WWE Smackdown Review: 5 Things We Learned from Tonight's Live Show (April 10)

Another WWE show is in the books.

Tonight's special live edition of Friday Night Smackdown (or is it Tuesday Night Smackdown?) is now a thing of the past after we took a "Blast from the Past" with a show that centered around a dozen or so WWE legends.

Given the special theme to tonight's Smackdown, it wasn't the traditional effort from the blue brand that we've grown accustomed to.

But hey, at least it taught us something.

Here are five things we learned from the "Blast from the Past" edition of Friday Night Smackdown.

5. 'Special' Shows Really Aren't All That Special

I actually thought that tonight's "Blast from the Past" Smackdown could be pretty good.

I thought wrong.

Tonight's "special" edition of Smackdown wasn't so special after all. In fact, I'd say it was actually pretty damn bad.

There were a lot of pointless segments involving the legends, no matches that really stood out and little to no story progression in the show's biggest feuds.

Come to think about it, hardly any of the WWE's "special" editions of Raw or Smackdown are actually any good. They typically rely too much on whatever the theme is, and thus, the product suffers as a result.

That was never more true than it was tonight when the only legend who really added anything of value to the show was "Rowdy" Roddy Piper.

All the rest? Well, like Cody Rhodes said, they just took away valuable TV time from the talent of the future.

4. The Landscape of Smackdown Is Changing

The Smackdown landscape looks drastically different than it did just a few weeks ago.

Just think about all the rarely-seen superstars and Divas we saw on tonight's show: Tyson Kidd, Alicia Fox, Natalya, Heath Slater, Hunico, the Usos, etc.

And the new ones: Ryback and Damien Sandow.

There are a ton of fresh faces on the Smackdown brand, and that's probably both a good and a bad sign. It's good because it gives new superstars and Divas a chance to shine, but it's bad because it also shows just how thin the WWE's roster is.

Either way, though, tonight's Smackdown featured a boatload of guys who are relatively unfamiliar to most WWE fans, and this is definitely an indication of the current changes going on amidst the WWE's post-WrestleMania lull.

3. The Kane/Orton and Show/Rhodes Feuds Apparently Must Continue

Brutal. Just brutal.

That's the only way I can describe the feud between Randy Orton and Kane, as well as the one between Cody Rhodes and The Big Show.

This Orton/Kane rivalry has been bad from the beginning, but it was even worse tonight when (in a flashback to that horrendous Edge/Kane feud in 2010), Kane attacked Orton's father and uttered that stupid "family reunion" line.

I'm not so sure it was as bad as that Rhodes/Show crap.

Big Show came out to the arena tonight and once again embarrassed Rhodes with another "Cody Rhodes Embarrassing Moment" that flash backed to Rhodes' "Dashing" persona.

So let me get this straight: The best the creative team could come up with is having Show do to Rhodes week after week what Rhodes once did to Show week after week?

Ugh. Both of these feuds are awful, but apparently, someone in the WWE really wants them to continue at least until Extreme Rules.

2. Sheamus vs. Daniel Bryan in a 2 out of 3 Falls Match at Extreme Rules

After it was revealed that Sheamus was fined $500,000 and will be fired if he touches a referee again, it was also announced that he would face Daniel Bryan in a 2 out of 3 Falls Match for the World Heavyweight Championship at Extreme Rules.

That latter announcement was one of the lone bright spots on tonight's show.

Many wrestling fans felt robbed when the World title match at WrestleMania 28 only got 18 seconds, but I fully expect the WWE to make up for it at Extreme Rules with this 2 out of 3 Falls match.

Sheamus and Bryan should put on one hell of a bout, and they should get a good 20 minutes or so, given the stipulation of the bout.

I'd expect both Sheamus and Bryan to win a fall, and thus, for this match to go the third fall, with Sheamus eventually retaining.

I think Alberto Del Rio will get involved in some way, shape or form, and possibly inadvertently cost Bryan the match.

Sorry, I got a bit off track there. But the basic gist of this is that I am excited to see Sheamus and Bryan get a chance to tear the house down on pay-per-view.

1. We Need the Draft to Happen ASAP

Some say that the WWE draft doesn't matter anymore, but I respectfully disagree.

And tonight's Smackdown showed why I think we need to have it soon.

Mark Henry vs. Randy Orton? Saw it twice on pay-per-view in 2011.

Orton's feud with Kane? A colossal flop and a series of matches we already got last summer.

Sheamus vs. Daniel Bryan? A feud we saw last year and one that got no time at WrestleMania.

Big Show vs. Cody Rhodes? Saw it last year and we are seeing it again.

I think you get the point. The WWE needs some freshening up, and the draft can do that.

How about Rhodes vs. CM Punk or John Cena? What about Dolph Ziggler vs. Randy Orton? How about Daniel Bryan vs. Punk or Cena?

There are a lot of feud options for the WWE, and the best way to make that happen is through the draft.

I know that any superstar from any brand can technically feud with someone from the other brand, but the draft does give us some limitations.

And we need those limitations ASAP.

Note: As part of the new WWE blog, I'll be asking all of the B/R wrestling readers for questions for a new mailbag that I will post on Fridays. It will be a slideshow featuring 10-20 questions and answers on a wide range of topics. You can submit questions either through Formspring or Twitter, and the best ones will be answered in the B/R mailbag.