The Fink’s Payload: 08.06.07: How To Save Smackdown (Part I)

MVP and Matt Hardy turns out to be a great match, but MVP hangs on to hold onto the US title. Mark Henry overpowers Kane in their power match, and Batista defeats Khali to win the world title.

Now leading up to Unforgiven, things will slowly get better. It least Khali is out of the title hunt, and MVP is looking good still. We get the feud we know they were going to finish, Mark Henry vs. Batista. In a complete upset on Smackdown, the Major Brothers defeat Deuce and Domino to win the tag titles, prompting a rematch at Unforgiven. We are also going to get the blowoff, (I hate to say it) Chavo-Rey match, but with the stipulation being this will be the last time these two can ever fight, Last Man Standing. So at Unforgiven the Major Brothers hold onto the tag titles beating D&D again, Rey defeats Chavo after a wild fight, and Batista defeats Henry.

The slow reconstruction is now starting to become the building blocks of Smackdown, I’ll admit so far it hasn’t been pretty, but I’m trying to first clear out of the mess already made, now we can move forward. The road to No Mercy finally gets the cruiserweights some air time, as Hornswoggle hasn’t had one defense, so Teddy Long orders him to defend it at No Mercy against the winner of a number 1 contenders match, pitting Misterio vs. Noble vs. Moore vs. Yang vs Hardy. Misterio seems to have the match one when he is brutally attacked from behind by The Major Brothers! The Brothers lay out Rey and take him to the back where they toss him in a dumpster and lock him in. They go to turn around though and Kane is standing there. Kane starts fighting off the Brothers before letting Rey out. Meanwhile, Hardy picks up the win.

So continuing the build to No Mercy, we get the unlikely team of Rey and Kane starting to gel, getting ready to fight the Major Brothers, who explain they are just two *natural born* thrill seekers. We also get an even more pissed off Mark Henry looking for revenge on Batista in a Cage Match.

So at No Mercy, Matt Hardy defeats Hornswoggle to win the Cruiserweight title, Batista again fends off Mark Henry, and The Major Brothers retain the tag titles when Chuck Palumbo comes to the assist. After the match as The Major Brothers and Palumbo beat down on Rey, and then tie Kane up in the ropes and start hitting him with chairs, the lights go out and The Undertaker comes out. Taker doesn’t come out however even after his long eerie entrance, so the Major Brothers and Palumbo shrug it off and continue the beatdown, when his American Badass music comes on and Taker rides on down on his motorcycle. But he doesn’t come to the aid of Rey and Kane, instead he helps the thrill seekers beat the shit out of them!

So after No Mercy now we have an alliance between The Majors, Palumbo and Taker. Rey and Kane are pissed off and start looking to recruit help to seek revenge. They look in the right person’s locker room, the Animal Batista! Batista says he’ll do it, if he can pick the other man to join their alliance. Over the next few weeks Batista teases a lot of people, but eventually picks his old pal Flair. So we get a variety of combo matches, and single matches between these eight stars, leading up to their eventually 4 on 4 survivor series style match at the PPV. In other news MVP cuts a promo on how his title reign is so supreme, and how his title means so much more then most people’s accolades. He rips on former titles, such as the European and Hardcore title, which brings out Hardcore Holly. These two start up a feud, with Holly challenging MVP for the US title in a Hardcore match. MVP warily agrees. Also from Smackdown, we’ll get the first ever Cruiserweight Elimation Chamber match, further raising importance of division.

So at Survivor Series, MVP manages to beat Hardcore Holly at his own game, Gregory Helms makes his return and wins the Chamber over Hardy, Noble, Funaki, Yang, Chavo in a great match. Then the main event from Smackdown, Rey, Kane, Batista, and Flair vs. The Major Brothers, Palumbo, and Taker. This is an all out war with first Flair being eliminated. Next to be eliminated is Palumbo. Then Kane is eliminated. The Brett Major. Then Brian Major. Then Batista. It comes down to Rey vs Taker, and Taker wins it for the Thrill Seekers.

