April 8th-13th was a hell of a week. I know it might not seem like a big deal to some (especially those who were in Orlando for Wrestlemania weekend) but I managed to take in a WWE, ROH, and TNA event all in the same week.
On Tuesday, April 8th I went to the Smackdown/ECW tapings at TD Banknorth Garden in Boston, MA. This was an enjoyable experience. We got a nice dark match out of Jamie Noble vs. Kenny Dykstra. The crowd was hot for Noble, since he was the first babyface of the evening, and they worked a decent, albeit cookie cutter, bout. Noble went over.
ECW was a good show. The show opened with a very strong CM Punk/Miz match. It's funny to me that only within the last year some people were labeling Miz among the worst workers in WWE, and now he's developed into a strong midcard talent. There was no carry job by Punk here, it was just an all around good television match, clocking in around the *** mark.
Chavo Guerrero and Kane had their contract signing for Backlash. This was entertaining, and of course you can never appreciate Kane's pyro until it's blinded you in person. We also got to see the debut of Bam Neely, as he's Chavo's most recent crony. Chavo's frog splash onto Kane on the contract table was a sight to see, especially the brutal landing (Chavo's head and upper body hit the mat in a rather sickening way). This was by far the most "extreme" that the ECW broadcast got. Then again, complaining about how the current ECW really isn't ECW is just about as productive as tearing apart Michael Bay's Transformers for not being like the cartoon, so I digress.
Elijah Burke beat Nunzio in a short match. Not much to talk about here, I was excited to see Burke, but he didn't really do anything overly impressive here. They were still clearing the ring from the contract signing during Nunzio's entrance, and he acted all bossy, telling the crew to clear it faster for him, which was pretty funny.
Kofi Kingston beat Domino in another short match, which got enough time as to keep it from being classified as a complete squash. This was probably the most I've ever enjoyed Domino, as he turned in a good, aggressive performance. Kingston was pretty over with the live audience too, and he didn't botch half as many spots as I expected he would. If they play their cards right, there is no reason for Kingston to not become a big star (then again, he just might become another Carlito).
Main event was Tommy Dreamer vs. Colin Delaney. Dreamer's spot on the roster was on the line, as was a job for Colin. This was a decent match that was slightly more memorable thanks to the stipulation. It was nice to see Dreamer featured in such a prominent role.
Other side note, this would turn out to be the last episode with Joey Styles on commentary. The next week, we'd get the classic hilarity of Mike Adamle and his confusion.
Up next the referees came to the ring and changed the apron and ropes for Smackdown. The first segment was The Great Khali's "peace offerings" for Big Show. This included a live chicken and a goat. Somehow, my "goat of the year" chant didn't catch on. This was the most entertaining thing Khali has ever been a part of, and it was also the most over I've ever seen Big Show with a live crowd (and I've seen Big Show at numerous events). That Mayweather feud really did him a lot of favors.
John Morrison and The Miz beat Jimmy Wang Yang and Shannon Moore in a non-title match. My annoyance here was that if Morrison and Miz were going over anyhow, why not put the titles on the line? Anyhow, this was another solid match. The Miz really showed me a lot at this taping, as he turned in that good performance against CM Punk and then came out later and worked a second good match. And to think, just this time last year a lot of people regarded him as one of the worst workers on the roster.
Finlay (with Hornswoggle) beat Matt Striker. This was a comedy match, and was entertaining for what it was.
Victoria introduced Nattie Neidhart as "Natalya." This was a personal treat, as I've been a fan of Nattie's SHIMMER work for a while. This lead to a match pitting Victoria against Michelle McCool (who I also have a soft spot for). The match was your typical divas affair, but was suitable. Victoria is a solid hand, and Michelle is one of those diva search types who actually tries very hard to become competent in the ring.
Shawn Michaels and Batista faced off verbally in the ring. This was a fun segment, as Batista called Michaels out on the bullshit in his past. I must say, this feud is awesome, and is the best thing Batista has been a part of since his feud with Triple H. I really hope their Backlash match can deliver.
Vladimir Kozlov demolished Matt Logan. Kozlov fucked up his entrance by coming out too early and had to redo it. He's basically worthless too, this segment was dead.
Matt Hardy beat Chuck Palumbo in a solid match. It got a lot of time, and might have come off better on television, but was merely solid in the arena. MVP was on commentary for this one too. It was fun watching the set crew blow up his entrance tent.
There were "Undertaker" chants the entire night. A lot of fans had one track minds and really just seemed concerned with the Dead Man. Also, there were a series of vignettes of Vickie Guerrero and Edge out on a romantic evening (getting massages, naked in bed together).
The Undertaker beat Festus in an entertaining match. This worked because Festus is simply not allowed to act intimidated, so he gave Taker an all-out fight. If they were to build Festus up, they could really make a compelling feud out of that aspect. I know they won't, so in the mean time I'll just hope Jesse and Festus can get a run with the tag titles.
After the show, Edge and his buddies jumped Undertaker, which lead to Kane, Big Show, and Batista making the save. Just a fun run-in festival to top off the show.
So this is a really long post, so I'll have to add my ROH and Lockdown responses later on.
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