I enjoyed Smackdown once again although Jericho losing clean annoyed me because it happens to often for a guy of his caliber. Punk was great once again and the Smackdown matches on Night of Champions between Ray and Ziggler, Melina and McCool and Punk and Jeff should be the best on the card. Great blog Kev. Keep up the good work.

Hey Kev, do you have any idea what the relationship is between Punk and Hardy backstage? While I agree with you that their feud is just about the best thing going today, I don't get the sense that there is any animosity there at all. In other words, while the promos have been very good, I get the distinct feeling while watching them that these are two guys that genuinely like each other and are just having some fun; definitely not a Bret Hart-Shawn Michaels feud.

And what do you think of the timing of Morrison's push? I have been his biggest mark for a couple years now (the best worker in the game IMO, bar none), but it strikes me as a bit odd that they are going to have him challenge for the title just as the WWE's best program in recent memory (involving two more established stars) is just heating up. Will they turn it into a three-way Cena/Orton/HHH deal? I have a feeling that they expected the Hardy/Punk angle to be a short-lived, "placeholder" program until something else came along, but it has actually tuned into something special.

Nattie losing to Eve is ridiculous, of course, but I have said ever since she debuted that Eve is the best of the non-wrestler Divas, and she continues to improve. I don't know if she'll ever be a top-drawer wrestler, but she has shown a lot of heart so far. Plus, she's one of the more attractive women in the business. And hey, at least Natalya is getting on screen again!

I didn't know that Jesse was the son of Bam Bam. Interesting. I don't mind Jesse, but he is a tag team wrestler - he'll never do anything in singles competition. Why doesn't WWE build a few teams out of their extensive roster of mid-card talent to revamp the tag team division?

RESPONSE FROM KE: I haven't heard of any animosity between Punk and Hardy specifically, but I have heard that Punk hasn't always been the most popular guy backstage.

I clicked the link to CM Punk's 2003 ROH promo.

I can see how he would get big heel heat with that. However, I wanted to cheer him. While I don't think I would fit into the straight edge crowd I happen to be a teetotaler and I can identify with Punk's character whether he is a face or a heel.

I see potential in Punk to be the next HHH.

If only he did not live a straight edge lifestyle and Vince had another daughter to marry!

Sorry, couldn't resist.....

I wouldn't call Jericho's losses "jobs".

By definition(I believe), a 'job' is a squash, and Jericho has been booked uber-strong in his matches.

However I agree he shouldn't be losing as much, but I mean really, it's Chris Jericho. He could lose to a fish out of water or Vince Russo in a 'Thesarus on a pole match' and still look incredible doing it.

That looked like a sick Codebreaker he gave Hardy, great job of selling on both their parts.

Awesome blog as always Kevin.

RESPONSE FROM KE: Actually, the word "job" just means "loss." It doesn't matter if it was a squash or not. The term "jobber", however, refers to a wrestler who rarely wins.

I like how people are supporting the babyface because he is a drug addict.

Are you going to the SD! in Baltimore this week Kevin?

RESPONSE FROM KE: I'll be there.

I was expecting Eve to have her best match yet since she was wrestling Natalya, but honestly, I think she had a better match aganist Layla last month and with McCool when Eve had her in-ring debut eariler this year.

I always loved Punk's character in ROH, and it's great to see him morph into a similar role in WWE. I've always known that character would make a perfect heel in WWE (that classic promo from WrestleRave '03 that you linked to being a perfect example.) It's like they say--the best characters are extensions of the performer's real personality. And Punk playing up his straight-edge lifestyle in such a condescending, holier-than-thou way makes for a great heel.

Silly name or not, Dolph Ziggler has been winning me over lately. But he is in dire need of a more impressive finisher, because that leaping...whatever the heck it is supposed to be just doesn't do it for me.

Slam Master J from Badstreet, Atlanta, GA is the only thing salvaging those horrible "Word Up" promos.