Now onto the road to Armageddon, with Rey not backing down from Taker and challenging him one on one at the next PPV. The Major Brothers are are getting real cocky now after their team’s one, and challenge any team at the PPV. We also are going to get Matt Hardy’s rematch clause, as he takes on Helms. And MVP brashfully feeling hardcore makes a 15 minute Hardcore 24/7 Rules match for the US title.

At Armageddown Rey pulls off the upset and evens the score with Taker. Gregory Helms retains against Matt Hardy as well. We get a wild match in the uS 24/7 match, with Hardcore Holly pinning MVP, then Masters pinning Holly, Eugene pinning Masters, Finlay whacking the holy hell out of Eugene with a Shilleigh to win, Kane pinning Finlay, and then MVP pinning Kane and running off backstage to retain. The Major Brothers open challenge is answered by World Champion Batista, and Flair. The Major Brothers win after Palumbo gives the distraction and Taker takes out Batista leaving Flair to be double teamed and pinned.

The road to the Royal Rumble has the Taker-Rey feud joining Batista in the World title hunt, and the rest of the roster in the Rumble. In the Batista-Rey-Taker match, Taker wins the match after Tombstoning Rey, and Palumbo and the Major Brothers tie Batista up in the ropes. After the match Batista explodes and attacks the fallen Rey beating him to a bloody pulp, as he’s lost his world title. Taker had already escaped with his thrill seekers. In the rumble it comes down to Finlay, Michaels, HHH and MVP. Micheals goes to Superkick MVP out but MVP blocks it and turns it into the Playmaker and throws him out. Now MVP and Finlay team up on HHH but HHH overpowers the duo and tosses Finlay out. Now it’s down to MVP and HHH. In a shocking turn of events HHH puts over MVP as MVP wins the Rumble.

The road to No Way Out now has Batista pissed at the Thrill Seekers, and apologizes to Rey for brutally attacking him. He asks Rey to join him to fight the Brothers again at No Way Out. We have a strange buildup for the heel vs heel Wrestlemania event, between cocky MVP and badass Taker. MVP guarantees a victory, doing all sorts of publicity stunts to create media attention, and delivering Terell Owens like interviews on Smackdown. At No Way Out we also get one of Taker’s cronies, Palumbo taking on MVP.

So at No Way out the US champ MVP defeats Palumbo, and The Major Brothers still retain against Batista and Rey after pinning Rey. After the match Batista snaps cause he’s mad he didn’t get any gold and attacks Rey again. So we get a great buildup for Wrestlemania, for Rey-Batista, Taker-MVP. (World vs US) We also get Cruiserweight Champ Gregory Helms vs. Chavo Guerrero, a new and fresh feud, with Helms actually the face. The Major Brothers keep scouting for new teams to face at Wrestlemania, as their is no way they will be left off the card. They claim their is no competition, so they have to make another open invitation.

So at Wrestlemania Helms retains the Cruiserweight title in a good match, Rey defeats Batista square in the middle of the ring. We then get The Major Brothers open invitation tag title match, and out come the Hardys! But following the Hardys are London and Kendrick, and right behind them are WGTT! A surprise TLC classic is set up and The Majors are shitting bricks. Many crazy spots, and Palumboferance can’t even settle this one. Matt Hardy climbs the ladder and looks to have the match won when Edge comes out of nowhere and knocks him off the ladder! EDGE is back! Edge just smirks his way out of the ring and delivers a conchairto to Matt, before Jeff fights him to the backstage! Meanwhile, The Major Brothers finally end the bloodbath and retain the titles once again.

