Smackdown
November 28th, 2002 (taped November 26th)
Carolina Center
Columbia, South Carolina
 
Dark Matches:
 
1. Super J pins Doug Basham.
2. Shelton Benjamin and Charlie Haas defeat Spanky and Shannon Moore.
3. Bill DeMott and Albert defeat Chuck Coates and Pat Cusick.
 
11/30 Velocity taping:
 
1. Rikishi pins Redd Dogg.
2. John Cena (w/ Bull Buchanan) pins Danny Danoochi.
3. Bill DeMott and Albert defeat two unknowns.
4. Crash Holly pins Funaki.
 
Actual Show:
 
We see the opening video for Smackdown.
 
Your hosts are Michael Cole and Ernest “The Cat” Miller.
 
Stephanie McMahon comes down to the ring and says that she has a responsibility to bring the fans the best show possible, and she says that she has a responsibility for the well-being of the Smackdown Superstars which is why making the decision of whether to suspend Brock Lesnar or not has been so hard. She says that bringing Lesnar to Smackdown exclusively was her greatest coup and she is happy to have him as her cornerstone, but last week Lesnar defied her authority twice and she needs for him and everyone on Smackdown to know that she is the boss. She says that what she says goes and Lesnar didn’t leave her with a lot of choices as Lesnar comes down to the ring, and he says that since she decided to come out here and talk about his career, he would come out here and she can tell him to face what she plans to do. She says that she doesn’t like the way he’s looking at her or his attitude and he needs to cool off as she leaves the ring and heads up the ramp, and she says that she’s not stupid and knows he can snap at any minute as she brings out numerous police officers. She says that she didn’t screw Lesnar but rather Lesnar screwed Lesnar as she tells him he’s suspended indefinitely.
 
Commercial break
 
We see Brock Lesnar being escorted out of the arena by the police officers as they apologize for what they are doing and he gets in his car before driving off.
 
1. Matt Hardy and John Cena (w/ B2) defeat Edge and Rey Mysterio when Matt pins Mysterio at 6:47.
 
Analysis: We kick off this edition of Smackdown with our first tag match of the night. Edge and Mysterio were still rolling as a team and look to get a win here over the makeshift team of Matt and Cena. Edge and Mysterio get a good pop from the crowd while Matt and Cena had solid heat as heels. Mysterio starts off the match with Matt and Mysterio pounds on him as he ducks two shots and hits a rolling clothesline, but Matt catches him with a back elbow and he hits a legdrop on Mysterio as Cena tags in and pounds on Mysterio. Mysterio slides under Cena and tags Edge as they hit a double dropkick on Cena and Edge pounds on him, and he gets a kick in and hits a swinging neckbreaker on Cena for a two count as he stomps on him until Cena gets a knee in. He pounds on Edge who reverses a whip and he hits a flapjack on Cena as he kicks at Matt and whips him into the corner, and he rams the shoulder into Matt’s ribs only for B2 to pull Cena out of the way of a charge as Edge rams his shoulder into the buckle. Cena hooks a rollup for a two count and stomps on Edge repeatedly as he hits a back elbow for a two count and rams him into the buckle, and Matt tags in and they stomp on Edge repeatedly in the corner as Matt pounds on him and whips him into the corner. Edge catches him with a boot to the face only for Matt to catch him in the Side Effect for a two count and he hooks a submission on, and Edge fights to his feet and breaks the hold as he ducks a shot and hits a high crossbody on Matt for a two count. Matt hits a drop toehold on Edge and tags Cena who stomps on Edge repeatedly for a two count and goes back to the submission, and Edge fights to his feet only for Cena to pound on him and whips him into the corner as Edge catches him with a back elbow. He goes up to the middle rope and hits a missile dropkick on Cena who tags Matt and he drops an elbow on Edge, and he stomps on Edge who tries to battle back until Matt counters a whip and gets a kick in though Edge counters the Twist of Fate with the modified facebuster. Mysterio gets the hot tag and hits a springboard seated senton on Matt as he knocks Cena off the apron and Matt reverses a whip, and Mysterio hits a wheelbarrow bulldog on Matt and Cena gets in the ring as Mysterio ducks a shot and hits a dropkick on Cena. He hits a low dropkick on Cena in the corner and then he hits a drop toehold on Matt that sends him head first into Cena’s groin, and Edge gets in the ring and hoists Matt up as Mysterio goes out to the apron and they hit a double team on Matt for a two count as Cena breaks it up. Edge knocks Cena out of the ring and Mysterio dropkicks Matt in the back as he falls into the ropes only for B2 to trip Mysterio up from the floor, and Edge hits a baseball slide on B2 and pounds on him until Matt grabs at Edge who gets a shot in and Matt falls into the ropes. Mysterio hits the 619 on Matt only for Cena to kick Mysterio off the apron and Edge rams the shoulder into Cena which knocks him to the floor, and Edge goes up top and hits a crossbody onto Cena and B2 on the floor as Matt avoids a springboard and Mysterio leaps onto Matt’s shoulders. Matt spins Mysterio around and hits a powerbomb into a rollup while using the ropes which gets the three and he wins the match for his team. The match itself was good as both teams worked hard and put on a solid tag match. Edge and Mysterio were hitting their peak as a team while Matt and Cena looked good as a team, and they had good chemistry as Matt cheats to get the win for his team. The crowd was into the match and Edge and Mysterio, but are not happy when Matt and Cena win. Matt and Cena get the win over Edge and Mysterio as both teams move on. Grade: 2
 