I never really liked Punk, but his promo made him the face as far as I'm concerned...

Was Michelle McCool speaking French or something right at the start of her segment? I kept listening to that part, but I couldn't catch what she was saying.

I always thought "The Charismatic Enigma" was TNA's nickname for Hardy...

Speaking of charismatic, John Morrison suddenly reminded me of Grand Master Sexay. I mean, Grand Master Sexay, and the "Guru of Greatness", and that weird hand motion Morrison does during his entrance almost looks like bad dancing.

Revisiting a theme in the comments two weeks ago, I didn't catch anything particularly stupid from the announcers this week when Kane and Ziggler made their respective appearances during matches, or was that because the Kane-Khali and Rey-Dolph feuds have already been established?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=16Se_JSu7c4&feature=player_embedded

^more heel-y goodness from a ring of honor promo.

I think that Punk isn't quite as cemented as a heel as he was in a promo like the above, or any of his heel stuff from Ring of Honor for that matter. Last night still came off a bit tweenish to me... That said, Punk has always done excellent promo work, and last night was no exception. Jeff Hardy, not so much.

I love the Punk character and the problem is I want to support him. I've never liked Hardy and I like him even less in this current feud.

When CM Punk first debuted, I didn't think WWE would ever let him be the self-righteous character that preached about his Straight Edge lifestyle for fear that not doing drugs and not drinking alcohol would be looked at as negative by the WWE fan base. That's not something a company like WWE (um, steriod trial and Chris Benoit, anyone?) would need. Bravo for taking the chance and letting CM Punk do what he does best: be a Straight Edge a------. The fans know that it's not the fact that Punk doesn't do drugs that people hate him for, it's the fact that he thinks he's better than everybody else for being Straight Edge. In fact, I wish he'd bring back the line, "Straight Edge is better than you." That phrase, like "Austin 3:16" could push a lot of merchandise.

So the McCool-Melina angle revolving around the Women's Belt gets a passing mention in a lame segment, but Eve vs. Natalya gets played on the go-home show. I need to check my blood pressure.

Now that I know Jesse is related to Bam Bam, I like him even more. I always thought we never got enough of Jesse on tv. Trust me, his new character will go over well in Baltimore!

I never liked when they turn fans against someone who tries to live clean. I know its entertainment, but not sure if I want to see Punk as a heel. I think he will be the first heel that I ever cheered.

How the ---, can I get lower level tickets?!? I tired of only finding tix way up top of the arena.

CM Punk is just too good. Every week he's bettering himself. I for one, accept CM Punk's challenge. I will try to quit smoking.

Jericho-Hardy = the match of the night. Awesome.

Khali's entrance music sucks just like him.

When R-Truth injured his leg(kayfabe) , I thought he really injured himself. I really liked that match. Whats up?:P

Smackdown was a much better show than Monday Night RAW. I hope it gets better next week.

And please I don't want Hardy to take that championship belt from PUNK. WWE, are you listening???

I can't remember off the top of my head when Jericho last won a singles match, but I know it's been a while for Punk as well, which is just wrong since he's the World Heavyweight Champ, heel or not. This week, Mysterio would've gotten the pin if Ziggler didn't break it up, and before this he's jobbed to Morrison, Khali, been pinned when he and Jeff teamed against Edge and Jericho, etc.

I'm not straight edge either, but there's one part of Punk's promo I agreed with: if you mention that drinking damages your liver, and a sizable portion of the crowd pops when you say it, something's wrong. (To be fair, the majority of the people there were quiet, but there were still lots who cheered.)

I understand why the whole crowd popped when he said "You drink because it's fun, right?" Hell, I might've cheered at that myself. But if somebody talks to me about the long-term negative effects of drinking on my health...well, of the many possible responses I might give, cheering is not one of them.