Fan Appreciation Night: Jamie Noble and JWY tie so its a triple threat non-title with little bastard. LB crawls under the ring and lets noble and yang tear it up and yang time for the close 2 but lb breaks it up with a tadpole splash onto JYs back. Noble recovers and rolls lb up for the pin. #1 contender us title match. Matt is out on commentary. Rey is in and its a 5 man first pinfall no DQ. Henry and Rey take the fight backstage and leave MVP to pick up the win over Flair. matt and MVP engage in a pull apart brawl. Vicki thanks everyone for their participation on FAN. and asks if they want another one soon. and it seems they do.
Fatal 4 way tornado no DQ tag team match for the tag titles. The major bros. take the titles and get the post match beatdown by D&D and Master-Dykes, Jesse and Festus make the save. Fans vote on a cage match for the main event and kane and finlay escape, leaving batista and khali alone. finlay and kane brawl on the outside. finlay levels kane and climbs back in. khali accidentally hits fit with a boot leaving batista to spinebuster the “champ” and pin him 1-2-3. Batista gets on the mic and tells khali that he can’t learn that in punjab, or wherever the hell he is from.

Unforgiven: SD! has fair representation at the PPV (it could happen). Noble wins the CWT from LB, Matt retains against MVP, Major Bros and Jesse and Festus beat D&D and Master-Dykes, and Batista wins the WHT from Khali. Shibby.

Smackdown! 9-21-07: Jamie Noble makes his way to the ring and says he is the champion of champions on the white and blue brand and he will prove it to anyone who says other wise. Batista comes out and accepts the challenge. Major Bros. retain aginst D&D. Dave Taylor and a returning and revitalized Paul Burchill make their way out to confront the champs. but instead of confronting them they just beat the piss out of them.
rey looks to be beating MVP when henry causes the DQ when he nearly demolishes Rey. But before the demolishing can finalize, Theo Long comes out and confronts henry. He has rey in a press slam and teddy walks right up to him, looks him in the eyes, and says, “put that man down!” Henry drops him and teddy says if he wants rey that bad he can have him at No Mercy! as for tonight, henry will team up with MVP to take on rey and a partner of his choosing.
shannon Moore picks up a victory in a cruiserweight fatal four way pitting him against chavo, funaki, and JWY.
Henry and MVP pick up the win against Rey and Chuck Pulumbo when MVP broke up the 619 and henry hit the worlds strongest slam on rey.
CWC vs WHC: Noble gets in a surprising amount of offense and targets the back of batista. Noble kicks out of a spinebuster and low blows batista without the ref seeing. ddt but then Little Bastard come out from the ring and grabs the CW belt and runs off. Noble ponders chasing him but decides to capatilize instead and turns around to a spear from tista. He sets up the batista bomb. LB on the apron, ref is distracted. Finlay runs in, hits batista in the back with the shaleliegh and he falls to his back. noble jumps over into a bridge and pins the champ with HBKs favorite pin.

Next week: the show opens with MVP fighting Chuck. MVP hits chuck with the knucks and gets dq’d. He beats up chuck and eventually handcuffs him to the ropes and gets a chair. Hardy in to make the save and MVP retreats.
rey to the ring to deliver his classic, “I’ve always been an underdog,” speech when henry makes his way to the ring to kill rey again. Batista comes out for the save then finlay out to kill batista. kaBOOM – match.
Next we have noble and chavo picking up a win against LB and JWY. Noble and Chavo take care of JWY and Noble gets ready to banish LB when Shannon Moore makes the save. Suddenly SD! is filled with heroes rather than b-show stars. Next match is Burchill vs 1Major with Burchill getting the “W” and the one up on the tag champs.
finlay and Mark henry pick up the win over the WHC and the underdog in the main event. Fast Forward to:

No Mercy: Again, fair representation. Majors retain over Burchill and Taylor, Henry beats Rey, Hardy retains over pulumbo and MVP, Noble retains over Shannon Moore, and Batista retains over Finlay.

Suddenly, Torrie Wilson’s music plays as she enters the Arena. “Hi Teddy, I’m so sorry for interrupting your announcement but once I heard your news, I became *really* excited.” “I actually just came across two guys that are sure to make an impact on Smackdown. Mr. Long, ladies and gentlemen… The Major Brothers!” Brian and Brett come out on either side of Torrie and wave to the crowd.

