WWE Week In Review: December 5, 2010- December 11, 2010

WWE Week in Review: Edition #136

December 5, 2010- December 11, 2010

Welcome to the one-hundred thirty-sixth edition of the WWE Week in Review. Feel free to contact me on TWO or Wrestling 101 anytime with comments, questions, and anything in between. You can also find me on Facebook at Facebook.com/TheCiSH and on Twitter at Twitter.com/WhatTheFrench88. Make sure to check out the section at the end of the article highlighting a different WWE Superstar, Diva, or Alumni every week. I have also added a section that lists where WWE will be hosting their weekly television shows and monthly pay-per-views.

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WWE NXT To Be Omitted From The WWE Week In Review: Starting with Season Four, I will no longer be covering WWE NXT in the WWE Week In Review as I am unable to watch WWE NXT on WWE.com. You can still see a PWInsider.com recap of the show on Wrestling101.com, but NXT will no longer be covered in the Week In Review starting this week.

WWE Week In Preview

Monday Night RAW

Randy Orton To Confront WWE Champion The Miz

Michael Cole To Explain His Actions From Last Week

Fatal 4-Way Tag Match for the WWE Tag Team Titles

Build To WWE TLC

WWE Superstars

Eve Torres Vs. Alicia Fox

Curt Hawkins Vs. Trent Barreta

WWE Friday Night SmackDown

World Heavyweight Champion Kane & Alberto Del Rio Vs. Edge & Rey Mysterio

Build To WWE TLC

The 915th edition of WWE Monday Night RAW came to you, live, from the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, KY. Two weeks ago on RAW, no one was more surprised to see The Miz cash in his Money-in-the-Bank title opportunity than then WWE Champion Randy Orton and, on that night, Orton had suffered a knee injury caused by The Nexus, thus opening the window for The Miz to successfully cash in his contract and win the WWE Title and, for the first time since that fateful night, Randy Orton would appear on RAW as “The Viper” will return to Monday Nights to confront the new WWE Champion, The Miz! One week after costing his broadcast partner, Hall of Famer Jerry “The King” Lawler, what was likely Lawler’s only shot at the WWE Title against The Miz in a TLC Match, RAW Play-by-Play commentator would address his actions on RAW! Speaking of title matches, the WWE Tag Team Titles would be on the line on RAW as Nexus members Heath Slater & Justin Gabriel, just one week after being attacked by John Cena, would defend the gold against three other teams in a Fatal 4-Way Elimination Tag Match!

Monday Night RAW (December 6, 2010)

Good Week For: John Cena (got a small measure of revenge on Wade Barrett)

Bad Week For: Wade Barrett (was given the ultimatum to rehire John Cena or be kicked out of The Nexus)