We see Stephanie McMahon backstage as Kurt Angle stops her and she says that the fans disrespected her for suspending Brock, and she says that she has Scott Steiner here yet they boo her and Angle says these are the same fans that tell him he sucks. He says that they will finally cheer for him when he and Chris Benoit win the tag titles though if they don’t, then they’re the ones that suck and she asks if everything has to be about him as she says this thing with Lesnar has her stressed out. She says that she’s also been visited by her Aunt Flo that is on her monthly visit and Angle misunderstands what she’s talking about, and she says that last week she had PMS which is a bad combination and she wanted to bring Smackdown here to Columbia though she will never bring it back after tonight.
 
Commercial break
 
Marc Lloyd is in the parking lot as he says that there is a rumor that Brock Lesnar has returned and they are hoping to get confirmation as a limo pulls up, and Scott Steiner steps out and simply flexes before heading into the arena.
 
2. Tajiri pins Chuck Palumbo with a kick to the head at 3:25.
 
Analysis: Our next match on the card is a pretty interesting matchup. Tajiri was cruising in the Cruiserweight Division and looks to get a win here over Palumbo, who was floating in the midcard and looks to get back on track with a win. Tajiri gets a mixed reaction from the crowd while Palumbo also gets a mixed reaction from the crowd. The two men square off to start with Tajiri going behind Palumbo who turns it around and Palumbo trips Tajiri up, and he hooks a front facelock until Tajiri escapes and works the arm as Palumbo trips him up only for Tajiri to hook a headscissors. He takes Palumbo to the mat only for Palumbo to hit an armdrag and Tajiri kicks at him twice as he gets an elbow in, and they trade blows until Tajiri hits a dropkick to the knee and he stomps on Palumbo as he hooks a submission on. Palumbo escapes the hold with a snapmare though Tajiri ducks a shot and gets a kick in as Palumbo reverses a whip, and he blocks the handspring elbow with a urinage slam and pounds on Tajiri as he whips him into the corner and catches him on a leap. Tajiri slides off his shoulder and avoids a charge as he hooks the Tarantula on Palumbo who catches a kick attempt and snaps him to the mat, and he hooks an inverted Boston crab on Tajiri who reaches the rope to force a break and he rolls out to the apron. He gets a kick in and goes up top only for Palumbo to catch him coming in though Tajiri blocks the belly-to-belly by spraying the green mist in Palumbo’s face, and he kicks Palumbo in the head which gets the three and he wins the match. The match itself was not much as both men worked hard and put on a pretty basic matchup. Neither man was going anywhere at this point and they were pretty much here to fill time. The crowd was pretty dead for the match though they did pop for Tajiri when he won. Tajiri gets the win over Palumbo and both men move on. Grade: 1
 