Teddy smiles and nods as they come out. And then books them in the first match of the tournament.

The Majors Brothers have a match with Jimmy Yang and Jamie Noble (the reformed Jung Dragons – but with a western theme). After a decent match, the Majors win. While they are celebrating after their match, Victoria comes out and attacks Torrie. Victoria is chased off by the Majors, but grabs a mic and says that Torrie is not the only one that can find talent. Next week, Victoria is going to present her team for the title tournament.

The next match has the Prince of Punk, Shannon Moore going over Sho Funaki. After the match, Hornswaggle comes out and bites Shannon Moore on the butt. He quickly runs away. At the top of the ramp, he stops and grabs a mic. “Looks like the Prince of Punk has just been punked!” (Blatant CM Punk rip off) Hornswaggle grabs the belt, does a little jig and runs to the back as Shannon Moore chases after him.

In the back, Eugene is with the former tag champs. He tries to console them about losing their titles. They suddenly get very angry. They think that Eugene is making fun of them. They challenge Eugene to a match next and tell him to go get a partner. After Deuce and Domino get to the ring, Eugene comes out… with Matt Hardy! After a back and forth match, Cherry distracts Eugene and the ref long enough for Deuce and Domino to hit Matt Hardy and knock him from the ring. After a quick double team on Eugene, Deuce and Domino pick up the win. Matt stares down Eugene with a look of disgust but walks to the back.

The next match is Kane versus Mark Henry. Kane has the upper hand until… Chris Masters comes down? While Mark Henry distracts the referee, Masters nails Kane with a chairshot. Mark Henry covers for the 3. The whole time, Michael Cole and JBL are speculating why Masters would help Mark Henry. As Kane is helped away, Edge comes out. He looks on at Kane being carted away and shakes his head. Edge may be injured but that doesn’t mean that he can’t make sure the people that injured him can’t get a hold of his title. Out comes the Great Khali. He and Edge stare down a minute before they both smile and shake hands. “Don’t worry big guy, tonight, I’ve got your back.” The four men stand in the ring and raise their arms.

The final match of the night is Batista versus the Great Khali in a non-title match. Mark Henry comes down and ends the match. At which point, Ric Flair comes running down and attacks Mark Henry. Chris Masters and Edge run down and the four stand strong as the show ends.

Week 2 – Here come the Daltons…
Smackdown opens with Victoria in the ring. She introduces the crowd to *her* latest find… the Daltons! Jesse comes roaring out of the curtain by himself. He poses and cheers for a bit before Victoria starts screaming at him from the ring. He looks confused until he realizes he’s alone. He laughs and shakes his head and runs to the back. In a minute he comes out with Festus in tow. The two make their way to the ring. Victoria is clearly less than enthused with Festus. But here is her team and she says they are ready for the tournament. Out comes Deuce and Domino with Cherry. The match goes for a short time before Victoria has Jesse distract the referee. She tries to give Festus a chair behind the referee’s back but he stares at it dumbly. Deuce grabs it and nails Festus. He goes for the cover and gets the three.
Deuce and Domino head to the back with Cherry as Torrie Wilson comes on the Titantron. The divas have a few words as we go to commercial.

After the break, Matt Hardy and Eugene are in the locker room. Matt is trying to focus Eugene. Matt tells Eugene not to make any stupid mistakes tonight. Eugene stops stuttering and looks at Matt. He takes a serious tone and tells Matt that he’s tired of being called stupid. Matt apologizes and says that he’s not calling Eugene stupid, he’s just trying to make sure there are no mistakes tonight. At that Eugene brightens up and claps his hands. He promises to be good. Matt breathes a sign of relief and looks on with concern as Eugene leaves the locker room.

