Close the window - we feel a draft

Last Monday, it was time for that annual shake-up of the WWE universe, the Draft. When the WWE Draft was first instituted, it meant a big deal to each show. The brand extension was starting, and going to one show or the other had big implications on which titles you could challenge for and whom you'd be feuding with. Tag teams were split up. Bradshaw went to Raw, and Farooq to Smackdown, leading to JBL and "Damn!" respectively. The Dudleys were split, and on Smackdown, D-Von began his "Reverend" phase, which introduced us to a young animal named Deacon Batista.

And the Draft felt like a draft, too. Ric Flair and Vince McMahon were out there stealing picks from each other to better their own shows. There were surprises. Titles and whole factions were claimed for Monday or Thursday night. You really felt that the wrestling world was changing, if only a little bit.

Seven years later, the Draft still exists, but it resembles very little it predecessor. The brand extension is all but over. There's no "drafting" involved at all, actually, and should more appropriately be called "the Random." The shows are pitted together in matches, with the winner earning a pick for their brand, that pick being apparently determined by selecting "Random Superstar" from the Smackdown vs. Raw 2009 video game. And at the end of the night, surprise surprise, both shows have pretty much had the same amount of picks.

This year, Raw would have six, Smackdown five, and ECW one during the televised portion of the Draft. Let's start there:

Pick #1: U.S. Champ MVP to Raw - If there's one thing Raw needed was another blowhard.

Pick #2: Big Show to Raw - Oh, and another big man. That'll spice things right up on Monday nights.

Pick #3: Women's Champ Melina to Smackdown - It seems the shows have traded champion for champion in the early goings. Apparently Raw's women's division will be even more useless now.

Pick #4: Matt Hardy to Raw - So each show has a Hardy boy now.

Pick #5: Triple H to Raw - Wait, now there are two heavyweight champions on one show?? This hasn't happened since it happened on Smackdown last month!!

Pick #6: Money in the Bank winner C.M. Punk goes to Smackdown - Too bad he doesn't have anyone to challenge on his own show.

Pick #7: The Miz goes to Raw - Here's where things get stupid. Immediately after hearing that he'd been drafted, the Miz turns on his partner John Morrison. Why? Because they're not a team anymore, and things just work that way.

Pick #8: Kane goes to Smackdown - Here you go Smackdown, you have can have a big, terrible worker back.

Pick #9: Jericho goes to Smackdown - And a blowhard.

Pick #10: Vladimir Kozlov to ECW - Congratulations ECW! You're still awful!

Pick #11: Maryse goes to Raw - Nevermind! The Raw divas can now go after that sweet Diva's champ gold!

Pick #12: Rey Mysterio goes to Smackdown - And Smackdown gets themselves a mid-level champion again. With Mysterio being the top champ on Friday nights, here's really a great chance for him to get misused in all new ways!

Subsequent to the televised draft, there was a larger supplemental draft. This means, here are some people that you apparently should care less about than Maryse or the Miz. We'll hit some of the "highlights" of this draft:

Mr. Kennedy goes to Raw - Here you go Raw! Enjoy your new injured Superstar!

Primo and Carlito go to Raw - The new unified Tag Team Champs were drafted separately, really distressing for a while that one dude who was following the supplemental draft.

Mike Knox (OMG) goes to Smackdown - Smackdown was really lacking in their "wrestler-to-facial hair" ratio.

Candice Michelle goes to Smackdown - And an injured wrestler for all of you as well!

John Morrison goes to Smackdown - It's a shame we won't get to see that long-standing Miz/Morrison feud come to a head.

The Brian Kendrick goes to Raw - Hey Brian, wanna really get forgotten?

Charlie Haas goes to Smackdown - Haas goes from staying at his house on Monday nights to staying at his house on Friday nights.

Gregory Helms goes to ECW - You might be getting buried if...

Well, that's about all you need to know. Go through the list, find your favorite wrestler, and plan your TV viewing for the next year!