WWE Smackdown on The CW
Taped July 22 in Philadelphia, Pa.

[Q1] The show opened with highlights of the Edge and Vickie Guerrero wedding reception and of the incriminating video that Hunter aired of Edge and wedding planner Alicia Fox... The opening montage aired...

Jim Ross and Mick Foley introduced the show from ringside. They discussed the Edge and Vickie saga and how it played out with Edge accidentally spearing her at the Great American Bash pay-per-view...

In the ring, MVP hosted the VIP Lounge. He spouted off some great rhymes about himself and then introduced Jeff Hardy as his special guest. There were red ropes set up at ringside that a security guard opened to let Jeff into "the lounge." MVP said Jeff would be competing in a battle royal with Umaga, Great Khali, Big Show, Mr. Kennedy, and MVP to earn a shot at the WWE Title at Summer Slam.

MVP held up a copy of the new WWE Magazine with Jeff on the cover. He said Jeff isn't known for being a WWE Champion, but he's known for being a risk taker. "Some of those risks have resulted in some pretty big failures," MVP said. Hardy admitted that he made a mistake and said he paid for it with a suspension that resulted in his missing WrestleMania.

MVP pointed out that Hardy also lost his Intercontinental Title and his home in a fire. MVP pointed out that it was more of a trailer than a home. Nice. Jeff took offense to MVP's line of questioning. MVP said Jeff was feeling guilty and responsible for his dog Jack's death. "You're not just a jerk," Jeff said. "What are you a psychiatrist?"

[Q2] The tongue lashing continued as MVP said he didn't believe that Jeff would never be suspended again. Jeff pointed out that he'd be released if he messed up again. He said he's grateful he has a second chance. Third, but who's counting? Jeff said that if anyone should know about second chances, it's MVP. Hardy shoved MVP, who stumbled backwards and landed at ringside... [C]

Powell's POV: Damn. Great segment. Not just because it's reality based, but because reality makes for an interesting story in this case. It will be interesting to see whether Jeff even or someone else eventually reveals that MVP served prison time.

After the break, Ross and Foley said they were awaiting the arrival of Vickie Guerrero. They also hyped the battle royal to determined Hunter's challenger at Summer Slam, and then recapped Shelton Benjamin's win over Matt Hardy to win the U.S. Title... Shelton came to the ring and bragged about "liberating" the U.S. Title...

1. Shelton Benjamin pinned Jimmy Wang Yang in a non-title match in 2:15. A glorified squash. His finisher is called "Paydirt" and he used it to score the pin...

Backstage, Edge congratulated Zach Ryder and Curt Hawkins on winning the WWE Tag Titles. He tried to explain what happened with him and the wedding planner, but they brushed him off quickly by saying they had to get going and would catch up with him later... [C]

[Q3] Highlights aired from the Bash of Hawkins and Ryder winning the tag titles...

2. Festus (w/Jesse) beat Curt Hawkins (w/Zach Ryder). Standard Festus match. Afterward, the tag champs attacked Jesse and then laid out Festus after the bell...

Highlights aired from a Generation Rescue function of Jenny McCarthy, Jim Carrey, WWE's Maria, and a slew of other celebrities discussing her the fight against autism and her appearance on Saturday Night's Main Event... [C]

Backstage, Edge spoke to Alicia Fox the wedding planner in a corner while Bam Neeley stood around the corner and eavesdropped. Edge suggested she blend in more and said they should talk more back at their hotel...

[Q4] 3. Vladimir Kozlov pinned Stevie Richards in 3:00. Ross said Kozlov was a big kid who was singled out a young age to being athletic training in Russia. Kozlov locked in an armbar hold, and Foley said it could be a submission hold. Ross immediately corrected him and said it is a submission hold.

Stevie had a hope spot and scored a one count on Kozlov. The announcers put it over since it was a rare one count on Kozlov. The tide turned quickly when Kozlov headbutted Richards in the chest and scored the pin. After the match, Vladimir told the announcers he wants better competition... Ross hyped that they battle royal was up next...

Powell's POV: Good to hear Kozlov wants better competition because I'm anxious to see how he does in non-squash matches...

[C] More highlights aired from last week of the Triple H's video tape that showed Edge making out with the wedding planner and of Vickie's reaction...

Powell's POV: They're doing a great job of making Vickie's arrival at the show mean something. Very good first hour.

Mr. Kennedy performed his pre-match routine. This week, he delivered the "Mister" and let the crowd fill in "Kennedy" a few times...

[Q5] 4. Great Khali (w/Runjin Singh) defeated MVP and Jeff Hardy and Mr. Kennedy and Big Show and Umaga in six-man battle royal to earn a title match against Triple H at Summer Slam. MVP wore his shirt during the match for some odd reason. Umaga knocked down Show and Khali with kicks just before the break. [C]

After the break, all six men were still in the ring. Hardy eliminated MVP at 6:45. Roughly 30 seconds later, Show eliminated Umaga. Kennedy and Hardy tried to double team Show, but he fought them both off. Show grabbed Kennedy by the throat and pushed him backwards over the top rope at 8:00.