Kane is in the ring. He quickly dispatches some Jobber. “You think you know me…”

Edge and company walk out. He says that lately he’s been keeping company with some of the biggest and baddest men around. The man chiseled from marble, Chris Masters. The world’s strongest man, Mark Henry. And last, but certainly not least, the tallest heavyweight champion ever, the Great Khali. The only thing missing is the big red machine, Kane. Edge says that he’s not mad that Kane put him out of action for a little while. In fact, that’s why he wants to offer a spot to Kane. Edge tells him not to answer just yet. He’ll want an answer next week though.

Matt Hardy and Eugene come out for a match against MVP and Chavo Guerrero. The match goes back and forth. Finally, Chavo comes into the ring with a chair and Eugene tries to take it away. Matt comes over to help just as Chavo lets go and Eugene accidentally nails Matt. Chavo throws Eugene out of the ring as MVP makes the pin. On his way back to the locker room, MVP is on the mic and makes fun of Matt for not only being unable to win the Unties States championship, but for also not being able to work with Eugene… or should he say Nick? Matt looks confused while Eugene is biting his thumb.

After the break, Rey Mysterio Jr comes out to a huge pop. For his first match back, he is taking on the Great Khali for the World Heavyweight championship. Unlike their previous match, this match is not as nearly one sided. Mark Henry runs out though and the match is thrown out as the Great Khali and Mark Henry set up to destroy Rey Rey. But Batista comes out and makes the save. They stand tall together as we go to break.

After the break, Teddy comes out and announces the Major Brothers were Deuce and Domino for the World Tag Team championship next week.
After the announcement, Ric Flair faces off against Finlay. Unfortunately, before things can get going Edge and company are back out and attack Flair. Rey and Batista are quickly out to help Flair. As the show fades, 6 men are in the ring with Edge on the outside directing traffic.

Week 3 – The other side of Eugene?
Hornswaggle comes out with Finlay. He still has the Cruiserweight championship. Finlay is yelling at the little Bastard the entire way down to the ring. Shannon Moore comes out. And the match starts. Hornswaggle runs away a lot. Pretty much for 5 minutes straight. Finally, Hornswaggle tries to grab the Shillelagh and the ref stops him. Finlay hits the ring and hits the Celtic Cross on Shannon Moore. Hornswaggle up top and hits the splash for the win.

MVP is in the ring. He calls out Eugene. Eugene makes his way to the ring… hesitatingly. MVP says that Eugene has nothing to fear. MVP knows what it’s like to need friends. And Eugene needs a friend right now. But Eugene already has a friend, doesn’t he? Eugene starts shaking his head no. MVP continues, Eugene why are you shaking your head no? You have a friend that wants to come out and protect you from all the people, that call you … stupid. As MVP says the word, Eugene gets a menacing look on his face but shakes it off. MVP shrugs and continues. I know you have a friend that wants to help you Eugene, he and I have had a couple of conversations about your well being. Why don’t you let him out for all these nice people to see? Eugene is crying in the ring and shaking his head no. “He’s a bad man. A bad, bad man.” MVP continues, and mentions how Eugene’s uncle hurt him, how Triple H used him, how Vince shaved his head and how even Matt Hardy doesn’t like Eugene. Eugene is crying more and more… and then stops. He stands straight up with a look of malice in his eyes. Yes, people do walk all over Eugene. Yes, people do think he’s pathetic for being so weak. But nobody is going to walk over him anymore. Not if Big Nick has anything to say about it. Matt Hardy comes running out to the ring and attacks MVP, who bails out of the ring. Matt turns to Nick/Eugene and tells him that MVP is just toying with him. That Eugene is a good guy. Nick strokes his chin for a little bit and then says Nah. He nails Matt Hardy and then hits a crisp looking Rock Bottom. He then sets up Hardy and performs the People’s Elbow with none of the clapping and as crisp as the Rock himself. As he lands the move, he sits up and he starts breaking down. He’s back to stuttering and acting like Eugene and looks horrified by what he’s done. He quickly leaves the ring and runs to the back.

