Quick Smackdown Thoughts

Didn't follow the whole show tonight-got some of the feedback from online-but here are my quick thoughts on the show, which aired from Madison Square Garden:

• The opening promo between Chris Jericho, Edge and CM Punk was great - no surprise Punk is passable on the mic but I'm impressed he could hang with two of the best promo artists in the biz right now. This led to his non-title match with Edge, where Punk got a clean pin as promised and cashed in his MITB immediately, as promised if he beat Edge in the first match; I assume a disqualification finish due to Umaga's return and interference; this makes CM Punk the first competitor to cash in the Money in the Bank and lose (as opposed to Ken Kennedy, the first MITB winner to not come out with a title as he put his briefcase on the line and lost - a fact often forgotten by WWE storytelling).
• Jericho meanwhile spun out into a match with Kane, Jeff Hardy etc. for a #1 contendership title shot at Edge - Jeff Hardy won, causing Jericho to threaten to quit which caught John Morrison's attention and led to a brawl. A Jericho-Morrison feud could be a step back for Jericho, but a step up for Morrison, and as long as they don't damage Jericho too badly to elevate Morrison this could be a feud that leaves Jericho unhurt while solidifying Morrison as an upper-midcard guy and potential main eventer.
• Speaking of Morrison - great match with Shelton Benjamin. Too bad it was apparently cut short for a Diva's danceoff/catfight of some kind hosted by Cryme Tyme. Only low point of the show; MVP vs. Dolph Ziggler was a disappointment too, but Sherri Shephard of the View was surprisingly entertaining, and sadly the best part of this match which should have been better than it was.

Overall a strong and I feel newsworthy show - WWE pulled out a lot of stops for the Gah-den, and as most of the Wrestlemania news was made on Raw due to the high ratings, it was good to see storyline progressing on Smackdown again as well. While there were no actual title changes despite two title matches, and the middle of the show was a bit drecky, it IS free TV, world title changes aren't to be expected, or US title changes when they were so recently won; overall a strong return to form for SD that if they keep it up (especially in the vein of a Morrison-Jericho feud, and Edge and CM Punk doing as strong work as they did tonight), could surpass Raw as the "A" show again in short order.