MORELOCK Posted January 7, 2016 Share Posted January 7, 2016 Correct. However, it was clearly a joke, and got a chuckle out of me before captain big britches came in to whine. I'm a 34 waist, most places tag that as medium. I do have a couple of questions for you, though: This Smackdown looks pretty fucking weak, eh? Aren't they debuting on USA this week? Shouldn't they at least go through the motions? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patrick B. Posted January 7, 2016 Share Posted January 7, 2016 They did have two pretty significant title matches which were hyped ahead of time on Raw, even if they ended in the same finish as a previous encounter(Charlotte-Becky) and a schmozz(Ambrose-Owens). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MORELOCK Posted January 7, 2016 Share Posted January 7, 2016 I mostly meant no Reigns and Cena not wrestling (though it's clear now why that was the case), also no Jericho/legend appearance or any of the usual stuff WWE rolls out for a "special" show like this one is supposed to be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craig H Posted January 7, 2016 Share Posted January 7, 2016 I was wondering the same as you. Apparently, I put too much stock into bullshit from dirt shirt writers because I really thought SmackDown! was going to have a different vibe to it than Raw-lite. Or maybe that notion came from Mauro. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.T. Posted January 7, 2016 Share Posted January 7, 2016 So is this the taping where Cena hurt his shoulder again? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Fowler Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 They tend to avoid "surprise" appearances on the taped show, so that's my best guess as to why this is a fairly typical show. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlie M. Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 Mauro was just fantastic on this show. Gave the show some life. Shows you how important announcing can be in a fan's perception of a show. He actually made Byron and Lawler raise their game by the end of the night. They've hit on something with Charlotte as heel champ here. With everyone in the Rumble, I hope that means they give her and Becky a real good spot on the show. Should be a good crowd for them as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrianS81177 Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 I'd hitch myself to... well you can figure out the rest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curt McGirt Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 - Cena with an absurdly long "ALBERTOOOOOOOO" that slimy little Ricardo himself would be impressed by. Giving Kalisto the pin was a nice gesture and a good way to start off the show. I dug when Alberto was holding him upside down and his fingers weren't even touching the mat as he flailed his arms around. - Brock's back on Monday! So even if the booking sucks we'll get 1. a good Heyman promo and 2. somebody being physically endangered by Brock, potentially someone in the crowd. - "JIFFS"! Goldie's extra goofy tonight with that dance move when Truth came in the ring, the "set of Golden Globes" line and eating the popcorn then spazzing out for no reason. The look on Kofi's face when Truth is told there's no open challenge is priceless. Truth actually busts out a pretty cool arm submission on Kofi at one point where he hammerlocks one with his leg and bars the other. This is apparently the night everybody dances -- even Neville and Miz. Completely inconsequential (except for Ziggler laying out Truth because Rumble) but fun tag. - I can't believe it, King actually has something meaningful to say about a Divas match. And yet another shocker: chain wrestling? Charlotte should never throw a fist. No problem with her suplexes or that legscissors work though. Becky busts out some Exploders too and gets the visual tapout win but Flair helps her cheat to win. Having not seen much of either woman I wasn't let down, this was really good, Becky got some chants and all the work was pretty smooth. - "Revenge is best served with a side of elbow" says Mauro. Owens continues to be a dick to Renee, giving her exactly one minute and continually checking her watch. God they're stretching this out, first with a Hateful Eight trailer (intro'd by Tarantino haha) then a Raw rewind then an online interview and more commercials... then another interview. I'm guessing Owens and Ambrose brawl for exactly three minutes before they powder. Well, they get more time than that. There's a moment of hockey-fight style dual punching early on. Owens blocks the rebound lariat by just dumping Ambrose out of the ring and then hangs in the ropes to mock him which was nice too. For such a big dude, Owens completely flipping for the tornado DDT is impressive. They eventually brawl out and take a pretty nasty spill off the road gear boxes onto two tables covered in all kinds of crap. It looked pretty hurty and I kind of preferred it to a simple Dirty Deeds on the road box or something. They've got more and better matches in them but no complaints. Pretty good Smackdown all told. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cole Miner Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 Ranallo made the show for me. I don't usually care about the announcing. Just tune them out. He absolutely elevated things and I stayed interested at times I usually would have faded out of a match. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eivion Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 Honestly didn't think Ranallo was that good aside from the main event. He seemed to have trouble keeping up with the pace of things until then. He did a good a good job in the main event and its nice to hear a new voice so I look forward to his next Smackdown. I thought this was good episode overall. Alberto/Kalisto was solid and a major improvement over their last match. Charlotte/Becky was damn good. It was both weird and nice to see King deliver decent commentary and info, in a divas match no less.R-Truth in segments is always fun, especially when going along with the usual New Day stuff. Ambrose/Owens was good though the ending brawl didn't do as much for me as I hoped. