Edge has hell to pay

There were two major developments on Smackdown last night. One the fans have been clamoring for, while the other is something that no one wants to see – well, except perhaps for The Great Khali’s many fans in his native India.

It what shouldn’t have come as a surprise to anyone, The Undertaker was reinstated by Smackdown general manager Vickie Guerrero, who announced that the “Dead Man” will face Edge in a Hell in the Cell match at SummerSlam on Aug. 17.

Edge versus Undertaker will probably be a great match, but there isn’t a whole lot if intrigue. I really can’t fathom any result other than Undertaker avenging his loss in the TLC match at One Night Stand last month by defeating Edge in what has to be the blowoff match to their feud.

Now, onto one of WWE’s worst booking decisions in a long time. In a six-man battle royal to determine WWE champion Triple H’s challenger at SummerSlam between Big Show, Jeff Hardy, Mr. Kennedy, MVP, Umaga and The Great Khali, the last person you would want to win won. I read the Smackdown spoilers a few days ago but I refused to believe it until I saw it with my own eyes -- I think it's called being in denial.

Yep, it’s The Great Khali versus Triple H. When the fans booed Khali’s win, I don’t think it was the right kind of heat. Hardy would have been my choice, but I also wouldn’t have minded if MVP, Kennedy or Big Show got the shot. We’ve already seen Triple H-Umaga too many times.

It’s mind-boggling that WWE would book Triple-Khali. The only thing I can think of is that WWE wants to save Triple H’s matches with some of the other aforementioned contenders for shows that will be less-loaded than this one, which has a Hell in the Cell plus a likely gimmick match between Shawn Michaels and Chris Jericho, as well as a world heavyweight title match that has several interesting possibilities.

Triple H defeating Khali is as much of a sure thing as Undertaker beating Edge. I did see value in Khali a while back, but he’s been defeated too many times to still be booked as an indestructible monster heel. It was one thing for him to lose to guys like John Cena, Batista and The Undertaker, but when he lost to Finlay, that should have ended his days as a world title contender.

Other thoughts on last night’s show:

The acting and facial expressions by Edge and Guerrero in the final segment were first-rate. …

Weren’t we all breathlessly awaiting the return of Mr. Charisma himself, Ranjin Singh? This guy actually has a job as a manager in WWE and Jim Mitchell doesn’t. If there is any justice – which there isn’t – WWE will hire Mitchell to manage Kane. …

The VIP Lounge segment with MVP and Jeff Hardy was well done. MVP proved once again that he is as good on the mic as anyone in WWE. I did think that bringing up Hardy’s dog, who died in the fire at Hardy’s residence last March, was a bit much. But then I remembered that this is wrestling, where the deaths of people have been used in story lines. …

I’m looking forward to seeing what R-Truth (formerly Ron “The Truth” Killings) can do in WWE. Based on last night’s vignette, it appears as if he is going to be a babyface playing off his real-life upbringing. When Killings (who wrestled as K-Kwik in WWE in 2000-2001) was in TNA, I thought he would be a natural opponent for Cena if he ever came back to WWE. Actually, the two did have a real-life altercation at an airport last year. Their WWE feud could have revolved around Killings, who really did come from the hood, accusing Cena of being a poser and a sell-out. The only problem with that story line, however, is that the fans probably would have sided with Killings and booed Cena even more. …

I really like the new Brian Kendrick. The only thing that might hold him back is his lack of size. It’s too bad there’s no cruiserweight title anymore, because he is the guy they could build it around. …

Michelle McCool is so ridiculously thin that the WWE divas title belt didn’t come close to being tight enough around her waist. That means the title doesn’t fit her literally or figuratively.

Source: http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com