Detailed Results Follow…

One week after costing his Hall of Fame broadcast partner, Jerry “The King” Lawler, his only shot at being the WWE Champion, the show kicks off with RAW Play-by-Play Commentator Michael Cole as Cole states that he does not “know” why he did what he did last week and that last week was “traumatic” for him due to the “hate mail” he received from the fans! Cole then states that he will “not apologize” for the way he feels about The Miz as he has supported Miz since Miz entered the WWE and when Miz won the WWE Title it was like his own “son” won the WWE Title! Cole then addresses Jerry Lawler and states that he got “caught up in the emotion of the moment” and that he “deeply” regrets his actions! Lawler then responds by saying that Cole cost him the WWE Title and Cole interrupts and states that he made a “mistake”, prompting Lawler to state that he is going to “finish” what he started last week! Cole then pleads with Lawler for them to settle their dispute like “adults” before saying that, last week, Lawler was the “headline” last week as Lawler had to “steal the spotlight” and could not let The Miz have his “one moment”! Cole then states that he does not owe Lawler an “apology” for his actions, but Lawler owes him an “apology” and Lawler responds by saying that he is going to get in the ring and give Cole what he “owes” him! This prompts the anonymous General Manager of RAW to chime in with an email that, as read by CM Punk, announces a “cease and desist” order regarding any physicality between Michael Cole and Jerry “The King” Lawler as, if they do not comply, it will result in “termination”! The anonymous GM then orders that the two broadcast partners enter the ring and “shake hands” and the two reluctantly shake hands before Jerry Lawler agrees to the no physicality rule made by the GM before stating that he thinks there is “someone in the back” who has something to say to Michael Cole and this prompts “The Viper” Randy Orton to come to the ring while Lawler holds Cole in the ring with their handshake! As Michael Cole begs for forgiveness from Randy Orton, Orton tells Cole to deliver a “message” to Cole’s “favorite Superstar” The Miz before stating that he would have done the exact same thing as The Miz by cashing in the Money-in-the-Bank title opportunity before saying that the difference between him and The Miz is that he can “back up” what he says before vowing to regain the WWE Title on RAW! This prompts WWE Champion The Miz, with his “apprentice” Alex Riley in tow, as Miz tells Randy Orton that he won the Money-in-the-Bank Ladder Match and Orton lost and Orton is left standing in the ring with nothing but “tough talk and an injured knee” while he is the WWE Champion! The Miz then informs Randy Orton that the anonymous GM has informed him that he does not have to defend the WWE Title until WWE TLC before telling Orton that Orton is going to “lose again”! Orton responds by asking The Miz where the seven other guys are at to beat him down before the match and saying that Alex Riley does not even count as “one”! Alex Riley then states that he’s got “five minutes to kill” before challenging Randy Orton to a one-on-one match; a challenge that Randy Orton accepts! The Miz then states that the GM is allowing him to pick the stipulation for their match at WWE TLC and that his eventual decision will be “awesome”! Orton then states that he looks “forward” to it, but there is still “one thing” he can do, injured knee or not, that he can do “very well” before Randy Orton plants Michael Cole with the RKO! What stipulation will The Miz choose for his WWE Title defense against Randy Orton at WWE TLC?

With Josh Mathews filling in for Michael Cole at the announce position, the opening match of the night was set to be a Mixed Tag Match as “The Fortunate Son” Ted DiBiase & Maryse would face United States Champion Daniel Bryan and one of The Bella Twins, which, much to the apparent jealousy of Nikki Bella, would be Brie Bella, with Nikki Bella at ringside! In the end, it was The Bella Twins using “Twin Magic” to switch places, allowing Nikki Bella to roll Maryse up for the win! After the match, Ted DiBiase would get in an argument with Maryse, prompting Maryse to put her hand to the face of DiBiase!

After having three of his Nexus followers attacked by the fired John Cena last week, Nexus leader Wade Barrett would appear in an exclusive interview to discuss the attacks as Barrett would be set to appear, live via satellite, from a local hotel room, but David Otunga reveals Wade Barrett is en route to the arena! Otunga states that Barrett does have a “plan” and all they have to do is “stay united” before saying that, when John Cena enters the arena, it will be the last time they see John Cena! David Otunga then states that his food is there before letting in a waiter that brings him cold food! Then, when there is another knock on the door, it is John Cena as Cena pummels David Otunga before Husky Harris intervenes and allows Otunga to escape! In the room alone with Husky Harris, Cena would assault Husky before throwing the Nexus member into a glass-framed picture hanging in the room! Where else will John Cena strike?

In a rematch from their initial match on WWE Superstars on Thursday, former friends and teammates would square off as David Hart Smith would go one-on-one with Tyson Kidd, but Kidd would not come alone as Kidd would be accompanied by a monstrous mystery man! In the end, it was Tyson Kidd rolling up David Hart Smith to pick up the win! After the match, David Hart Smith would attack Tyson Kidd on the outside of the ring, but the mystery ally of Kidd would attack and lay David Hart Smith out with a vicious clothesline! Who is this mystery man who has aligned himself with Tyson Kidd?

