Greetings IP Universe. Welcome to the first Smackdown of the Obama Administration.
Let’s get right into it…
1. Edge is right, he didn’t sabotage Jeff. Not in the hotel, car, or with the pyro. But whoever did has to be close with Edge…maybe close enough to be a brother.
2. More good stuff from Taker and Shelton. This could be a good feud for Shelton, one of those “I’m gonna beat this guy or die trying.” angles.
3. Poor Chavo, one year ago he was ECW Champion, and riding high with La Familia. Now he’s Vickie’s coffee boy, and a punching bag for Gary the Fat Chick Thrilla (aka Kahli for those that don’t get the joke).
4. With McCool and Maria the main feud on SD for the girls, Maryse is almost an afterthought as champion.
5. Natalya needs a transfer to Raw. She’s just spinning her wheels on SD right now, and she’d have a ready made role for her on Mondays as the diva representative of The Legacy.
6. Do you really want your WWE Champion to say on national TV that he represents the screw-ups and flakes of the world? Just a thought.
7. Usual good stuff from Edge and Matt. The ending keeps Matt strong for his ECW Title match at the Rumble vs Swagger, and was a typical Edge move to bring in the troops as backup.
8. There should be no doubt now that MNM 2.0 is heads and shoulders above any thing else tag team wise in the whole WWE. Methinks post-Mania, that Miz and Morrison will be primed for singles pushes.
9. Gotta admire Vince for taking that punt on Monday. Looking at the replay tonight, it certainly looked like Randy just let ‘er rip and Vinny Mac took it like a man.
10. The main event was a bit plodding, but passable. Show and Vlad pretty much controled things, and HHH had enough to hang in there, but the heels were just too tough. Booked as well as it could be.
Before we wrap things up, here are my Rumble predictions:
Matt over Swagger for the ECW Title. This will probably be the opener, and they’ll want to start things on an up note. Matt winning sets up a rubber match, Swagger wins, and the feud ends and there would be no credible face left for Swagger, because he’d have beat ’em all (Dreamer, Finlay, Hardy).
Melina over Beth for the Women’s belt, as this should set up a Beth-Rosa feud down the road (Rosa’s good intentioned help will backfire, costing Beth the match and the belt).
Cena over JBL for the World Title. HBK’s conscience won’t let him play dirty, and the fraying of the “business partnership” will begin.
Edge over Hardy for the WWE Title. Edge will have some help , probably by way of Tampa via Toronto.
Orton wins the Rumble to set up a Mania match vs Cena. Don’t be shocked if prior to Mania, RKO deals with Shane-O-Mac looking for revenge for Pops.
Enjoy the Rumble, and see ya in 7.
VJM
