Post by Pennyroyal_Tea (admin) on Oct 10, 2003 12:27:54 GMT -5
Quick synopsis of the opening: Linda McMahon makes a rare SmackDown appearance to open that portion of the show. She was there to try and convince Steph not to go through with her match. She comes out and says she's not gonna back down on this one. Vince then comes and told her that he had already given Steph a chance to back out, and she didn't. Sable then comes and announces that she's offered Vince her managerial services for that match at No Mercy. Linda then said something to the effect of "She's been around." (Again, I'm summarizing here.) Sable kicks Linda in the gut, which prompts Steph to tackle her down and start swinging. Vince pulls her off and ends up clotheslining her down. So repulsive. He leaves with Sable, with them stopping just under the fist and sharing a kiss while Linda and Steph were watching. Steph had her mother turn away so she wouldn't have to see that. That kiss might not make it to the final tape for Thursday.
Non-Title Match: Tajiri d. Ultimo Dragon
What the cruiserweight division is all about: fast see-saw action. They did a nice spot where they both swung a roundhouse kick at each other. They both hit and crash down to the mat. You usually see that with a clothesline. Nice to see that pulled off. Later in the match, Dragon countered the Tarantula. Don't remember what he did, but he didn't allow Tajiri to lock it in. Dragon was ready to hit his reverse DDT from a Diamind Cutter standing start, but Tajiri tosses him off before he could land on his feet. A roundhouse kick later, it was over.
I think it was about here that Steph then announced that Linda would be in her corner at No Mercy.
The Undertaker d. Chuck Palumbo (w/Johnny Stamboli & Nunzio)
Pre-match, Taker said that he brought a "friend" with him to deal with Brock Lesnar. The friend was a chain that he had in his hand. (Bear this in mind for later.) The match was just like past meetings. Taker basically is fighting three, although not to a harsh degree this time, but he doesn't let that bother him. He looked chokeslam, but Stamboli got his attention. It only delayed the inevitable, though, despite Palumbo's superkick effort. Post-match, Brock gets the jump on Taker, and we get a brief 4-on-1. Brock went to get a chair, but the FBI let up, allowing Taker to get and use his chain. To cap that off, he hits the chair into Brock's head with the chain.
The Big Show d. Orlando Jordan
The short of it: Jordan couldn't even get out of the gate. No bathroom break for Show here; he was able to finish the match with the chokeslam.
Josh Matthews w/Eddie Guerrero: He was talking about meeting Show for the US title at No Mercy. Good mix of comedy and seriousness. Matthews: "Aren't you at all nervous going in?" Eddie (sarcastically) "Well, yeah, I'm nervous." Show made it back to the interview area and destroyed Eddie.
A rap off between Kurt Angle and John Cena was next here. It's your basic "dis your opponent for No Mercy to no end" segment here which turns into a fight between them
I forget if this next piece was before or after the rapoff, but as Vince was watching the monitor of what happened with Taker and Brock before, Paul London comes in looking for an opportunity. Vince gives him one: Brock Lesnar for the title later.
Shannon Moore (w/Matt Hardy) d. Zach Gowen
Zach's return to the ring, sorry to say, was like his other matches since Vengeance: hell of an effort, but came up on the losing end. Zach had Shannon going after the reciprocal was true. He goes for the moonsault, but Matt meets him up there and throws him off the top. Shannon follows with the Bottoms Up after Zach was vertical.
World Title Match: Brock Lesnar d. Paul London
I've read about how good London is. He didn't show anything here, but not because of first match jitters or whatever. Brock just didn't let him out of the gate. He first teased London to touch the belt, then sent him down hard with a clothesline. Not much else to describe during the match. F5, done. Post-match, Brock tosses London to the floor. He then thinks ringpost F5, but Spanky races out and jumps him to stop that. He gets an F5 for his trouble, but he did save London from the steel. Taker then comes out. He drops a bombshell on Brock: he got Steph to make their match a Biker Chain Match. (You'll probably see Taker leaving her office before this match.)
A-Train & The Basham Brothers d. Chris Benoit & APA
The Bashams jump APA as they were coming down the aisle. Faarooq got worked over so bad, he ended up getting help to the back, which turned this into a handicap match. Benoit and Bradshaw fought hard, but the odds were against them tonight. (Well, obviously. I should say the stars were against them tonight.) Benoit couldn't do much else once he was hit with the Train Wreck. Post-match, A-Train sent him to the floor as the Bashams get Bradshaw with the Ball and Gag.
Matthews gets an update on Eddie through Chavo. He said that Eddie was in bad shape, and he intends to do something about it to Show.
A few minutes later, Chavo is in the ring calling Show out. Show comes dressed in street clothes. He goes into the ring. The ref calls for the bell.
The Big Show d. Chavo Guerrero by countout (Why did the ref even bother calling this an official match?)
Chavo had a higher purpose. He had lured Show out there for Eddie, who comes out with a sewage truck. He said that he had called in a favor from his cousin Chewy. "Hi, Chewy. Luke Skywalker here." was my response to that. Anyway, Eddie's intent was to hose Show down with shit. Luckily for us in section 7 (That's where I was sitting, behind the announce table. You probably won't see me, because I was 7 rows back.), he didn't do it while Show was in the ring. No, he got Show in the aisleway. I also just had to shout "Hey, Show, Mr. Hankey says hi," which got a laugh out of those sitting near me. (I seem to have that effect on people.) Eddie had to have been spraying Show for a good five minutes. He was actually laying in the shit unconscious. When he came to, he started crying like a little girl. That scene of him crying probably won't make the tape, either, but seeing it live was good enough for me.