We see Stephanie McMahon in her office doing her makeup as someone knocks on the door and she believes it to be Scott Steiner, but instead it is the Fabulous Moolah and they embrace as Stephanie says she thought she was Steiner. She says that Moolah is from Columbia and she thought the South was about politeness though she finds the city to be filled with disrespectful people, and Moolah tells her not to talk about her hometown like that and Stephanie asks if Moolah is offended though she does apologize. She says that she’s having a bad night and being General Manager isn’t easy as she has to make unpopular decisions that are important, and she says that she wants to make it up to her in that they should make history tonight by having Moolah compete in a match tonight. She says that she will announce her opponent later and Moolah says she’s always ready for a fight as Stephanie again apologizes and tells Moolah to give them hell.
 
Commercial break
 
We see a shot outside the Carolina Center.
 
We see Marc Lloyd in the parking lot as he is brought over to someone who a witness claims is a scalper that sold a ticket to Brock Lesnar, but the man denies this and claims he doesn’t know what they’re talking about.
 
We see the Big Show and Paul Heyman walking down the hallway as they run into Matt Hardy who tells them that justice has been served, and he says that Lesnar thought he was going to get away with what he did to him last week and he’s been suspended though Heyman says they already know. He says that he owes Matt an apology for what happened last week because if Lesnar was still with him, he wouldn’t have let him do that and Matt says that Lesnar doesn’t want to feel his fury as Heyman says they have business to handle.
 
We see Torrie Wilson walking backstage as she runs into Billy Kidman who says that she looks great though says that Halloween was last month, and she says that since it’s Thanksgiving, she’s competing in a pilgrim fashion show and this will get her closer to get to that witch Dawn Marie which she will be thankful for.
 
Commercial break
 
Ernest Miller is in the ring with a table filled with food and decorations as he says that somebody better call his daddy and tell him to watch TV because of what’s about to happen, and he says that they will have a good time tonight as he first brings out Torrie Wilson who comes down to the ring dressed like an Indian. Miller then brings out Dawn Marie who comes down to the ring dressed as a Pilgrim and then Miller says we need the turkey for this party, and then he brings out a turkey who reveals himself to be Al Wilson and Miller makes fun of him. Al takes the mike and says that he has something to say in that Thanksgiving is a time where family comes together, and he says that he brought his together with his daughter Torrie and his wife-to-be Marie as Miller takes the mike and says he can step aside so we can see the beautiful girls. He first introduces Torrie who shows off a sexy Indian-style bikini and then he introduces Marie who poses in her Pilgrim outfit and also shows off her engagement ring, and Torrie hits Marie with her tomahawk and throws some food at her before ripping off her Pilgrim outfit leaving her in a bikini. They have a food fight with Marie accidentally hitting Al in the face with a pie and Torrie dumps a bowl of punch over her head, and she continues to throw food at Marie and hits her in the head with one of the trays as she gets a kick in and knocks Marie down. She grabs a pumpkin and dumps it over Marie’s head before putting the pumpkin on her head and Al checks on Marie, and Torrie grabs the turkey head and puts it on Al’s head backwards before heading to the back.
 
Commercial break
 
3. Los Guerreros defeat Chris Benoit and Kurt Angle when Eddie pins Benoit at 15:10 to retain the WWE Tag Team Championships.
 