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burgundy LaRue Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 A really good show. Knowing nothing about him beforehand, Mauro elevated everything to a new level. He legitimately called matches, had some well-placed puns, pushed the wrestlers' strengths without going into the same old BS Cole feeds us, and promoted feuds AND the history of the IC belt. Damn, he was good. Lawler was working a semi-heel character that better suits him. Saxton didn't feel like an afterthought. Great stuff all-around. Becky-Charlotte was wonderful. For now, being a heel is what Charlotte needs. She's more relaxed, and she's doing better work as a result. The chain wrestling was good and Charlotte showed her athleticism throughout the match. Becky's promo before the match was legit and she worked her tail off. I liked the dynamic they ended with--Charlotte was all about how Becky couldn't win without help. Based on tonight, neither can she. In the midst of the so-called Divas Revolution, they got something right. Ambrose-Owens needs to end in a street fight. I need to see Ambrose stab Owens with a shiv carved from a still-hot crack pipe. I like how they're finding new ways to do R-Truth's run-ins. He had Kofi in some hold that had me asking WHAT IS THAT in a good way. The worst thing about the 8-man tag was Ziggler's hair. What the hell is he thinking with that? It looks like an old-fashioned straw broom in color and texture. Even the recaps felt more purposeful. Fantastic stuff tonight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peck Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 I enjoyed Mauro. I thought his on-camera gestures and voice inflections (the little things I guess) immediately sprung him over the other C-listers before him like Phillips and Brennan. Once he settles in for a few months I think he'll get even better. And if he can somehow motivate Lawler?? Canonize him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patrick B. Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 Been digging Smackdown thus far. Mauro's a huge improvement. Charlotte-Becky was damn good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curt McGirt Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 There are some Mauro haters on here (not in this particular thread... yet) but I'm not one. He's got a great announcer's voice and is a legit fan. He was kind of subdued here, probably trying to get into the swing of things, but it worked out fine and he'll get better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phantom Lord Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 Mauro breathed some life into Smackdown. I hadn't watched a full show in well I can't remember how long. It's probably been close to a year. I loved his PBP in the Becky/Charlotte match. Lawler tried to do the standard WWE line of "only here counts" and Mauro put him in his place talking about how he called Becky's matches when she was 18 years old in Canada. Lawler sounded flabbergasted and was like "yeah well it only matters that she's here now". If Lawler went back to being the Jerry Lawler of like 1993 being that swarmy heel I could live with him being the third guy on the team. But yeah compared to Michael Cole he was light years better. It probably helps not having Vince screaming in your headset since I believe Triple H runs Smackdown in the back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curt McGirt Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 Mauro put him in his place talking about how he called Becky's matches when she was 18 years old in Canada. Soon as he said that I cringed. He broke the rules talking about other promotions like they were important. Vince would have been all over him for that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patrick B. Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 Really fun brawl between Ambrose and Owens. Hope they get a chance to have a proper blowoff to their feud. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Niners Fan in CT Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 I don't think they need Saxton on here. Have him go be a backstage announcer that people intimidate and shit. Good show overall but stupid me I was thinking they were moving to Tuesdays and would be doing these live on USA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hollywood Cibernetico Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 Mauro is great. I am a Mauro mark so perhaps I am bias, but holy fucking hell he is working with Saxton and Lawler? WWE just will not give up on Lawler huh? Completely unreal. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eivion Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 Mauro put him in his place talking about how he called Becky's matches when she was 18 years old in Canada. Soon as he said that I cringed. He broke the rules talking about other promotions like they were important. Vince would have been all over him for that. Its fine to talk about other promotions. They just have to iterate that WWE is the big leagues where it counts the most. Not an unreasonable thing seeing that its WWE they are suppose to be selling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt D Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 Can they just call Charlotte's spear a Stomach Clothesline? 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jamal Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 Another good Charlotte/Becky match. Cool to see the crowd really behind Becky and into the match. Heel Charlotte is the best Charlotte along with Stage Dad Flair. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rev Ray Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 I thought Mauro was good but I have to get used to his announcer voice. As I said on Twitter he sounds like Kramer doing the movie phone voice 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RIPPA Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 I should hate them for beating the Truth thing into the ground but then he starts talking about an entry fee for the Rumble and having to move some money around and I lost it 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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