Backstage, Nexus member David Otunga catches up with Nexus leader Wade Barrett and Barrett tells Otunga to watch him when he calls out John Cena to see how to “take care of business”, which Otunga responds to by threatening Barrett with a “mutiny”! What does Wade Barrett have in store for John Cena?

Then it was time for the WWE Tag Team Titles to be defended as Nexus members Heath Slater & Justin Gabriel would defend the WWE Tag Team Titles against Santino Marella & Vladimir Kozlov, Jey & Jimmy Uso, and Mark Henry & Yoshi Tatsu in a Fatal 4-Way Elimination Tag Match! The first elimination would come when Heath Slater would hit his unique neckbreaker on Yoshi Tatsu en route to pinning Tatsu and eliminating Yoshi Tatsu & Mark Henry! Vladimir Kozlov would later plant one of the Usos with the Iron Curtain en route to eliminating Jey & Jimmy Uso, but when the Usos waited for their manager, Tamina, to exit with them, Tamina opted to stay with her new love interest, Santino Marella! With only two teams remaining, Justin Gabriel looked poised to finish the match when John Cena would emerge from under the ring, distracting Gabriel long enough for Santino Marella to hit the Cobra Strike en route to pinning Justin Gabriel to win the WWE Tag Team Titles! How will Wade Barrett and The Nexus respond to John Cena costing Heath Slater & Justin Gabriel the WWE Tag Team Titles?

It was announced on RAW that, one week from Saturday, on December 18, the WWE will present a huge Tribute To The Troops extravaganza from Fort Hood in Texas as the NBC special will feature special appearances from “Miss USA” Rima Fakih, co-host of “The View” Sherri Shepherd, & legendary actor and comedian Cedric The Entertainer with special music performances by “Modern Family” star Ariel Winter, legendary country star Trace Adkins, and the newest hip-hop sensation Diddy-Dirty Money! Don’t miss the historic extravaganza which will come to you from Fort Hood, TX on December 18 at 9/8c on NBC!

One week after outlasting seven other WWE Superstars to be crowned the 2010 King of the Ring, the new King of the Ring, Sheamus, would have his official coronation ceremony on RAW! Sheamus proclaims that, last week, he restored “credibility” to the King of the Ring legacy as he is “far superior” to the “peasants” of fans! Sheamus continues that he is the man who ended the career of Triple H as he became the new “high king” before stating that his reign will “live forever” and he will forever be remembered as the “greatest high king in history”! This would prompt an interruption by John Morrison as Sheamus tells Morrison that Morrison is “jealous” that Sheamus has accomplished more in his two years in the WWE than Morrison has in his entire career! Morrison then reminds Sheamus that he won at Survivor Series and Sheamus won last week, so they are even, but he is the “better man”! Sheamus responds by telling Morrison to refer to him as the “high king” before telling Morrison to “bow” to his king and Morrison responds by saying that he will “never bow down to King Sheamus”! Sheamus responds by slapping Morrison and Morrison responds by attacking Sheamus and hitting the new king in the mid-section with his scepter and throwing Sheamus into the throne! How will Sheamus respond to John Morrison crashing in coronation ceremony?

With Layla & Michelle McCool serving as guests on commentary, the Divas Champion was in action on RAW as Natalya would go one-on-one with “The A-List Diva” Melina! In the end, it was Natalya locking in the Sharpshooter on Melina, forcing Melina to tap out! After the match, LayCool would enter the ring and attack Natalya while Melina continued to walk away!

Then it was time for the main event as former WWE Champion “The Viper” Randy Orton would go one-on-one with The Miz’s “apprentice” Alex Riley! In the end, Randy Orton looked ready to hit the RKO, but The Miz would enter the ring and would catch Orton from behind with the Skull Crushing Finale! The Miz would then give a physical announcement towards the stipulation of the WWE TLC match as Miz would bring a table in the ring and would attempt to put Randy Orton through it, but Orton would fight back and would be set to put Miz through the table with a powerslam, but Miz would narrowly escape Orton and the ring! However, Alex Riley would not be as lucky as Orton would deliver a vicious powerbomb to “A-Ri” all the way through the table! Could The Miz, and his WWE Title reign, suffer the same fate at WWE TLC?