The Daltons come out and face off against Jimmy Yang and Jamie Noble. This time Victoria cheats correctly and her team picks up their first win.
In the back we see Edge and company confronting Kane. Last week they gave him a chance to join *the* greatest collection of talent on Smackdown. Kane laughs and then starts attacking all four members but they quickly take him down. Edge looks over the beaten form of Kane and tells him he made the wrong choice.

D&D (Deuce and Domino) are in the ring and out comes the Major Brothers with Torrie Wilson. The finals of the tag team tournament are underway. A heated back and forth match between the Major Brothers and Deuce (or Domino, I forget which one can’t wrestle). All of a sudden, Victoria and the Daltons come racing down the ramp and the Daltons, the Majors Brothers and D&D are brawling in the center of the ring. Outside of the ring, Cherry, Torrie and Victoria are battling it out (lots of hair pulling, etc). Road agents fill the area and separate everyone. Teddy Long comes out and says this is not how the tournament was supposed to end. So next week, D&D and the Major Brothers are going to do it one more time. But this time, in a Steel Cage match.

In the back, Ric Flair and Batista talk about their problems with Edge and company. Now, they have an ally. Rey Rey joins them and they tell Edge and his little groupies to prepare themselves because they’re Next.
In the main event, Ric Flair, Batista and Rey face off against the Great Khali, Chris Masters and Mark Henry with Edge on the outside. With interference from Edge, the heels win and start attacking the faces until the PYRO goes off and Kane comes running down the ramp to even the odds. The show ends with a massive face off.

Week 4 – The Road to SummerSlam
Flair, Batista, Rey and Kane are centerstage. They’ve had enough of Edge’s games and of his whole crew. At SummerSlam, they’re going to teach Edge and his boys a little something about respect. They’re going to teach them about history. They’re going to take them on in a match that Ric Flair made famous so many years ago… WarGames! Edge and company come out and he tells them that there is no way he is getting in the ring. He is still injured and not medically cleared. Teddy Long comes out and points out the fact that Edge has been interfering in matches for the last three weeks and that if he is healthy enough to affect a match from the outside, he is healthy enough to be in the match itself. The match is set! But tonight, since Edge is supposedly injured there will be a series of matches to warm the rest of them up for SummerSlam.

Shannon Moore comes out. For the past month, a midget has been “punking” him. He can’t properly be the Prince of Punk if a little bastard is making a fool of him. He’s out for the Cruiserweight title. He’s on a mission. And the first step in that is to take down the protection that Hornswaggle has. He wants Finlay. And *he* wants to fight.
Finlay comes out and they brawl. Eventually Hornswaggle comes down and tries to hit Shannon with the Shillelagh but hits Finlay instead. After Shannon hits the twisting moonsault, it’s an academic three count. Finlay chases the Little Bastard to the back.

The cage is lowered and we are set. D&D face off against the Major Brothers. Once again, a fast and furious match between the Major Brothers and one of the D’s. Ultimately, the Daltons come down with Victoria who is carrying a wire cutter. She clips off the lock on the cage and the Daltons nail the Major Brothers giving D&D the win. D&D take it but then attack the Daltons after the match. The women are at it as well. Teddy Long comes out again, and says that even though the belts have finally been decided, that’s just not good enough. At SummerSlam, there will be a three way match between the Daltons, the Major Brothers and D&D. And since they like threeways so much, this match with also come with three stipulations – Tables, Ladders, Chairs – oh my! In addition, Cherry, Victoria and Torrie will be kept busy and away from the match with their own three way bout.

In the back, Matt is with Eugene who is still apologizing for last week. Matt doesn’t know what is going on, but tonight, they are going to get revenge on MVP. Matt sticks his hand out and Eugene hugs him. They head off to the ring.
MVP and Chavo are going to face off against Hardy and Eugene. Most of the match is spent with MVP staying away from Hardy. Hardy then becomes the face in peril taking double team after double team. Matt finally makes his way to the corner but Eugene jumps the ropes and kicks Matt in the stomach. He hits a Rock Bottom and then leaves Matt in the middle of the ring. MVP walks over and steps on Matt for the 1-2-3. Eugene/Nick is walking up the ramp clearly fighting internal conflict over what he just did. Then he smiles and stands straight up. Nick rushes back to the ring and the three heels beat down Hardy.