Analysis: Our last match before the main event is our first title match of the night. Los Guerreros have been rolling as tag champions and face a tough challenge here in the former champions Angle and Benoit, who look to finally overcome their differences and become champions again. Benoit gets a good pop from the crowd while Angle gets a mixed reaction and Los Guerreros were pretty hot as heels. Benoit starts off the match with Chavo and they lock up with Benoit hitting an armdrag as they lock up again with Chavo going behind Benoit, but Benoit catches him with a back elbow and Chavo stalls in the corner as they lock up with Benoit hooking a headlock. Chavo whips him off and Benoit knocks him down as Eddie catches him with a knee from the apron only for Benoit to knock him down, and he hits a pair of tilt-a-whirl backbreakers on Los Guerreros who roll outside to regroup and Angle tags himself in. Eddie returns to the ring and they lock up with Eddie going behind Angle who turns it around and he takes Eddie to the mat, and he hooks a front facelock on Eddie who quickly escapes and he works the arm as he hooks a headlock and Angle whips him off only for Eddie to knock him down. Angle catches him in a powerslam and then he hits a powerslam on Chavo as Benoit nails Eddie from the apron and Los Guerreros roll outside to regroup again, and Angle argues with Benoit as Eddie returns to the ring and sneaks up on Angle who ducks a shot and hits a German suplex. Chavo gets in the ring and nails Angle from behind as Benoit gets in the ring and hits a German suplex on Chavo, and Angle and Benoit argue and exchange shoves as Los Guerreros try to sneak up on them only for Benoit and Angle to hit stereo German suplexes. Angle and Benoit continue exchanging shoves as Los Guerreros go outside and try to head to the back with the belts, but then the ref declares that the match will not end on a countout and Los Guerreros return to the ring. Eddie distracts Benoit which allows Chavo to nail him from behind and Eddie hits a snapmare before hooking a submission on Benoit, and Benoit fights to his feet and escapes the hold with a hiptoss as he pounds on Eddie who ducks a shot and he yanks Benoit to the mat by his hair. He kicks at him and works the arm as Chavo tags in and Eddie hits a snapmare with Los Guerreros hitting stereo low dropkicks on Benoit for a two count, and he rams Benoit into the buckle and Eddie holds him from the apron though Benoit avoids a dropkick from Chavo who hits Eddie by mistake. Benoit takes Chavo to the mat and hooks the Crossface on as Eddie gets in the ring and breaks the hold up, and Chavo rolls outside and Eddie hooks a submission on Benoit who fights to his feet and escapes the hold with a back suplex. Chavo hits a clothesline on Benoit from the apron and Eddie gets a two count as Chavo tags in and they hit a double suplex on Benoit for a two count, and Chavo pounds on Benoit and whips him into the corner as Benoit gets a kick in and he tries to battle back on both men. Chavo gets a shot in and pounds on Benoit in the corner as he hits a slam and Eddie hits a slingshot somersault senton on Benoit, and Benoit reverses a whip and hits a flapjack on Eddie as Chavo gets in the ring only for Benoit to get a kick in and he hits a snap suplex on Chavo onto Eddie. Angle gets the hot tag and hits a pair of clotheslines on Los Guerreros as he hits a backdrop on Eddie and a German suplex on Chavo, and Eddie gets a kick in and Angle reverses a whip as he hits a belly-to-belly suplex for a two count with Chavo breaking it up. Angle pounds on him and Chavo reverses a whip as Benoit makes a blind tag and Chavo hits a dropkick on Angle, and Benoit nails Chavo and whips him into the corner as he hits a German suplex only for Eddie to get a shot in. Benoit goes behind Eddie and hits the German suplex on him as he goes up top and hits the diving headbutt for a two count, and Chavo gets in the ring and hits a flying forearm on Benoit as Angle gets in the ring and Chavo misses a dive which causes him to get hung up in the ropes before rolling outside. Angle hits another German suplex on Eddie who grabs the ref to block another one and he hits a low blow on Angle, and he hits a DDT on Angle and goes up top though he misses the Frog Splash and Angle hits the Angle Slam on Eddie. Chavo gets back in the ring and Angle gets a kick in as he hits the Angle Slam on him while Benoit gets in the ring and hooks the Crossface on Eddie, but Angle pulls him off and hooks the Ankle Lock on Eddie until Benoit breaks it up and they exchange shoves. Chavo gets in the ring and hits a clothesline on Angle as Benoit hits the German suplex on Chavo and he takes Eddie to the mat before hooking the Crossface back on, and then Angle hooks the Ankle Lock on Eddie as well and they continue to argue until the ref forces Angle to release the hold though he gets knocked down. Chavo gets in the ring and hits a low dropkick on Benoit to break the hold up as he kicks Angle down and to the outside, and he goes up top and hits the Frog Splash on Benoit as Eddie gets a two count and goes up top himself. Angle gets in the ring and runs up top as he hits a belly-to-belly suplex on Eddie and the ref tries to force him out, and Chavo brings one of the belts into the ring and hits Benoit in the head with it as he tackles Angle to the floor while Eddie gets the three and retains the titles. The match itself was good as both teams worked hard and put on a solid title match. Los Guerreros were getting into a groove as a team while Angle and Benoit were pretty much at their peak as a team, and they still had good chemistry as Los Guerreros cheat to retain the titles. The crowd was into the match and Angle and Benoit, but are not happy when Los Guerreros win. Los Guerreros retain the titles over Angle and Benoit as both teams move on. Grade: 3
 