Then it was time for Nexus leader Wade Barrett to make an appearance on RAW to call out the fired assailant of his group, John Cena! Wade Barrett states that, at Survivor Series, it was “free or fired” and John Cena was “fired” as, if Cena had an “ounce of honor or integrity”, he would never show his face on RAW again before reminding Cena that he is the only Superstar that can get John Cena rehired before calling out John Cena! John Cena would comply as the fired Superstar would come through the crowd before entering the ring as the four healthy members of The Nexus stand on the stage as Barrett tells Cena that The Nexus is ready to beat him “within an inch” of his life if he steps out of line! Barrett then tells Cena that he will “never” rehire John Cena and Cena calls Barrett “stupid” before saying that it is not so bad being fired as he gets to be a WWE fan and, with so much time on his hands, he can make The Nexus members’ lives a “living hell”! Cena then states that he is “content” with buying a ticket to the shows every week and making The Nexus’ lives “miserable” before saying that he could “care less” if Barrett rehires him or not! Barrett then says that Cena can “intimidate” The Nexus, but Cena can not “intimidate” him before asking what Cena would do if he rehired him and Cena responds by saying that, if he remains fired, he will focus on continuing to attack The Nexus and “ruining” their lives! Cena then states that his attacks on The Nexus may “stop”, but his attacks on Wade Barrett will not before stating that he “deserves payback” and that is what he will get! Cena continues that if Barrett knew anything about “integrity”, than Barrett would hire him back and they would settle things in the ring on RAW before saying that he will “not stop” making Barrett’s life a “nightmare”! Wade Barrett then calls Cena’s words a “threat” before ordering The Nexus to come to the ring and “exterminate” John Cena, but The Nexus refuses as, one-by-one, the Nexus members ignore the orders of their leader and leave their post! John Cena would then take the opportunity to assault the Nexus leader before stripping the announce table down and Cena was set to deliver the Attitude Adjustment to Wade Barrett through the announce table, but Barrett would narrowly escape the move and would hightail it out of the arena! Backstage, Wade Barrett confronts his Nexus members and demands answers from the group and David Otunga gives Wade Barrett the “ultimatum” to either hire John Cena back or Wade Barrett will be the one who is out of The Nexus! What will Wade Barrett do? Will Wade Barrett rehire John Cena and keep The Nexus intact or will Wade Barrett refuse to rehire John Cena and take being kicked out of The Nexus?

The 86th edition of WWE Superstars came to you from the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, KY and from the Nutter Center at Wright State University in Dayton, OH. The Divas of RAW would shine in the main event as former Divas Champion Eve Torres would go one-on-one with fellow former Divas Champion Alicia Fox! Also, in their continuing war on WWE Superstars, Curt Hawkins would go one-on-one with “The Dude Buster” Trent Barreta!

WWE Superstars (December 9, 2010)

Good Week For: Trent Barreta (picked up another win over rival Curt Hawkins)

Bad Week For: Alicia Fox (lost to Eve Torres in the main event)

Detailed Results Follow…

The opening match would see “The Brooklyn Baller” JTG having the unenviable task of going one-on-one with “The Wild Man” Tyler Reks! In the end, it was Tyler Reks hitting the Burning Hammer on JTG en route to picking up the win!

In their continuing war on WWE Superstars, former WWE Tag Team Champion Curt Hawkins would go one-on-one with “The Dude Buster” Trent Barreta! At the end of a hard-fought match, it was Trent Barreta hitting the Dude Buster DDT en route to picking up the win!