Chris Masters/Rey, Batista/Mark Henry and, finally, Ric Flair/Great Khali headline Smackdown in three separate bouts. In the final bout, Ric Flair is going at it with the Great Khali using every dirty trick in the book to stay with the big man. Until Edge comes out and knocks him for a loop. Kane is out! Then the rest and there is a final brawl before SummerSlam.

SummerSlam – There’s nothing like an old fashioned WarGame match
Victoria, Torrie and Cherry battle it out in an incredibly FORGET-able match. Victoria probably should win.
Shannon Moore faces off against Hornswaggle for the title but wins only by Count-Out.
A couple of interviews from Cherry with D&D and Torrie with the Major Brothers.
Then the tag team championship match. In a brutal affair that saw both D&D members actually wrestle (one can hope after another month) and finally reach up and grab the titles. But it doesn’t look like the Daltons and the Major Brothers are done with each other. They keep battling after the match is over.
Matt Hardy takes on Big Nick (with MVP in his corner). Matt picks up the win after MVP hits Nick with the title by accident. After the match, Nick floors MVP and walks out. Still shifting between Nick and Eugene.
And in the main event. Edge stays away for most of the match (since he is still injured) but gets knocked out by a weapon shot (seemed safer than him taking a finisher other than from Ric Flair but a submission in WarGames with these players seems a little hard).

Where do we go from here? Victoria and Torrie can continue to have their teams battle it out as they spar words (much better than their matches). The Tag division can actually have a feud for once. This seems the best way to do it, since the E would never let two teams just have legit heat with each other. Adding the divas makes it “special”. Matt Hardy can continue his feud with MVP and continue to chase the Unites States Title. Eugene can finally shed the “special” gimmick. Edge keeps his heat even though he is injured. Chris Masters gets a nice little rub by association. Kane isn’t just another monster. Not only that, but there is still room to develop Kenny (who can continue mind games with Eugene/Nick until maybe even forming a tag team with Nick). Hardcore Holly is back soon.

So again, Cui Bono? Who benefits? The question on how to save Smackdown should be who doesn’t benefit… and who is going to do something about it? In the past 5 years, the best angles come out of injury returns and worked shoots. The Hardy/Lita/Edge angle. Fantastic. The DX reunion (I truly believe Shawn Michaels crotch chopped McMahon on the ladder “just because,” and HHH did it in the main event as a shout out to his buddy which planted the seeds for the DX reunion tour). Huge money maker. The way to save Smackdown is going to be by throwing what everyone’s already saying… Smackdown is the home of underused wrestlers and wrestlers “lost in transition.” I’m sure that I am not the only one who thinks it.