We see Jamie Noble and Nidia backstage as she says she’s glad he didn’t call his cousin because she can’t stand him though Noble says he needs to find someone to get out of his rut, and then Scott Steiner walks up to them as they introduce themselves and Steiner slaps Nidia on the ass before walking away. Noble starts to get worked up and Nidia says maybe Steiner was just being friendly as Noble says he won’t let a new guy get away with this.
 
Commercial break
 
Jamie Noble and Nidia are in the ring as he says that he wants Scott Steiner to come out here right now and he is going to stand up for his woman, and he says that no one touches Nidia unless he wants them to and he’s the big bad booty daddy in Nidia’s life as Steiner comes down to the ring. He takes his shirt off which gets Nidia flustered and Noble then takes his shirt off as he tries to flex and Steiner hits a clothesline, and he drops an elbow on Noble and does a set of pushups as he presses him up and slams him to the mat. He hits a spinning belly-to-belly suplex on Noble who rolls to the outside and Nidia goes to leave only for Steiner to again smack her on the ass, and Steiner takes the mike and says that the question everyone is asking whether he will join RAW or Smackdown. He says that last week, Chris Jericho found out and tonight, the redneck found out that he wasn’t sitting at home and wasting away as they found out he is still the genetic freak, and he says that he is still the man with the largest arms in the world and they couldn’t stop him. He says that until he makes a decision of what show he will go to, he’s going to be flexing his peaks and pleasing his freaks as they call him the big bad booty daddy, and he says that this goes to his freaks in South Carolina as he is their hookup.
 
Commercial break
 
We see Stephanie McMahon in her office on the phone with someone as she tells them she wants Scott Steiner on Smackdown, and then Paul Heyman comes in and says that it’s a shame she had to suspend Brock Lesnar though she says that her decision had nothing to do with his threat from last week. He says that he understands that and that Show will waive the no-rematch clause and defend the title against Lesnar tonight, and she says that Show will compete in a match tonight and will defend the title against an opponent of her choosing.
 
