Smackdown Holiday Tour Chicago Report

The Allstate Arena seemed to be at about 2/3 capacity, but the crowd was hot. Lots of kids in Ryback shirts hopped up on candy canes. Matt Stryker hosted the event and the show kicked off promptly at 7:30. Stryker hinted at a great card with some big surprises.

Battle Royal for an Intercontinental Title shot This match included everyone else who wrestled later in the night, sans for the main eventers. Fandango made his debut in this match, to a puzzled audience. A couple of decent spots, nothing too exciting. Ricardo helped Alberto get the win, to the delight of the crowd.

Layla & Alicia Fox defeated Tamina and Aksana This match was surprisingly very entertaining. it went on for at least 10 minutes, which gave the ladies ample time to show off their moves. Alicia showed off some impressive moves while Tamina looked strong and dangerous. Aksana is an expert at getting the crowd to boo her one moment, then whistle at her the next. Layla got the biggest pop.

Alex riley defeated Michael McGillicutty I tried to care about these guys, especially because I think Michael has some skill. Perhaps they're a haircut away from being relevant. Typical, somewhat generic, good guy/bad guy match.

Fandango defeated Ted DiBiase Fandango's proper debut. His arrogance annoyed the crowd while his dance moves drew some howls from the ladies (I'm assuming). Uneventful match. Notable only that Fandango was the only heel to win on the card. He celebrated by dancing with a lady in a cocktail dress on the ramp. I can already see it in my head; Brodus vs Fandango, WrestleMania.

Tyson Kidd & Justin Gabriel defeated Jinder Mahal & Heath Slater of 3MB This match was a bit of a let-down. It was a bit to long for most people's tastes. These guys can put on good matches, but they are a bit more entertaining when they are more compressed. 3MB got a great reaction.

The Great Khali & Hornswoggle (with Natalya) defeated Epico & Primo (with Rosa Mendes) Once in a lifetime. But, seriously, Epico and Primo are some of my favorite workers. They adapt to whatever match they're in, even though it usually involves them losing. They can be technical, viscous, or as they were in this match, comedic. They really played well off of Khali and Hornswoggle, and helped make the match enjoyable. Rosa and Natalya got into it as well. As a result of losing, Epico and Primo were forced to sing, "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer." They really had fun with it, especially Rosa who shrieked out a horrible rendition. Then they switched it to Feliz Navidad. Villains.

Kofi Kingston defeated Wade Barret and Alberto Del Rio in a triple-threat match for the Intercontinental Title This match was decent. Alberto is so crisp, everything he does looks dangerous and painful. Kofi got a great response from the crowd. After the match they started assembling the cage for the main event, when Barret ran back out to complain about losing. He really got under the crowds skin and drew great heat. He challenged Kofi to come back out and put the title back on the line. Kofi complied, and took care of Wade once again, in a matter of minutes. Afterwards, Wade continued to cry, and challenged anyone in the back. Ted DiBiase obliged him. He got the crowd to chant, "USA" and avenged his loss from earlier in the night. This seemed like a stall tactic, which would pay off in the end.

Big Show defeated Sheamus in a steel cage for the HeavyWeight Championship This match was fantastic. Both Show and Sheamus were well-received. These guys put on a PayPerView caliber match. Tons of impressive spots, including show splashing from the top rope and Sheamus carrying him on his shoulders. Both competitors kicked out of the other's finishers, with Show utilizing a second KO punch to secure his escape from the ring. He came back to the ring with a chair but Sheamus blocked it, and used it on Show, to the delight of the crowd.

At that point people started to head for the door. Then Stryker told the crowd they were blowing off the curfew to bring us a bonus, six-man tag match. One that we would be talking about as it was a first-time for Chicago. People were starting to get excited. I had seen Daniel Bryan tweet about trying appear at both, Detroit and Chicago house shows in the same night, weather permitting. Dare I get my hopes up? When Stryker confirmed that Ryback had just arrived the crowd went bonkers. Then I knew what we were getting.

Team Hell No & Ryback defeated The Shield Ryback owned the crowd. Daniel Bryan is super over. Kane still brings the excitement. The Shield terrified some with their crowd entrance. The match was fast, hectic, and hard hitting. It was super satisfying. Afterwards, Kane and Daniel got into their normal bickering which led to a hug it out moment. Then Daniel got to into the "Feed Me More" chant, which weirded out Ryback. Daniel offered to hug it out. They settled on a handshake.

In the past year, I've been to the Extreme Rules PPV, Raw 1000, and now this house show. This was the most exciting of all the events. The atmosphere was more casual, and not hung-up on story lines. There were no commercial breaks so the action moved at a good pace. More than half the card were lower tier stars but they put on quality matches. I even liked the way the ring was lit.

A major part of my enjoyment was due to the fact that I decided to cheer all the faces and boo the heels. It's much more fun to chant along than to be snarky.

Can't wait for the next show.

 

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