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SmackDown Redux (May 20th, 2011): Quality Wrestling From Two Amazing Champions

Today’s SmackDown Redux comes to you with a heavy heart and somber mood. The wrestling world lost an absolute icon today as “Macho Man” Randy Savage tragically lost his life in a car accident. If any of you are anything like me, you grew up watching him steal the show night after night. Savage’s talent, charisma, and personality made him the total package when it came to this sport as far as I’m concerned. His matches with Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat, Hulk Hogan, The Ultimate Warrior, and a young, brash Shawn Michaels are instant classics that will live in my heart, the hearts and minds of many others, forever. For me personally, Savage was the last remaining childhood hero that I had. I’ve watched all the others have their lives end far to soon, most notably Owen Hart. I was watching In Your House that night and I’ll never forget what I saw. If we can learn anything from the events of today, and from the past, it’s that life is way to short. It can be taken from you in an instant. You’ve truly got to cherish every moment and live like it could be your last. Rest peacefully, Macho Man.

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SmackDown Redux (May 13th, 2011): Kharma Adds Another Victim To The List.

For the past two weeks we’ve been watching the rise of the most exciting performer to ever grace the WWE. The artist formerly known as Awesome Kong, Kharma, debuted back at Extreme Rules giving Michelle McCool the greatest exit of any Diva. Since then she’s been scaring Divas on both Raw and SmackDown, taking out the likes of Alicia Fox, Maryse, and Eve Torres along the way. This week not only does Kharma add another Diva to her list of casualties, she sets her sites on someone else. Dun dun duuuuuuuun!

This week’s Diva portion of SmackDown kicks off after an unfortunate plug for the main event later in the evening (which I won’t be watching because I’m still boycotting, haha). Layla is in the ring, dressed in street cloths and holding a microphone, and her music is playing. I’m just going to call it her music now because it’s the second week in a row that she’s used it. Anyway, once the music fades, she starts speaking. Layla says that at Extreme Rules her friendship with Michelle McCool came to an end when she finally beat her in a Loser Leaves WWE match. Layla continues on by saying that during the match she ended up hurting her knee, but as painful as the injury is, it was worth it. She’s glad she finally rid the WWE of the poison that is Michelle McCool.

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SmackDown Redux (May 6th, 2011): What A Difference A Week Makes!

The title ‘What A Difference A Week Makes’ is basically the gist of this entire Redux. Think about what you were doing at this time last week and take a look at how far we have come in just seven days. Last week, Layla and Michelle were brawling inside the ring with one another until Layla (wo)manned up and challenged her former best friend to a match at Extreme Rules. Michelle accepted and added a stipulation that the loser would have to leave the WWE. At this time last week, all of us were still sitting on her hands wondering when the artist formerly known as Awesome Kong would debut in the WWE. I was a proud worshiper of Randygod. Christian had never touched main event championship gold. And as far as we knew it, Osama Bin Laden was still living large somewhere in the Middle East.

And now?

The decorated career of Michelle McCool is nothing more than another chapter in the history books. Layla is/should be the top face on SmackDown. Kharma is running rampant on both brands (as we will see later). I no longer support Randy Orton title reigns because it prematurely ended the first ever, and well deserved reign of Christian.

Oh yeah, that Bin Laden guy is dead, too.

So yeah, what a difference a week makes, right?

SmackDown opens up for the Divas by showing a highlights from the Layla/Michelle Extreme Rules match. The match itself still gives me chills for the sheer emotion it brought to the table. They leave out Kharma’s debut and when the show returns, the Lay-Cool theme song begins to play. I suppose we have to call it Layla’s song now, but anyway, the feisty little spitfire makes her way to the ring. She’s still sporting the word “Flawless” on her gear, which I love, and she plays to the crowd once she enters. After a second, her music fades out and is replaced by the sassy little beat belonging to new SmackDown Diva, Alicia Fox. Foxy sashays her way out to the ring dripping with attitude and beaming with confidence. She enters the ring, plays to the crowd as well, and gets settled for her first match on the blue brand in awhile. Once Fox’s music fades, the referee calls for the bell.

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SmackDown Redux (April 29th, 2011): A Badly Edited Announcement Leaves At Least One-Half of Lay-Cool’s Future Certain

It’s fair to say that it’s been one heck of a week in WWE Diva-land. We’ve seen epic brawls, exciting Diva drafts, and we were given something incredibly exciting to look forward come SmackDown and the weekend. At the Tuesday night taping, the former BFF duo known as Lay-Cool, squared off in a match that would seemingly put all their issues to rest. Michelle McCool and Layla didn’t wrestle, they brawled. And needless to say their match didn’t happen. But the gauntlet was thrown down and the stipulations were added… and come to find out, very badly edited later. Lets take a look!