It was cool to see a TV taping live, but in hindsight, what was done here tonight wasn't really anything different than what WWE has done in the past.
On that note, the Three Stars.
Third Star: Tajiri & Ultimo Dragon
Second Star: The Undertaker
First Star: Eddie Guerrero (Just for turning Show into a pig wallowing in filth.)
Credit: RajahWWF.com
Non-Title Match: Tajiri d. Ultimo Dragon
What the cruiserweight division is all about: fast see-saw action. They did a nice spot where they both swung a roundhouse kick at each other. They both hit and crash down to the mat. You usually see that with a clothesline. Nice to see that pulled off. Later in the match, Dragon countered the Tarantula. Don't remember what he did, but he didn't allow Tajiri to lock it in. Dragon was ready to hit his reverse DDT from a Diamind Cutter standing start, but Tajiri tosses him off before he could land on his feet. A roundhouse kick later, it was over.
I think it was about here that Steph then announced that Linda would be in her corner at No Mercy.
The Undertaker d. Chuck Palumbo (w/Johnny Stamboli & Nunzio)
Pre-match, Taker said that he brought a "friend" with him to deal with Brock Lesnar. The friend was a chain that he had in his hand. (Bear this in mind for later.) The match was just like past meetings. Taker basically is fighting three, although not to a harsh degree this time, but he doesn't let that bother him. He looked chokeslam, but Stamboli got his attention. It only delayed the inevitable, though, despite Palumbo's superkick effort. Post-match, Brock gets the jump on Taker, and we get a brief 4-on-1. Brock went to get a chair, but the FBI let up, allowing Taker to get and use his chain. To cap that off, he hits the chair into Brock's head with the chain.
The Big Show d. Orlando Jordan
The short of it: Jordan couldn't even get out of the gate. No bathroom break for Show here; he was able to finish the match with the chokeslam.
Josh Matthews w/Eddie Guerrero: He was talking about meeting Show for the US title at No Mercy. Good mix of comedy and seriousness. Matthews: "Aren't you at all nervous going in?" Eddie (sarcastically) "Well, yeah, I'm nervous." Show made it back to the interview area and destroyed Eddie.
A rap off between Kurt Angle and John Cena was next here. It's your basic "dis your opponent for No Mercy to no end" segment here which turns into a fight between them
I forget if this next piece was before or after the rapoff, but as Vince was watching the monitor of what happened with Taker and Brock before, Paul London comes in looking for an opportunity. Vince gives him one: Brock Lesnar for the title later.
Shannon Moore (w/Matt Hardy) d. Zach Gowen
Zach's return to the ring, sorry to say, was like his other matches since Vengeance: hell of an effort, but came up on the losing end. Zach had Shannon going after the reciprocal was true. He goes for the moonsault, but Matt meets him up there and throws him off the top. Shannon follows with the Bottoms Up after Zach was vertical.
World Title Match: Brock Lesnar d. Paul London
I've read about how good London is. He didn't show anything here, but not because of first match jitters or whatever. Brock just didn't let him out of the gate. He first teased London to touch the belt, then sent him down hard with a clothesline. Not much else to describe during the match. F5, done. Post-match, Brock tosses London to the floor. He then thinks ringpost F5, but Spanky races out and jumps him to stop that. He gets an F5 for his trouble, but he did save London from the steel. Taker then comes out. He drops a bombshell on Brock: he got Steph to make their match a Biker Chain Match. (You'll probably see Taker leaving her office before this match.)
A-Train & The Basham Brothers d. Chris Benoit & APA
The Bashams jump APA as they were coming down the aisle. Faarooq got worked over so bad, he ended up getting help to the back, which turned this into a handicap match. Benoit and Bradshaw fought hard, but the odds were against them tonight. (Well, obviously. I should say the stars were against them tonight.) Benoit couldn't do much else once he was hit with the Train Wreck. Post-match, A-Train sent him to the floor as the Bashams get Bradshaw with the Ball and Gag.
Matthews gets an update on Eddie through Chavo. He said that Eddie was in bad shape, and he intends to do something about it to Show.
A few minutes later, Chavo is in the ring calling Show out. Show comes dressed in street clothes. He goes into the ring. The ref calls for the bell.
The Big Show d. Chavo Guerrero by countout (Why did the ref even bother calling this an official match?)
Chavo had a higher purpose. He had lured Show out there for Eddie, who comes out with a sewage truck. He said that he had called in a favor from his cousin Chewy. "Hi, Chewy. Luke Skywalker here." was my response to that. Anyway, Eddie's intent was to hose Show down with shit. Luckily for us in section 7 (That's where I was sitting, behind the announce table. You probably won't see me, because I was 7 rows back.), he didn't do it while Show was in the ring. No, he got Show in the aisleway. I also just had to shout "Hey, Show, Mr. Hankey says hi," which got a laugh out of those sitting near me. (I seem to have that effect on people.) Eddie had to have been spraying Show for a good five minutes. He was actually laying in the shit unconscious. When he came to, he started crying like a little girl. That scene of him crying probably won't make the tape, either, but seeing it live was good enough for me.
It was cool to see a TV taping live, but in hindsight, what was done here tonight wasn't really anything different than what WWE has done in the past.
On that note, the Three Stars.
Third Star: Tajiri & Ultimo Dragon
Second Star: The Undertaker
First Star: Eddie Guerrero (Just for turning Show into a pig wallowing in filth.)
Credit: RajahWWF.com