The Main Events
Chris Jericho and Alberto Del Rio defeated Dolph Ziggler and Big E Langston in a pretty solid tag team match. The pace of the match was controlled by Langston. Langston is improving week by week. Now, he is focusing on the smaller things in the ring that make the match flow at a smoother pace. Before, it was all about Langston hitting a few moves and looking dominant. He is slowly becoming a guy that can put on a solid match, unlike Ryback. WWE preserved Ziggler in this match by only letting him hit a few moves. The best part was Ziggler being able to hit his beautiful dropkick and a few other moves before quickly tagging out. It was very smart for WWE to do this with their World Heavyweight Champion. Furthermore, I felt like Paul Heyman needed to be seen. He is the guy that is pushing this match with Punk and Jericho. Whether it was another music tease or some sort of mention of Punk, it really could have enhanced the storyline in a simple way. Del Rio steals the win for the sole purpose of making the fans think he will win Sunday. I highly doubt that will happen. If they wanted that to happen, the past month wouldn't have. (Ziggler being champion and remaining off television.)
Grade: B-
Daniel Bryan, Randy Orton, and Kane defeated The Shield. This was the first loss that The Shield have suffered in 6 man tag team action. I thought to myself, "why would WWE have such a big moment hidden on Smackdown over Raw?" The answer is simple: because it it Smackdown and half the people watch it! Anyways, this match was excellent from beginning to end. Some points that stuck out in my mind were the fact that Randy Orton was beaten down for a good part of the match. He is usually the guy with the hot tag. Instead, Daniel Bryan took that and ran with it. He cleaned house and was electric as soon as he got in the ring. I continue to be impressed with how over this guy is. The abilities he has in the ring is second to none and it shows every single week. Bryan would be in control, while Kane took out Ambrose and Reigns on the outside. The finish came when Kane pushed Rollins off the ropes into an RKO. Daniel Bryan would make Rollin tap out. I am alright with the loss because they will salvage it on Sunday. The Shield are finally showing signs of vulnerability. This is needed BADLY since they are beginning to run out of ideas for 6 man matches each week. This victory made me more interested to see what happens Sunday and how it all plays out. Well done.
Grade: A
Smackdown Grade: B-
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