4. Billy Kidman pins Crash Holly with the Shooting Star Press at 3:40 to retain the WWE Cruiserweight Championship.
 
Analysis: After a fairly quick and interesting night of wrestling, we come to our main event. Kidman has been rolling as Cruiserweight Champion and looks to have a successful defense here against Crash, who was floating in the midcard and looks to become champion again. Kidman gets a good pop from the crowd while Crash had decent heat as a heel. The two men exchange shoves to start the match with Kidman hitting an armdrag and then he hits a hurricanrana on Crash before pounding on him, and Crash reverses a whip and Kidman holds the ropes as he backdrops Crash over the top with Crash landing on the apron. He ducks a shot and trips Kidman up as he spins him around and drives the elbow into Kidman’s throat, and he hoists Kidman up for a powerbomb and drops him back first on the barricade as he throws him back into the ring for a two count. He stomps on Kidman repeatedly and hits a slam for a two count as he whips him hard into the corner and stomps on him, and Kidman reverses a whip back into the corner and hoists Crash onto his shoulders as he hits a modified neckbreaker. He goes up top only for Crash to nail him first and he goes up himself as he rams Kidman’s head into the buckle repeatedly, and Kidman battles back and knocks Crash to the mat as he sets himself on the top rope and hits a crossbody though Crash rolls through for a two count. Kidman escapes a back suplex attempt and hits a back elbow as he hits a clothesline on Crash who counters a whip with a back elbow, and he hits an atomic drop on Kidman who hits a standing dropkick for a two count and Crash escapes a slam attempt. He ducks a shot and counters a headscissors with a flapjack for a two count as Kidman reverses a whip into the corner, but Crash catches him with a boot to the face and hits a tornado bulldog for a two count as Kidman blocks a powerbomb attempt and Crash pounds on him. Kidman escapes the powerbomb and hits the sitdown spinebuster as he goes up top and hits the Shooting Star Press which gets the three and he retains the title. The match itself was decent as both men worked hard and put on a solid title match. Kidman was hitting his stride by this point while Crash was starting to slow down, and they had good chemistry as Kidman gets a clean title defense. The crowd was into the match and popped for Kidman when he won. Kidman retains the title over Crash and both men move on. Grade: 1.5
 
We see the Fabulous Moolah walking down the hallway.
 
We see the Big Show and Paul Heyman walking down the hallway.
 
Commercial break
 
The Fabulous Moolah comes down to the ring for her match and then the Big Show and Paul Heyman come down to the ring as well, and Heyman takes the mike and says that Moolah has nothing to be afraid of as it is Thanksgiving and Show won’t do anything to her. He says that they know she’s 79 years old and they respect her as she is a hometown legend here in Columbia, and he says Show is 7 feet tall and 500 pounds though he assures her that Show respects her for her accomplishments in WWE. He says that Show knows that Moolah is a caring grandmother and wanted to wish her a Happy Thanksgiving because they know what she has done in this business, and he says that maybe Show doesn’t see her as who she is and that instead he sees her as Brock Lesnar. Show grabs Moolah by the throat as Heyman says that Lesnar wants to take the title back and Show should chokeslam Moolah through the mat, but then Brock Lesnar comes out of the crowd and gets in the ring as he hits a spear on Show and pounds on him. They roll outside and trade blows with Lesnar taking control until Show gets a knee in though Lesnar ducks a shot, and he hoists Show onto his shoulders and hits the F-5 which puts Show through the announce table. Lesnar then heads up the ramp after Heyman who runs to the back only for Stephanie McMahon to bring the police officers back out and block the way as we go off the air.
 
Final Analysis: Overall, this edition of Smackdown was a pretty solid episode to close out a really strong November. We were still not really beginning the build to Armageddon though we were pretty much two weeks out from Survivor Series, but as we head into December there is no question we will dive head on into that build. We did get two title matches as Los Guerreros and Kidman retain their titles while Matt, Cena, and Tajiri get big wins, and in terms of the matches the tag title match was the best while there wasn’t much in the way of wrestling with only 4 matches. I also thought they didn’t lean heavily into the Thanksgiving theme like they did last year aside from the segment with Torrie and Dawn and they could’ve done a bit more with that. 2002 has been an interesting year to this point as both brands have had their ups and downs throughout the year and as we head into December, we will see how the brands close out the year. As for this show, it is a pretty solid show for a Thanksgiving show and to close out November. Final Grade: B-