After the Kennedy elimination, Foley said they were down to two men even though Show, Khali, and Hardy were still alive. Ross immediately corrected him. Show took control of Khali. Umaga reentered the ring and spiked Show. Hardy went up top and jumped onto Show, who caught him. However, Hardy used his legs to flip Show over the top rope and the live crowd went bananas. Hardy hit the Swanton on Khali. However, Khali came back quickly. In the end, Khali chopped Hardy and dumped him over the top rope.

Afterward, Triple H walked to the ring with the WWE Title belt draped over his shoulder. He showed he wasn't intimidated by entering the ring and going chest-to-chest with Khali. Singh convinced Khali to leave the ring...

Powell's POV: The live crowd would have went nuts had Hardy won that match. Too bad.

[Q6] Highlights aired from the Bash pay-per-view of the John Cena vs. JBL match... [C] The first R-Truth vignette aired. He was in a rundown neighborhood in North Carolina and said it was where he grew up. He said he chose what he thought was the easy way and he paid for it (a clip of a cell door closing was shown). He said he's in charge of his life now and that's the truth...

Powell's POV: Good vignette. Killings seemed young and fresh even though he's been with the company before. They must have big plans for him if they're giving him vignettes and not just having him show up out of the blue. He definitely came across like a babyface in this vignette, although that could change quickly if he tells "the truth" about some babyfaces.

5. Michelle McCool beat Maryse via submission in a non-title match in 2:00. The usual Brazilian heel hook finisher...

After the match, Ross and Foley said they were still waiting for Vickie Guerrero to show up... [C]

[Q7] A Raw Rebound recapped the C.M. Punk vs. Batista match... Ross and Foley hyped the Hunter vs. Khali match for Summer Slam... Vickie finally arrived at the building and was pushed in her wheelchair by Chavo. Neely showed up and asked if he'd told her about what Edge said. She got upset, but Chavo told her it was nothing and they'd tell her later... [C]

A video noted that Maria is debuting on Smackdown next week... Backstage, Neely told Edge that Vickie had arrived at the building. Edge said he had to apologize to her in public. Bam said he'd go tell her... Brian Kendrick and Ezekiel came to the ring. Ross said Kendrick reminds him of a young Brian Pillman. Kendrick cut a short, standard heel promo...

6. Brian Kendrick (w/Ezekiel) pinned Shannon Moore in 1:50. Moore delivered some early kicks and Ross sold them to perfection by reacting to each kick while delivering a sentence. Foley noted that Kendrick introduces himself as "The Brian Kendrick." In the end, Kendrick hit Sliced Bread No. 2, which is now known as "The Kendrick" for the win...

Powell's POV: Much better performance this week. The announcers definitely helped Kendrick's cause.

Backstage, Bam passed along Edge's request to Vickie to meet in the ring for an apology...

[Q8] [C] Ben Stiller read a spot for the Generation Rescue project and hyped Jenny McCarthy's appearance on Saturday Night's Main Event...

Edge came to the ring and called out Vickie to listen to his explanation and apology. Vickie was wheeled to the ring by Chavo and Neely, who placed her in the ring with Edge. He got down on one knee and apologized. Then he said the video didn't show how many times he rejected the wedding planner's advances. Hilarious.

"I wanted to hammer out...iron out the details of the wedding," he said. Edge said nothing means more to her than Vickie's happiness and love. "I won't live without your love," Edge said. "I can't live without your love." Vickie smiled and said she understands. They hugged and the live crowd groaned and booed.

After the hug, Vickie said Edge needs to understand that "hell hath no fury over a woman scorned." She said that when she was really angry with Edge, she did something he might not like. "I reinstated the Undertaker," she said. The live crowd popped as Edge struggled to keep his composure. The fans chanted for Undertaker and clapped.

Edge conceded that Vickie is a business woman and that's good business. He said they could go on their honeymoon and then Undertaker and Triple H could destroy each other. He said he'd come back from the honeymoon and pick the bones of whoever holds the title. Vickie announced that she'd already selected an opponent to face Taker at SummerSlam. "Um, okay, who?" asked Edge with perfect delivery.

"You," she said. Edge stood up and paced back and forth. "Baby, you can't mean that," he said. She reponded by saying, "Oh, baby, I do mean that, and it will be Hell in a Cell." Edge's eyes bulged out of his head as Vickie cackled at him. The live crowd chanted Undertaker's name to close the show...

Powell's POV: Excellent closing segment. Edge was sensational and Vickie played this nicely as well. The live crowd was super hot for the Undertaker announcement. Very entertaining. For that matter, so was the overall show. I'll have more to say about WWE Smackdown in tomorrow's WWE Smackdown Hitlist.

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