WWE SmackDown originated from Seattle, Washington. Check out wwe.com for the basic run down.

The WWE started to gather momentum towards the "Showcase of the Immortals" in Miami. Returning tonight was "The Viper" Randy Orton in a non-title match against World Heavyweight Champion Daniel Bryan. In addition, the Intercontinental Champion Cody Rhodes looked set to continue his shenanigans with Big Show.

Let's get to it.

The Good

Opening Segment. Sheamus opening the show is appropriate given the fact he, technically, is headlining the show in Miami. His promo style has a certain "cozy" feeling to it. Recapping his history with the WWE Championship and how it affected him was a nice touch and helped to give a bit more depth to the feud with Bryan. Dolph's short promo was alright, though I didn't really care for Vicky for some reason. The segment did what it needed to do.

Ziggler vs. Sheamus. Again, they join with the action already in progress. Ziggler continues to be one of the better sellers on either roster. Sheamus didn't need to carry someone for once, which helped the flow of the match. The action slowed a bit more then I would liked when they got back into the ring before picking up after Ziggler's first pin attempt on Sheamus.

Sheamus did a better job then usual (for him) selling Ziggler's Sleeper Hold. Ziggler going from the top rope into the Irish Curse was a nice spot. Going into the finishing sequence, both men had some nice reverses. Good finish. Ziggler lost little in the loss. Match of the Night. *1/2

Rhodes and Big Show Promo. Rhodes monotone style usually wouldn't lend itself to the type of segment he did, but it was effective for some reason. Big Show calling out Rhodes gave me a chuckle as well. Overall, they've done a nice build towards the match this far.

Henry vs. Show. The "Punch & Pie" sign shown during the match was worth a chuckle. They've gotten about as much mileage as they can from these two. Rhodes a bit muted during the commentary. Henry chucking the stairs at Show was a nice spot.

With all that said, integrating the action on the outside helped these two mask their plodding styles. That said, I still dislike Henry jobbing out the way he is. Just about worth the time though. *1/4

Gabriel vs. McIntyre. Both men gave a good pacing to the match from the outset. Good ingratiating of Drew Mac's storyline into the match. Nice camera shot on Justin's 450 Splash as well. Long appearing on the Titantron was a nice bit as well. Worth the time and allowed Gabriel to get a much needed win. Heavy on storytelling that packed a lot without feeling overly forced. *1/4

Bryan vs. Orton. Bryan cut a nice promo before the match. Orton looked as if he were working a bit stiffer then usual in the opening moments. Crowd seemed kind of hot for the action before the break.

Bryan got some nice offense before and after the break and dominated a fair portion of the action. Orton's dropkick on Bryan was a nice spot. Orton did a nice job selling his shoulder. The managed to avoid indirectly burying Punk who worked to put Bryan on a higher level during their earlier matches. They couldn't give away the ending on free TV, but the action was decent. Ending segment was a bit awkward. *1/2

The Meh

Marella vs. Slater. Santino broke into "Five Moves" set from the outset, though Slater saved it from being a total squash. Beyond that, not much to the match beyond an enhancement affair for Santino. *

Eve vs. Natalya. I hate the farting angle. There, I said it. Anyway, Eve showed some improvements in the ring as of late. Short match though that, again, didn't really show what the Divas could really do. *

The Bad

Raw Recap. I get they wanted to highlight the Rock vs. Cena feud, but this took way too much time for something nearly everyone has seen. I wonder what else they could have accomplished with the nearly 20 minutes they have the segment.

Random Thoughts

Green Day produces endorphins. I have no idea why.

Did the Audio Engineers have Vicky's heat track stuck on a loop?

Zigger's trunks belong at a disco.

Laurinaitis needs to speak up. He still sounds like he has gravel in this throat.

"Combination of a cow on ice with Sesame Street's Big Bird." Okay, I lol'd.

Cenatino Marella.

Farts = Face turn?

Was Cole sniffing for gas or snorting cocaine?

Cody "Yahoo Serious" Rhodes.

"Me. Want. Title. Match."

Oh bloody hell, isn't the recap segment better off on YouTube?

Bryan reminds me of some evil overlord when he cuts a promo.

Kane. Want. Title. Shot.

Final Grade: B+

This was a good overall effort by the Blue Brand with some nice match work from Ziggler, Sheamus, Orton and Bryan. A better then usual Divas match and a nice effort from McIntyre helped matters as well.

The show could have gone better weren't for the 20 minute recap of the Rock's promo on Raw.  Kane's interruption of the main event with Orton suddently attacking him was a little weird as well, but that can be explained away in the next few weeks.