“Big Zeke” Ezekiel Jackson was in action on WWE Superstars as the mastodon would go one-on-one with “The Long Island Iced Z” Zack Ryder! In the end, it was Ezekiel Jackson dominating Zack Ryder with the Book of Ezekiel en route to picking up the win!

Then it was time for the main event as former Divas Champions would face off as Eve Torres would go one-on-one with Alicia Fox! In the end, it was Eve Torres hitting the Evesault on Alicia Fox en route to picking up the win!

The 590th edition of WWE Friday Night SmackDown came to you from the Nutter Center at Wright State University in Dayton, OH. Nine nights before they go one-on-one, WWE TLC opponents would face off as World Heavyweight Champion Kane would team with “The Essence of Excellence” Alberto Del Rio to face their respective WWE TLC opponents in “The Rated-R Superstar” Edge and “The Master of the 619” Rey Mysterio!

Friday Night SmackDown (December 10, 2010)

Good Week For: Rey Mysterio (pinned Alberto Del Rio in the main event)

Bad Week For: Paul Bearer (was shoved off of the second floor of the arena by Kane)

Detailed Results Follow…

Nine nights before he defends the World Heavyweight Title against Edge in a TLC Match at WWE TLC and before he teams with Alberto Del Rio to face Edge and Rey Mysterio in the main event, the show kicks off with World Heavyweight Champion Kane as the champion states that Edge’s keeping of Paul Bearer has “gone on for way too long” and all he wants is his “father back”! Kane continues that Edge has treated Paul Bearer like a “toy”, but Bearer is not a “toy”, he is his “father” before stating that he, nor Paul Bearer “deserve” to be treated like they have been! Kane then states that he has done “everything” that Edge has asked of him, but Edge has insisted on humiliating Paul Bearer! Kane then states that he is “not a monster” and that Edge is the “monster” before actually “begging” Edge to “please” return his father to him because it has to “end” between them! This prompts Edge to appear on the Tron as Edge states that it will “end” at WWE TLC before revealing that he has Paul Bearer with him, as well as a steel chair as Edge proposes some “batting practice” using Paul Bearer! Edge then taunts hitting Bearer with the chair before blasting Kane’s father in the back with the steel chair! This act prompts Kane to rush backstage where Edge appears to deliver a con-chair-to to Paul Bearer, but it is yet another stuffed likeness of Bearer! Edge then appears with Paul Bearer bound in the wheelchair and states that the real “dummy” is right there before rushing off with Bearer once again! Will this cat and mouse game between Kane and Edge end on SmackDown or will Edge keep Kane mentally unstable until WWE TLC in their TLC Match for the World Heavyweight Title?

The opening match of the night would see “The World Warrior” Kaval going one-on-one with “The All-American American” Jack Swagger! In the end, it was Jack Swagger taking advantage of an ankle injury suffered by Kaval earlier in the match by locking in the ankle lock, forcing Kaval to tap out! After the match, Jack Swagger proclaims that “that is how it is done” and, when you need “results”, he is the one to go to! Swagger then states that, what happened with Kofi Kingston last week was a “travesty” as he was “struck” while he was in the ropes, claiming that it is “illegal” and Kofi Kingston should not be the #1 Contender for the Intercontinental before stating that he is “protesting” the Intercontinental Title match and that any Intercontinental Title match without Jack Swagger is “unacceptable”! What impact will Jack Swagger have on the Intercontinental Title match between Dolph Ziggler and Kofi Kingston?

After their issues over recent weeks, SmackDown would see a bizarre match as Hornswoggle, with Rosa Mendes in his corner, would go one-on-one with the former personal mascot of Jack Swagger, The Eagle! At the end of a unique match, Hornswoggle would make sure that The Eagle’s goose was cooked by hitting the Tadpole Splash en route to picking up the win!