The ‘Cool’ part of Lay-Cool is the first to make her way to the ring. Michelle is sporting her SmackDown pride shirt and she does her usual playing to the crowd once she enters the ring. The Lay-Cool theme music continues to play as Lay makes her way out. She is dressed in her blue brand shirt as well and she looks a lot more hesitant to get in the ring than Michelle! Perhaps she’s having regrets over beating the tar out of Michelle?

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SmackDown Redux (April 22nd, 2011): Lay-Cool Equal Lay-Doomed and Lita Returns (Kinda)!

Happy Good Friday and Earth Day! I hope you all celebrated Jesus and everything he did for us if that is your religious belief and I also hope you recycled because it’s important to protect our planet. Welcome to another wonderful edition of the SD Redux and without beating around the bush (because I have nothing witty to say) lets on with the show. This week’s Diva portion of SmackDown kicks off with a replay of the Lay-Cool disaster from the previous week, as well as a new edition of Couple’s Therapy. Lets take a look at how it all played out this week.

Michelle McCool and Layla are both dressed much better this week than last. Layla returns to being sexy in short shorts and a wife beater, and Michelle is also rocking daisy dukes, as well as a slinky silver, off-the-shoulder top. LOVING it! Michelle tells the doctor that this therapy has been working wonders for them because last week on SmackDown, Layla lost yet another match! Michelle gives a sarcastic “yay” and Layla pretty much kills her with a dirty look.

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SmackDown Redux (April 15th, 2011): Michelle Has Frankenstein Feet While Rosa and Edge Audition for a Telenovela

It’s poor form to jack my intro simply to gush about Edge but since this is my Redux and my platform, I’m going to do exactly that. Besides if you want to be technical he has starred in a couple of these Reduxes and he’s had more than his fair share of Diva storylines. Edge is a brilliant performer and someone who I’ve adored ever since I first got into wrestling. He has it all; looks, talent, charisma, and the ability to make you feel what he feels. On Monday night, when he shockingly retired, I felt numb. I felt like I had just lost a little piece of my wrestling heart. I kind of did, if you want to be fair. No heel has ever made me cheer for them louder and I swear it has nothing to do with the fact Edge is gorgeous or that we share the same birthday. Edge is just that talented. And he is going to be sorely missed. I truly hope everyone can recognize the brilliance that Edge brought to the table. Love him or hate him, he got you talking about him. And I respect the hell out of him.

Thank you, Edge.

Okay, now on to tonight’s show! My mascara is fixed. I’m not going to drown in my tears any longer. Last week, Beth Phoenix and Kelly Kelly returned to action with a victory over Michelle McCool and Layla. This week, Kelly steps back inside the ring to try and prove that her victory in the tag team match was no fluke. She takes on Layla, who’s desperate to try and repair her relationship with her former BFF.

Toss in a therapy session and Rosa Mendes auditioning for Telemundo’s hottest telenovela, Los Herederos del Monte, and you have this week’s amazing edition of the SD Redux!

The doctor welcomes both girls to their first session and immediately Michelle questions why they’re there. They’re not Brangelina, Beyonce and Jay-Z, or any other “couple” in the world for that matter. She also wants to know why Layla is holding her hand and promptly jerks it away. A tissue holding Layla tells Michelle that they’re a team, kind of like Burt and Ernie or “Thelmer” and Louise. Michelle rolls her eyes and corrects Layla’s pronunciation of “Thelma” and says it’s great that Layla wants to compare them to puppets and two characters who drove off a cliff together. Layla says they were best friends like she and Michelle used to be. Michelle places emphasis on the “used to be” part and both girls go silent for a moment.

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SmackDown Redux (April 8th, 2011): Lay-Cool Need Some Dr. Phil In Their Lives

FINALLY… FINALLY! CRYSSI HAS COME BACK TO THE SMACKDOWN REDUX!!!!!! Don’t you just love it?! It’s been a minute since I’ve actually sat down to type one of these up. As you all know I had the privilege of going to SHIMMER two weeks ago and that was followed up by my first ever WrestleMania week experience. It would take me hours and hours to express my thoughts and feelings on everything that happened during those twelve glorious days I was away from home so I’m not going to bother. Instead, I’m going to jump right back into the swing of things and indulge all of you in another amazing Redux. I sure picked a heck of a week to return, mind you. The rarely seen Divas known as Beth Phoenix and Kelly Kelly were in action. Time to put those milk cartons away, kids. They’re no longer MIA. On this hot and steamy Friday night they teamed together to take on ‘Mania losers, Michelle McCool, and lovely Layla.