Part 1 – The Storyline to bring them in.
Summerslam 2007 – Through Survivor Series. Cena and Orton get the main event. During the Smackdown main event, JBL rants on how it’s crap that no matter how good the product is, his boys are never in the main event of the show. JBL is the best at turning dialog into “shoot” speak. The following Friday night on Smackdown, Coach comes out right before the main event and brings up the fact that JBL had some damaging things to say about “the company.” JBL of course stands up for himself, and gets reprimanded by order of Vince MacMahon, and gets bounced from the broadcast position. The main event goes on, the show concludes… yadda yadda yadda.
The next week, the JBL apology is advertised throughout and at the end of the show JBL gets in the middle of the ring and apologizes for not speaking up sooner. The Coach, at ringside, shakes his head in disbelief. JBL starts the S.O.S. campaign… Save Our Smackdown… or something of that nature. The angle continues over the next few weeks as wrestlers are deciding which side they are on… wrestling or entertainment. After a few weeks of chatting it up, and guys like Matt Hardy, Chavo, Jamie Noble, and Finlay wearing SOS t-shirts (home made for the effect… not WWE shirts you can buy at the merch table), the Coach brings out Umaga who brawls with Finlay, cheats, and beats the crap out of him. JBL calls to the back for someone to stand up, take the next step and represent their show. No one comes out, and JBL is livid for the rest of the broadcast.
The next week Batista comes out to address the situation and says that basically, he’s sick of being on Smackdown. He’s worked his ass off and has accomplished so much in his short time in the E, that he should be the number one guy in the company, which means, he should be the number one guy on Raw. So he’ll do whatever he can to get “back home.” The Great Khali is questioned and his translator gives a “Hey, Smackdown signs the checks just like Raw and ECW did… so we’ll stay as long as the money keeps coming in” speech. JBL can’t believe that no one would step up. He puts up 100k of his own money up for someone to step up and prove that Smackdown is the show that is worth watching. No one answers.
Distraught again, JBL throw his hands up and walks off the show. The next week, Finlay, Matt Hardy, Ric Flair, and Chavo are in the ring. JBL tells them all that they’re wasting their time trying to get people to listen and that as a business man you have to know when to cut your loses. He’s glad to see that some people in this company care about the business… guys like Arn Anderson, Bruno Sammartino, Ricky Steamboat, the Von Erichs… guys who never got the spot light in the E, and had the balls to walk away when they didn’t like what they saw, are still alive and breathing on a show he is PROUD to call every week. But sometimes passion ain’t enough. We needed someone to step up to the plate and call a spade a spade. Someone from the other side willing to say what we all know, and no one did. Also throw in something like “Kurt Angle isn’t walking through that door” for good measure. A heartfelt consession speech. The Coach’s music hits and out come The Coach and Umaga… who for some reason has a towel draped on his head. The Coach starts to thank Smackdown for agreeing to step back in line when Umaga grabs the mic, pauses, and then spikes the Coach. He takes the towel off his head to show that he’s cut off the braids, washed his face and launches into a quick speech how just because he’s from Samoa it doesn’t mean he has to play a savage. He concludes his promo with “…so tell me JBL… are you still hiring?” BALLGAME!
Survivor Series is set for Smackdown (Umaga, Flair, Finlay, Hardy, Chavo) vs. Raw (Lashley, Orton, Kennedy, Booker, Carlito). No matter who wins, Smackdown has made it a point to show that wrestling is a huge part of the business, and not everything has to be built around toys and t-shirts.

PART 2 – Backing it up with content and the formula to do it

1. Increased cruiserweight and multi-man matches. Exposes young talent, and lets the CW’s shine. Jamie Noble vs. Chavo vs. Greg Helms vs. Yang with 10 minutes to tell a story sounds like a good way to start the show.
2. Establish a tag team division. Smackdown is the only show with the time to do it in (there are substantially less interviews and video packages on the show). The Majors, Duece & Domino, send over TWGTT, Jesse & Festus, Shannon Moore & Balls Mahoney (Moore Balls?!?!?), Taylor & Burchill, Finlay and the Irish Kid from the minor leagues… you get the picture.
3. The King of the Ring/ Gold Rush tournament. 16 men over a months worth of shows would add another element of something to watch and a storyline that would unfold. It would also get a solid midcard guy more mic and face time (Matt Hardy would be perfect here).
4. BRING EDGE BACK TO SMACKDOWN.
5. The Future’s Game. Borrowing the idea from the NBA and MLB all-star weekend, show clips of guys from the minor leagues leading up for a month or so and have the fans vote online who what “rookie” they want to see on Smackdown. The top 4 guys get exposure on one episode of Smackdown, the fans vote again, and the winner gets to take on MVP at a PPV. TNA did something similar when they brought in Austin Aries to face Chris Daniels at a PPV. Another reason to watch Smackdown, and it will also drive traffic to the Smackdown section of the website.