Then it was time for the Intercontinental Title to be on the line as Dolph Ziggler, with girlfriend Vickie Guerrero in his corner, would defend the gold against Kofi Kingston! In the end, it looked like Kofi Kingston was seconds away from regaining the Intercontinental Title after Kofi hit the Trouble In Paradise on Dolph Ziggler, but Jack Swagger would pull Kofi Kingston out of the ring and locking in the ankle lock on Kofi on the outside of the ring! What is the status of Kofi Kingston following this attack?

SmackDown would also see the return of the Masterlock Challenge as “The Masterpiece” Chris Masters would host a challenge where a SmackDown Superstar would try and break their way out of the seemingly unbreakable Masterlock and this time, it would be “Dashing” Cody Rhodes taking the challenge! After much primping, “Dashing” Cody Rhodes would get in the face of Chris Masters and Masters would claw the chiseled good looks of Rhodes, enraging Rhodes, but, while Rhodes checks his face in his mirrored jacket, Masters would lock in the Masterlock on Rhodes and Rhodes would fail to break the Masterlock!

After winning the WWE Tag Team Titles on RAW, the new WWE Tag Team Champions Santino Marella & Vladimir Kozlov would make a special appearance on SmackDown to face Chavo Guerrero and Chavo’s hand-picked tag partner, “The Chosen One” Drew McIntyre! In the end, it looked like Drew McIntyre was going to pick up the win as he hooked up the Future Shock DDT, but Chavo Guerrero tagged himself in and would pay for it by Santino Marella hitting the Cobra Strike on Chavo and rolling Chavo up for the win! After the match, Drew McIntyre would attack his tag partner and plant Chavo with the Future Shock DDT! What is next for Drew McIntyre?

After attacking Natalya on RAW, the Divas Champion would be in action on SmackDown as Natalya, with Beth Phoenix in her corner, would go one-on-one with Layla, with Michelle McCool in her corner! During the match, Natalya would lock in the Sharpshooter on Layla, but Michelle McCool would grab the hands of Layla in an attempt to keep Layla from tapping out, but Beth Phoenix would pull McCool out of the ring as Layla tapped out!

Then it was time for the main event as WWE TLC opponents would square off as World Heavyweight Champion Kane would team with “The Essence of Excellence” Alberto Del Rio to face their respective opponents at WWE TLC in “The Rated-R Superstar” Edge and “The Master of the 619” Rey Mysterio! However, when Kane’s music hit, the World Heavyweight Champion would be a no-show, prompting SmackDown General Manager Theodore Long to come out and make the match a 2-on-1 Handicap Match as Alberto Del Rio would face both Edge & Rey Mysterio! Early on in the match, Kane would come out and Edge would meet Kane on the entrance way and, after a short brawl, Edge would lure Kane to the backstage area as the match continues in the ring between Rey Mysterio and Alberto Del Rio! In the end, it was Rey Mysterio hitting the 619 and following that up with a splash en route to picking up the win! Rey Mysterio proved he can defeat Alberto Del Rio, but will the result be the same when chairs are legal in their Chairs Match in nine nights at WWE TLC?

Backstage, Kane catches up with Edge as Edge is talking to Paul Bearer, who is perched on a platform on top of two ladders at the edge of the railing on the second floor of the arena! After being tricked by Edge on so many occasions, Kane assumed that the Paul Bearer perched atop the platform was another dummy of his father as Kane proceeded to push the tower over! Kane would then peer over the railing to witness the horror of realizing that he just pushed the real Paul Bearer off of the second floor as his father lay prone on the concrete floor below! What is the status of Paul Bearer after this horrendous fall?

Superstar of the Week: John Cena

Alumni Profile of the Week

Ring Name: Rob Van Dam

Real/Full Name: Robert Alexander Szatkowski

Born On: December 18, 1970 in Battle Creek, MI

Age: 39

Resides: Los Angeles, CA

Trained By: The Sheik

ECW Run: 1996- 2001

WWE Run: 2001- 2007

Accomplishments

One Time WWE Champion