Lay-Cool kick us off tonight with their ring entrance. They talk amongst themselves as they make their way down the ramp and of course, we are reminded that Michelle was destroyed by Snooki sometime during that infamous ‘Mania match. Michelle is not thrilled with the replay and Booker T makes a comment that tension has been brewing between Lay-Cool since that match. Interesting.

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SmackDown Redux (March 25th, 2011): Famous, Flawless… Fist Pump?

You knew it was going to happen sooner or later.

With Jersey Shore star Snooki in the mix at WrestleMania, it was only a matter of time before Lay-Cool dressed up as the ‘guidette’ — and that’s exactly what they did on SmackDown this week. Try not to hurt your neck… it’s time to fist pump, Lay-Cool style:

Kicking off the Divas portion of the show are Kelly Kelly and Rosa Mendes set for tag team action against the ‘flawless BFFs’. Out they come in some interesting — and not at all ring-ready — outfits, plus the trademark Snooki poof hair, huge slippers and hairspray.

Kelly Kelly is all business and ready to wrestle but in true Lay-Cool style, Layla and Michelle ham up their Jersey Shore spoof, fist pumping and to their hearts’ content. That is until Kelly and Rosa break up the party by taking them down to the mat. Let the slippers fly!

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SmackDown Redux (March 18th, 2011): Lay-Cool Build Momentum on the Road to WrestleMania

My biggest pet peeve as a wrestling fan is when I read spoilers and the only description the Diva match gets is “it was a typical Diva match.” Well seriously, what in the world does that mean? Is that your polite way of saying the match was crap? An even more polite way of saying that you didn’t even watch it so “a typical Diva match” just sounds good enough to send in? I don’t get wrestling fans. I really don’t. They’re the worst sports fans in the world. They never look outside their specific comfort zone. It’s awful and ridiculous, and before I turn this into a full fledged rant, let me just get back on subject by saying this was NOT a typical Diva match. I don’t know what that means. This match was a chance for Kelly Kelly to showcase how far she’s come and how she’s able to kind of carry matches now. And it was also a chance for Layla, Kelly’s opponent, and Michelle McCool to start building up their characters towards Wrestlemania. The match itself was short and sweet, but the action itself was a lot better than the offerings the past couple of weeks.

Lay-Cool make their way to the ring first. They’re clearly back on the same page and Michelle is back to being a fashion goddess with her amazing grey mini-dress this week. Talk about one flawless looking human being! Layla looks like she always does, in case anyone cares. Unless she’s wearing the wrapping paper ring gear she looks gorgeous. So yes. Anyway, as Lay-Cool make their way to the ring, SmackDown cuts to a commercial break. It returns with Layla in the ring and Michelle sitting at the commentary booth. Josh Matthews and Booker T are hilariously no-selling Michelle, and she doesn’t even care. She takes over the broadcast with Micheal Cole. Brilliant.

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SmackDown Redux (March 11th, 2011): Welcome Back to SmackDown, Kaitlyn

It’s been brought to my attention that since the Elimination Chamber, SmackDown doesn’t really have a clear cut storyline for their Divas. Other than the Lay-Cool teased tension, nothing has happened for anyone unless they’re named Layla or Michelle McCool. Other Divas have of course had supporting roles in this storyline and this week, it was NXT season three winner, Kaitlyn, who got a chance to take a backseat to Lay-Cool. Kaitlyn has rarely been seen since winning NXT3 a few months ago so it will be interesting to see how far she’s come, if at all. Lets take a look at how it all plays out this week.

Lay-Cool are out first. Michelle seems to have gotten a new weave and Layla’s outfit doesn’t look like an eyesore this week. Michelle, however, is not at her fashion best and I just can’t get behind the LBD/camel-colored boot combo. We are off and running, right? This is and always will be the Real Wrestling Fan’s guide to SmackDown. Kaitlyn out second with her own theme song and video. The song is horrendous but her new ring gear compliments her curves nicely; still hating on her hair. She gets a thunderous pop being the hometown gal and all, and it’s just nice to see her on SmackDown for a change.

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