Today's 2nd Rundown: Chris Jericho vs. Rey Mysterio, misusage of the Hart Dynasty, Punk vs. Hardy, vs. Edge, Punk's tweener character, ECW Championship, Mickie James vs. Maryse

Chris Jericho vs. Rey Mysterio for the Intercontinental Championship: I am buying this, but with some disappointment as well. This match was very entertaining and the feud has been absolutely spectacular. However, I wish the mask had nothing to do with it and the Intercontinental Championship was the focus.

This could have been the feud (we say that a lot!) that rejuvenated the title and all it would have taken was an old school promo by Jericho putting over the belt. Heck, with the Randy Savage DVD coming out, he could have talked about how great of a rule breaker champion Savage was, but since Ricky Steamboat beat him for the title, and Jericho beat Steamboat, Jericho is the best ever. Something like that and all of a sudden, the Intercontinental Championship match could be main eventing shows.

The Hart Dynasty vs. Carlito and Primo: One of my favorite YouTube clips is Steve Austin winning the title from The Rock at WrestleMania X-Seven. I still remember JR's "What in the hell is this?! What in the hell is this?!" call when Austin turned heel. Obviously this was not on that level, but I thought to myself, "What in the hell is this?" The Harts are fodder for the tag title program involving two other teams? That's horrible. They should be on a constant path upward until they win championships. This did them no favors and it was sad to see. By the way, I'm selling this whole thing.

C.M. Punk vs. Jeff Hardy vs. Edge for the World Heavyweight Championship: As expected, this was one of the two best matches on the show, so of course I am buying it. First of all, it was nice to see Punk get the high profile win against two of the top stars on Smackdown. Imagine saying that six months ago. Secondly, the match showcased just how good the top of the card is on Friday night.

C.M. Punk's character: I am buying this too because Punk is a competitor who tells it like is and who wants to win. In this world, that makes you a heel I guess, but I love the "tweener" nature of Punk right now. Maybe they are waiting for contract situations to be determined before deciding which way to go with Punk, but I'll choose to believe they are slowly turning him, and the payoff will be nice, just like the journey to get there.

Tommy Dreamer vs. Christian for the ECW Championship: I am selling because of the lack of importance given to the brand and its championship. I mentioned in yesterday's blog that having ECW (and Smackdown) on the show was basically an audition for those shows to get Raw only fans to watch. Whether or not the match was cut short (if Christian was injured) is irrelevant; the match was treated as throwaway filler before either man stepped in the ring.

Mickie James vs. Maryse feud: I'll buy this. It has not been perfectly executed by any means, but at least it is a legitimate women's feud over one of the two women's championships. On top of that, it will be nice to see Mickie with some gold again. She is the MVP of the women's division and she deserves her bi-yearly award.

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