IMHO, Punk's promo here isn't the kind of thing a total heel would say. If Punk were a total heel, he'd express contempt for everybody he was talking to rather than pity. He'd also write them all off as hopeless right at the beginning, rather than first challenging them to take better care of themselves and only at the end saying that they'd probably fail as though he were actually sad about it. But he's definitely on the way to being a total heel, as shown by the way he was sort of trying to bully Mysterio during the match and the way he helped Ziggler out after it was done.

Straight edge is one of two extremes: no drugs at all versus excessive use of drugs. I'm a believer in moderation myself. I can't help but think about all the wrestlers who've died prematurely over the years and how many of those deaths had something to do with drug abuse, though.

doesn't cm punk look like severus snape?

RESPONSE FROM KE: Who?

And please I don't want Hardy to take that championship belt from PUNK. WWE, are you listening???

He probably won't. WWE doesn't want to give the belt to somebody who might be leaving the company.

doesn't cm punk look like severus snape?

RESPONSE FROM KE: Who?

I had to look this up too, since I'm not a big Harry Potter fan. My answer to Jacob: maybe the hair, but that's it.

By the way, no Pretty Ricky segment this time (thank God), but should I be worried that J.R. and Grisham talked about R-Truth's "alter ego"? I don't get why they aren't letting the dude cut promos as R-Truth.

Thanks for linking to the ROH promo, Kev. That is one of my all-time favorite promos. Punk cut several other great promos while in ROH, but the best (other than that one) were in 2005, when he won the title and then turned heel again.

Another thing that I'm sure you liked about that video, Kevin, was that we got to see Daffney, albeit briefly. She was working in ROH at the time as Lucy, the valet of Punk's Second City Saints faction, consisting of Punk, Colt Cabana (aka Scotty Goldman), and Ace Steel (aka the Donald Trump impersonator on Raw a couple years back).

CM Punk is cutting promos at the level of Jericho and the Rock. The thought of a Jericho-Punk tag team is quite possibly the greatest idea in wrestling today.

:doesn't cm punk look like severus snape?

RESPONSE FROM KE: Who?"

________________________________

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Severus_Snape

is Maria now a heel as she came to the ring with Ziggler, the commontators also said they are dating

RESPONSE FROM KE: She's not a heel at this point. Just like Miss Elizabeth wasn't a heel when she was with a heel Randy Savage back in the day.

RE: Jacob

NERD ALERT NERD ALERT NERD ALERT

And that's coming from a wrestling fan...who leaves comments on a wrestling blog daily...and doesn't have a girlfriend...or a full time job...and lives at home with his parents....

On second thought...

Kev, I've heard that too (about Punk not getting voted most popular in the locker room). I've also heard he is an ass towards fans seeking autographs (though that is just what I've heard; I can't say one way or the other).

I'm not sure if your response to Jacob above was in jest or not, but Severus Snape is a major character in the Harry Potter series, portrayed in the films by the excellent Alan Rickman. They have similar haircuts, but the similarities end there.

RESPONSE FROM KE: I have never seen any of the Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings movies. That's a shoot.

Doesn't Mike Knox look like a tall Gimli?

http://static.squidoo.com/resize/squidoo_images/-1/draft_lens1984661module9535437photo_1210796388gimli.jpg

For the record, Jeff Hardy is not a drug addict. He is a human being like all of us who has made some mistakes. That man has paid the price and worked his way back up the ladder in WWE after literally losing everything. Love him or hate him, respect is due.

As for CM Punk, his whole "I'm better than you" angle is eerily similar to the Right to Censor's gimmick years ago. Some of you are probably too young to remember that though. Everytime Punk opens his mouth, I'm reminded of that group led by Steven Richards and included the likes of Ivory and The Godfather. The gimmick didn't have any staying power then, we'll see if it does now.

Chris Jericho, like Flair in his prime, is bulletproof. He can lose every night, give him a 3 minute promo before each match and he can build up enough heat that it won't matter!

It would be nice to see him in the title hunt, but until then, I would worry more about the Kendricks and Knox' of this world.

Jericho's the man, he'll be fine.