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First of all, if I want to see overweight guys in thongs (and I don’t), I can watch WWE on Monday nights or tune into some kind of special pay-per-view show on my DirecTV. Why include that in your product? One of the reasons I prefer TNA over WWE is because it is more family-friendly for the most part. I don’t have kids, but if I did, I would not want them seeing a guy in a thong (or anyone in a thong, for that matter) on television. I am a 35 year old adult and I don’t want to see it myself. Please, refrain from such stupidity in the future. It is neither fun nor funny, it is obscene and asinine. In my opinion, it does not belong on a wrestling show, especially one that brags “We are wrestling.â€ÂÂÂ
Secondly, Rhino & Kurt Angle vs. A.J. Styles & Samoa Joe sounded like a great main event to me. I was pretty pumped about it. I sold the show to my wife (who likes TNA as well) based on that main event. Then, we are treated to a three minute or so debacle. Come on! What a joke! A match like that, that was hyped the way it was from the precious week’s show, between such major stars, should have been given at least ten minutes. They could have given me a screwy ending and I would have been satisfied if you had given me some quality wrestling in that ten minutes. In my opinion, the wrestling on Smackdown has been better at times recently... and it pains me to say that.
I am rooting for TNA to succeed. However, I think for it to succeed, it needs to focus on being different that WWE. That could and should be evident in two primary ways. First of all, actually be a family-friendly show. Refrain from the fat-guy-in-thong bits and the camera angles that start between So Cal Val’s legs. Secondly, focus on wrestling, which is your strong suit. If you are going to have a match with Joe, Angle, Styles and Rhino involved, make it a substantial match. If you are going to book Petey Williams vs. Homicide, give them fifteen minutes to demonstrate what they can do and tell an effective story. I love you guys, but I’m afraid you’re not headed in the best direction.
Ed Hudgins
Eau Claire, Wisconsin
**********
Smackdown seems like they can always deliver when it comes to wrestling, but there always seems to be small things that continually remind me why they are the “B†show. Whereas the sub sequential match that followed was a passable squash match, why did Sylvan dress up as Santa Claus to attack Batista with a lead pipe? Where on Earth did that come from? Did he think that would get him a title shot? And if no one knew who this Santa Claus was, shouldn’t he have been taken down? Oh, and why does Teddie Long get to put him in a WWE-sanctioned match when we have no idea who this character is? The entire set-up was so awful for a match that was so meaningful that I almost considered turning to watch something else.
The Smackdown divas are another B-rated aspect of Smackdown in comparison to Raw. Wrestlers like Victoria and Mickie James compete at a level that is comparable to their male counterparts. Maria and Torrie Wilson shouldn’t be wrestling, but they are extremely hot and can be used as either squash bait or (in the case of Sharmell and Melina) valets. What they shouldn’t be used as is feature matches on a two hour show that doesn’t allow wrestlers like Regal and the tag team champions to square off against one another. The girls on Smackdown are nothing more than mediocre (yeah, I said it!) in comparison, making me cringe as I watch the entire debacle tag team match. If Vince is reading this somehow, please take the divas out of action unless they can actually wrestle.
Fortunately, everything else was pretty good. JBL’s tirade, albeit a bit repetitive at times, made me wish he was back. Nobody could be a jerk like him. He’s very hateable. Chavo and Benoit’s rendezvous with one another was exciting, and the match told a good story. The finish and the ending of the segment was kind of weird, but at least it keeps the story going without focusing as much on the Guerrero name as it has in the past. The scenario involving MNM and the Hardy Boyz was well-played, even though neither Joey Mercury nor Matt Hardy are the most convincing speakers in the WWE. As was the case before it, the match definitely made up for it.
Feeding the Champions of Champions to the Brothers of Destruction seemed lame; giving King Booker a clean loss makes Smackdown’s only decent heel look weak. The setup of the match was lame, too, but the match itself was a lot of fun, and I enjoyed it. Team Royalty could have won the match, but they didn’t, and what better way to end 2006 than a solid win by Kane and the Undertaker.
Overall, it just seems like WWE doesn’t care about Smackdown. Lucky for us, everyone (except for Batista) on the show cares enough to give us two solid hours of wrestling. And for that, I am grateful.
WYATT ANGLE
CINCINNATI, OHIO
