hiroko tries to attack Booker with a cane, but Booker scares her away. Axe kick by Booker T, and a Frogsplash by Guerrero for the pin fall.
The Breakdown
Psychology: The action was back and forth, but without any real rhyme or reason. While Booker T and Eddie Guerrero rightfully kept control over the majority of the match, they should have thrown in some lucky break or something for Kenzo and Dupree to make it seem like they had a shot.
Action: The action was passable at best. We didn’t see anything new, or innovative from anyone. Basically a bunch of punches, some signature spots, and some filler. WWE needs to find a style that keeps their wrestlers from getting injured, and isn’t as intensely boring as the current one.
Entertainment: This match wasn’t very entertaining. It didn’t change any dynamics for any of the wrestlers. It didn’t provide a good story, or good action. It was pure filler, doing nothing to advance the show, a feud, a storyline, a wrestler’s popularity or heat. And it just wasn’t much fun to watch either. WWE needs to think about their matches a little more.
Backstage, Orlando Jordan tells JBL he was unsuccessful in canceling the match this evening. JBL proclaims he isn’t worried and will remain champion. Amy Weber then talks about how he will headline next week as champ, and JBL seemed weary about going into a war zone.
Then Carlito Caribbean Cool seeks an audience with JBL. Triple C has a proposal for JBL on what they can do to take care of common thorn in the side, Teddy Long.
[Commercial Break]
[Armageddon Recap of Cena versus Jesus Street Fight. John Cena’s entrance includes a U.S. Title with a spinning turntable centerpiece. Insane. For details on the match, please see one of posted Armageddon reviews. The match includes some stiff kendo stick shots. It also includes some very soft punches by Cena. Jesus gave himself a decent blade job. Basically it’s Jesus jobbing to Cena. Is the WWE so low on content that they’ll rebroadcast an entire PPV match on network TV? The answer is yes.]
[Commercial Break]
We’re back and Al Snow presents Daniel Puder with the Tough Enough Winner’s Trophy, after a fair amount of pomp and circumstance. He then interview Puder, who is ecstatic after winning the prizes associated with being Tough Enough Champion. Puder has also officially been entered in the Royal Rumble. Congrats to Puder, and anyone who gets a slice of his fat new money-cake.
Backstage, Kurt and his goons prep for the match. Kurt Angle says that with all the sports scandals of late, America needs a real hero-athlete. Of course, he’s that hero! Kurt continues to get pumped for his match! To be honest, I’m getting kind of excited for this match. I mean, even though it’s Bradshaw, it’s also Kurt.
[Commercial Break]
Yet another video package of WWE entertaining the troops airs.
Teddy Long joins Tazz and Cole at the announce table. He will be calling the match with them, and also books Heidenreich versus The Undertaker, next week for the troops.
Joy Giovanni then skanks her way down to the ring tossing candy from a basket. Why? No reason.
(3) Kurt Angle (w/ Luther Reigns, Mark Jindrak) defeats John Bradshaw Layfield (w/Orlando Jones, Amy Weber (still happy Prole?), The Basham Brothers) Entourage City! Joy offers JBL some candy. He takes it. Amy gets mad. They cat fight. Amy strips off Joy’s top. She returns the favor. For some reason they’re much more ashamed in their bras than the cleavage bearing shirts. Anyway, Teddy Long sends anyone who is not Kurt Angle or JBL packing! Gone! Now leaving Entourage City!
[Commercial Break]
We return to JBL shoving Kurt Angle into a corner. They lock up and Angle works JBL’s arm and brings it down into an armbar. JBL hits a big right hand to turn the tide. He works Angle over in the corner. Kurt reverses an irish whip and hits a belly-to-belly suplex. Kurt lays the right hands to JBL. JBL counters with a big right. He hits a high back elbow on Kurt, then follows with elbow drops. A big right hand in the corner by JBL. JBL hits a suplex, and rolls into a two count. He then applies a headlock on Kurt. You can see Kurt feeding him instructions for a second. Angle elbows out the lock. He changes a belly-to-belly set up into an Anklelock. JBL gets to the rope to break the lock. They roll outside, and JBL tosses Angle into the steel steps. Both men are down.
[Commercial Break]
When we return, Bradshaw has Kurt Angle in the middle of the ring in a top wrist lock. Kurt arm drags out of it. They work the ropes, and JBL nails a shoulder block. He puts an armbar on Kurt. Kurt rolls out, but JBL controls him, working Kurt’s shoulder. Kurt counters a slam attempt into an inverted DDT. Standing 9 count. Rope work leads to Bradshaw hitting his fall-away slam. Kurt reverses a clothesline into a flapjack. Kurt hits 3 German suplexes in a row. Bradshaw counter the Angle Slam, but Kurt counters his Big Boot and puts JBL in the Anklelock. JBL suffers for a while, and then kicks out. The trade blow, and then Angle reverses a big boot into the Angle Slam for a long two count. JBL hits an armbreaker on Kurt. JBL signals for his powerbomb. Kurt sunset flips the attempt and roles into an Anklelock. Orlando Jordan runs in, but Kurt deftly avoids him. The Basham and and Jindrak and Reigns then fight at ringside, distracting the ref. JBL taps out twice when this happens. Jordan nails Angle with the championship belt. The ref comes around and counts a long two count. Kurt then rolls up another Anklelock, only to have Jordan interfere again, and this time cause the DQ. All hell breaks loose, and then Big Show comes down and kills everone. Big Show hits an F5, that looks very weak, compared to Lesnar’s.
The Breakdown
Psychology: They just upped the ante. The match itself had great psychology, each person targeting an area of the body, and working it well. The match had peaks and valleys, and displayed a good tempo. There was a story, beginning, middle, and end. The finish was messy and overblown, but at least it served a purpose.
Action: Good stuff from both men. Once again, JBL held up his end of the deal when main eventing with a superior worker. They paced their action well, and it was entertaining enough to keep me from wishing I was watching the Pistons play the Cavs. Not that the Pistons aren’t the ugliest team in sports, but that’s not the point anyway. The point is: solid action.
Entertainment: An entertaining main event. The psychology of the match belnded well with it’s action, and it all worked well together. The finish was over the top, but it sets up interesting events yet to come.
Overall Show Breakdown
Psychology: The show seemd aimless until the main event developments. There wasn’t an overall theme to the show. Also, the Tough Enough segment felt out of place, and somehow not very special. The WWE needs to work on giving each of their Smackdown episodes a theme, something RAW tends to excel at.
Action: Pathetic is really the only way to describe tonight’s action. There was, perhaps 30 minutes of wrestling, most of which was barely watchable. The main event was good, but hardly good enough to make up for the lack of action. Showing a PPV match on network TV? Questionable.
Entertainment: The overall show felt empty. There was a lot of boring segments, and some meaningless matches and interactions. They spent a lot of time tooting their own horn about their show next week. They spent too much time debasing women, and generally presenting us things that aren’t wrestling. I wish Smackdown would get it’s act together.
Well, that’s all for this week folks. Have a great weekend. VIP Members make sure to check out The Smackdown Lowdown in the VIP Forum’s Lounge Section. Each week Dusty Giebink and I post our thoughts Smackdown’s direction and general Smackdown discussion. It’s like tailgating for your Smackdown!
Paul Madavi writes his reviews from Madison, WI where the beer is fresh, and the cheese is aged. Want to berate him about this review? Drop him a line at dr.oldskool@gmail.com and make eventful his otherwise boring existence.
OR CHECK THIS OUT AT PROWRESTLING.NET: WWE announces the “transfer window is open” for roster moves
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