WWE Smackdown 10/22/10 Review: Battle Before the War

Big Show, Rey Mysterio and Kofi Kingston Def. The Miz, Sheamus and Ezekiel Jackson

Awesome opener as each wrestler had someone to relate to in this match, showing great chemistry. Each superstar shined.

I liked the finish, but at least Zeke or Sheamus didn't get pinned since they need momentum and Miz is just the captain.

It was a good way to keep fans tuned in for the following matches and it got some good time.

On a side note, I would like to see Kofi Kingston vs. Ezekiel Jackson one day. That would be a great feud, especially over a secondary championship.

Jack Swagger Def. Santino Marella

Thank God Santino Marella didn't win. That would have KILLED Swagger for the rest of his run on Smackdown.

Marella got a win on Superstars anyway so that made up for this loss.

This match was a better choice than seeing Tyler Reks vs. Santino, since no one would have cared (Truth was absent from RAW and Smackdown so that's why he wasn't in any matches).

Fun match, especially with the Eagle, but the Hornswoggle part was stupid. Nice win for Swagger.

Alberto Del Rio Def. John Morrison

Outstanding match. Not as good as the Mysterio vs. Del Rio contest, but it was still pretty good since these two have great in-ring ability.

This would make a great feud over the Intercontinental Championship or maybe over a World Title if both are elevated by that time.

Decent finish, but I could of had it either way. I guess they wanted Del Rio with the win to push Smackdown for Sunday, only to have RAW win.

Edge Def. CM Punk (DQ)

Well deserved Match of the Night. I am huge marks of both of these men, and this match was definitely better than the matches these two had when their roles were reversed. As I have heard, this would be an awesome program, and both are evenly matched.

Edge could call the Straightedge preaching "stupid," and a huge feud would emerge. I doubt it would happen anytime soon since both were just traded.

Regarding the match, it was great and something I want to look forward to on PPV. It got great time and before the DQ, both hit unpredictable signature moves that had me wanting more.

I actually enjoyed and made sense of the DQ finish to ensure that neither man lose momentum and not lose cleanly. Something they want to save for later.

The trading of the finishers was awesome and certainly had me looking forward to the tag team match this Sunday. Very well done.

Natayla and Kelly Kelly Def. Unified Divas Champions Lay-Cool

Unlike some people, I did not find the Hart impressions funny at all. I don't laugh at anything that stupid stable does. The match wasn't any better. A confusing, odd finish.

Natayla seems to be getting a lot of momentum this week, so hopefully she doesn't lose Sunday. And why the hell wasn't Kelly Kelly tagged in? Disappointing.

WWE Champion Randy Orton Def. World Heavyweight Champion Kane (Non-Title)

Disappointing contest. It got a long time, but it was used poorly. Orton did nothing but get destroyed the entire bout and pulled an RKO right out his ass for the victory.

This had potential to be a good match, but it was wasted, especially for a champion vs. champion match.

Orton is naturally better than Kane so he should have gotten some offense more than he did. The match was used to promote both matches of Bragging Rights, but it failed miserably.

The ending was campy, and made no sense on how they will explain it on Sunday.

These two have good character chemistry with similarities in their characters, but as the Cena match a few weeks ago on the premiere, it just didn't work out.

Final Review

Aside from the Divas match and the main event, it was a great edition of Smackdown that was filled with solid in-ring action.

Basically what I'm saying is that I'm looking forward to the tag team match more since they did a better job promoting it, rather than the World Title match.

At least this week there wasn't a worthless Kane-Taker promo.

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