8-23-13 Smackdown results and thoughts

Coverage and thoughts on the August 23, 2013 episode of Smackdown The show starts with Vickie Guerrero in the ring. She says that she has cleared the air with HHH since she has “left” Raw she introduces “with great excitement” the new WWE Champion Randy Orton. Vickie stands at the bottom of the ramp & shakes Orton’s hand. Then Orton gets in the ring & says that as the new WWE Champion he promises to give the fans what they want & what they deserve as champion. He promises that the fans will aspire to be him. He also promises to be a roll model. What does a roll model do? A roll model tells the truth & that is exactly what he did. He told everyone & especially Daniel Bryan that when he successfully cashed in hit MITB contract no one would see it coming (I had a bad feeling it would happen & it did). So no one including Daniel Bryan should be surprised at what happened. Then Orton says that he himself should be surprised because at SummerSlam he didn’t know that HHH was going to pedigree Daniel Bryan. What would anybody have done in that situation? Orton’s certainly not 1 to pass up an opportunity that is literally lying right in front of him. He makes it clear that he did not need Triple H’s help just like he didn’t need The Shield’s help on Raw. Although he greatly appreciates the support from the entire McMahon family (He should since in the storylines a few years ago he was at war with them) he would like to ask the fans for their support too. Naturally the fans boo. After all Orton’s not only WWE Champion but his face is also the face of the WWE. Then out comes Daniel Bryan. Before he addresses “the face of the WWE” he would like to say what he was going to say Monday night before Stephanie cut him off. Just a short message to John Cena. He thanks Cena for giving him the opportunity to wrestle him at SummerSlam. He thanks Cena for being bold & courageous enough to wrestle with a torn triceps because even if Daniel was only better than Cena for just 1 day that opportunity allowed him to feel what it feels like to be WWE Champion. As far as “the face of WWE” goes it’s time for that face to change. Then the fans chant yes. Then Daniel says that everyone has to understand that he doesn’t look like Orton. Orton is chiseled, tall, 6’5” & is “pretty”. Daniel can see why HHH likes Orton so much, because Orton’s so “pretty” (That was funny) & not to mention arrogant. Daniel then says why wouldn’t Orton be arrogant? Orton’s been handed every opportunity in the WWE. Orton’s created his own success but Orton’s opportunities have come because his dad was there, his grandfather was there & Randy has been given the genetic golden ticket to be in WWE. Daniel can’t get over how “pretty” Randy is. Then Daniels sarcastically tells the fans to give it up for how “pretty” Randy is. Then Daniel says that Randy is so “pretty” that it makes him want to kick Randy in the face. Then Daniel says that he had to scratch & claw for every opportunity. Daniel had to wrestle in every dirty high school gym all across the country & all across the world in staff infested mats, all over the place sleeping in his car just to get an ounce of respect. Just so he can climb the ladder of success step by step. Then Daniel says that he isn’t tall & he certainly isn’t “pretty” but he can wrestle & he can beat Orton & can beat him for the title. Then Daniel tells the fans that he is entitled to a rematch for the WWE Title & he wants that rematch to happen tonight. Orton tells “short stuff” that he will have to wait till Night of Champions. Then Orton gets in Daniel’s face & holds up the title. Then Orton goes for an RKO but Daniel pushes him away & then drop kicks Orton over the top to the outside. This was a solid opening in ring promo. Orton was back to his old boring heel promo I thought but Daniel was great on the mic. Backstage we see Vickie in the GM office on her cell phone (Why are the authority figures always on their cell phones when these bits begin?). She says that Daniel shouldn’t have been out there, this was Orton’s moment. Somebody needs to teach “that little troll” a lesson. Then in comes Wade Barrett. He says it would seem that Vickie, the McMahon family & he himself all have something in common. A mutual dislike of Daniel Bryan (Wasn’t Barrett feuding with Orton for 1 of the world titles a few years ago? We’re supposed to forget that too?) Wade says that since Daniel is a former champion he gets a rematch against Orton for the WWE Title. Barrett would like to make sure that never happens. He asks for Vickie to put him in a match with Daniel tonight & he guarantees that will be the last we ever see of Daniel. Vickie likes the idea & she has a better 1. She says how about a no holds barred match. Then she says an extreme rules match (They’re both the same). Then Vickie says Daniel will face Wade in a steel cage. This was ok. Barrett actually wasn’t bad here. If they wanted to have this Daniel Bryan story they actually could’ve had Wade Barrett be Vince’s hand picked guy to be WWE Champion since he is younger & both guys might’ve ended up looking strong. Cody Rhodes vs. Intercontinental Champion Curtis Axel. Axel gets the pin. This was a decent match. Cody was on the tope rope but Heyman distracted him. Then Axel crotched Cody & gave him his finisher for the pin. Then Heyman gets in the ring with a mic. He stands before the fans tonight a man who is not just in pain, he is in agony. That agony is a direct result of Punk’s actions. Then the fans chant CM Punk. Then Heyman says that the fans are about to choke on those cheers because Heyman’s not out there complaining about the obvious physical pain that he is in. Heyman is in emotional distress because a man that once considered to be his best friend & an athlete that he guided to being the best in the world has been reduced to being a sad pathetic loser. Then Heyman tells Axel that at SummerSlam Punk was pinned 1-2-3 by Brock Lesnar. Then Heyman says that Punk rather than accept defeat like a man & acknowledging his loss as Heyman would have fathered him to do, Punk went off the rails. Punk is on a downward spiral. Punk’s actions on Raw were befitting of a mad man. Without Paul Heyman Punk never stood a chance against Brock. Without Heyman Punk is lost. While on the other hand being with Heyman, Curtis Axel has found himself. His client is filled with confidence & has notched win after win, which is why no one can defeat Curtis Axel for the IC Title. Then Axel says that the problem is that Punk doesn’t deserve an IC Title match (Why would Punk want to be IC Champion after being WWE Champion for over a year?) Then Axel says that Punk is so jealous that Heyman’s been paying more attention to Axel that Punk wound up assaulting Axel with a chair Monday night. Axel tells Punk that he will finish the job that Brock gave him (I think he meant to say the job that Brock started) at SummerSlam. Axel challenges Punk to match this Monday on Raw. Then Axel says that his future is better than Punk’s. He is more athletic than Punk & he has someone in his corner named Paul Heyman. This was a good in ring promo. Both guys were good on the mic. AJ Lee skips to the ring. Then out comes Big E. Then out comes Dolph. Dolph will face Big E next. Big E goes after Dolph before the bell rings. The referee holds Big E back. Big E looks to get his hands on Dolph some more but the referee tells Big E to stand in the opposite corner. Then Dolph gets up & the referee calls for the bell to start the match. Dolph Ziggler vs. Big E Langston. Dolph gets the pin. This was a decent but short match. AJ punched Dolph, Big E then went for the big ending but Dolph escaped & hit the Zig Zag for the pin. Christian vs. World Champion Alberto Del Rio. Del Rio wins by submission. This was a very good back & forth match. Then Del Rio gets the mic & says he knows that the Latino fans look up to him & that they want to be the next Alberto Del Rio. But there’s only 1 Del Rio. The fans can’t be like him because they’re peasants. That doesn’t mean that just because you’re the son or daughter of a peasant that you have to be 1 too. You can be something better if they follow Del Rio. Then out comes Ricardo. He has a little bit of a problem. Following Del Rio to greatness is not for him or the fans & especially not this guy who exemplifies greatness every single night. Monday nights, Friday nights, Sunday nights, every single opportunity that he gets. This guy doesn’t look down on people. He stands up for them. That guy being, “ROB VAN DAM!” Out comes RVD. As he & Ricardo head to the ring Christian gives Del Rio a top rope drop kick. Then RVD gets in the ring, does the thumb pose & then gives Del Rio rolling thunder. Then Ricardo picks up the World Title as RVD poses & then RVD & Ricardo taunt Del Rio. Mark Henry & Big Show vs. 3MB. Henry & Show win when Big Show pins Drew. This was a squash. Then Roman Reigns & Seth Rollins show up on the Tron. Reigns says they told Henry & Big Show to step up & they beat 3MB. Rollins says that Big Show clearly didn’t get the message Monday. After they dropped him from the sky Rollins is shocked that Big Show got back up to his feet but he’s glad that he did. Rollins then says they’re gonna have a lot of fun knocking him back down & the clock is ticking on Big Show’s & Henry’s time here. Then Reigns tells Henry to wake up. Henry’s been floating around for a decade & a half & he expects The Shield to respect him? They’ll never respect him. Then Rollins says that 2 former champions have come together to form what might be the most imposing team in the history of WWE & they want a shot at the tag team titles. There’s only 1 little problem with that. Rollins & Reigns are just better than Big Show & Henry. A new era has dawned & Henry & Big Show have got to go. Believe that. Then reigns shouts BELIEVE in The Shield. This was a good promo from Reigns & Rollins. Zeb Coulter, Jack Swagger & Antonio Cesaro are in the ring. Zeb asks the fans to rise & say we the people. Thank God that was all he had to say! Then out come the Primetime Players. Darren Young vs. Antonio Cesaro. Darren gets the pin. This match was decent but a bit too short. Backstage we see Ryback & some guy asks him to sign something for his son Billy. Ryback says that Billy is a stupid name, says he’s just kidding & of course he will sign it. As he’s signing the pic he says he is probably the guy’s son’s favorite. Ryback even puts the son’s name on it. Then the guy looks at it & asks which guy on the pic is he. Ryback asks if he’s asking him that. The guy asks Ryback what his name is & says that it’s been awhile since he watched “you guys” but his son never misses it. Ryback can’t believe that the guy doesn’t even know his name. The guy comes & bothers him asking for an autograph. The guy says he meant no disrespect towards Ryback & his son will be thrilled. Ryback then snatches the poster & tells the guy to tell his son that he is scrawny, pencil neck fool. Of course he rips up the poster too. This was lame. These Ryback bits are idiotic. Michael Cole mentions that CM Punk has accepted Curtis Axel’s challenge for Monday. The cage is being lowered. Time for the main event. Daniel Bryan vs. Wade Barrett in a steel cage match. Daniel gets the pin. This was a really good match. They fought on top of the cage, Barrett got 1 leg over but Daniel head butted him, kicked him down to the ropes & then gave him a power bomb. Then Daniel gave Barrett a running knee for the pin. WINNER – DANIEL BRYAN Afterwards Daniel leaves the cage but Orton comes out from under the ring & gives Daniel an RKO. Then Orton stands over Daniel & holds the title above his head to end the show. I thought this was a solid show overall. The opening in ring promo with Orton & Daniel was solid. Orton was boring but Daniel was entertaining. I liked the cage match too. Christian-Del Rio was good also. I also liked Ricardo & RVD coming out afterwards. Cody-Axel was decent & I enjoyed Heyman’s promo afterwards. Axel cut a good promo too. The Ryback bit was weak. That gimmick is stupid. Darren-Antonio was decent but too short. I’m just glad they spared us Zeb’s usual promo. Big Show & Mark Henry vs. 3MB was a squash & I liked Reigns’ & Rollins’ promos on the Tron. Dolph-Big E was also decent but short but for the most part I thought this was a solid show.