Tonight's program begins with Vince McMahon reading a hand-written statement. Apparently, the idea is that his eyesight is fading such that he can't read a cue card. I don't know if that part is shoot or work. All 3 announce teams are present, and Justin Roberts & Tony Chimel will share ring announcing duties for the evening. All matches are interpromotional, with the winning brand earning a draft pick with each win.

John Cena (Raw) vs. Edge (Smackdown)(non-title). The feud of the year of 2006 is revisited one more time, but unfortunately, given the constraints of tonight's program, it lacks the impact of past classics. The finish sees Cena clear off the ECW broadcast table, looking to put Edge through with the FU off the steps. Referee Marty Elias is counting. Edge rakes the eyes and escapes into the ring long enough to beat the count. Winner: Edge via countout.

Smackdown's 1st draft pick: Great Khali.

Former Minnesota Governor Jesse Ventura appears via video and rips into Vince, saying that the only people he addressed as "Mr." were his superiors in the Navy SEALs. Swank. Jon Coachman appears outside the chairman's office and confirms that Vengeance will be a Night of Champions, with the main event being a Championship Challenge, where any former champion on the Raw roster can challenge John Cena for the WWE title.

Carlito (Raw) vs. CM Punk (ECW). Smackdown ref Charles Robinson is the 3rd man in the ring. Again, and this will be the theme for most of the night, the match is kept short, a small tease to give people thought that these two could be rematched down the road, pending the results of the draft. Carlito hit the Backstabber, but Punk fell out of the ring. That earned Punk some valuable time, and when Carlito rolled him back into the ring, he set up for a 2nd Backstabber, but Punk countered that with Go To Sleep. Good-bye!! Winner: CM Punk.

ECW's 1st draft pick: Boogeyman.

Snoop Dogg appears via video to thank Vince for providing some entertainment, but also predicts that one day, Cena will get himself some of the insane chairman.

Mick Foley's in the house. Mick declares that if he survives the draft, since he's back on the roster, he'll be in the Championship Challenge. Hmmmmm. He questions the wisdom of McMahon Appreciation Night, saying that Hulk Hogan, Triple H (who might actually be there), HBK, Rock, Dick Ebersol, and Trish Stratus, whom Foley referred to as his "unofficial 5th child", declined invitations.

Umaga (Raw) vs. Balls Mahoney (ECW). Umaga takes the match via pinfall. Winner: Umaga

Raw's 1st draft pick: King Booker.

Bobby Lashley (ECW) vs. Chris Benoit (Smackdown)(non-title). Ah, for a portent of things that might be. Michael Cole & JBL call the match and put over Lashley's amateur accomplishments, putting him on a short list that includes Jack Brisco and Shelton Benjamin. Benoit hit the crossface, but Lashley was too close to the ropes. Lashley hit the Shock Treatment for 2. Benoit went for the sharpshooter, but couldn't hold it. Lashley hit the powerslam for the win. Not quite the Dominator 2.0, but it'll do. Winner: Bobby Lashley..

ECW's 2nd draft pick: Chris Benoit. An ECW Original comes home. Cole & JBL are upset, because Smackdown has now lost 3 in the draft.

Donald Trump is heard from via videotape, and of course, we're reminded again of Wrestlemania 23. After the break, Ashley Massaro appears "via satellite". She's been "suspended" for a mere accident, but she recalls when Vince forced Trish to bark like a dog and strip to her underwear. Well, how about having 2 divas doing that, Ashley asks? In answer, Fabulous Moolah & Mae Young come out, complete with requisite props (fire hydrant, dog house). Funny stuff..

Santino Marella (Raw) vs. Montel V. Porter (Smackdown)(non-title). Mostly an exchange of armdrags and restholds before Porter hits the facewash in the corner, then the Playmaker, and Marella suffers his first pinfall loss since coming in. Winner: MVP..

Smackdown's 2nd draft pick: Torrie Wilson.

Bret "Hitman" Hart, 10 years later, still has venom in his veins when it comes to Vince McMahon. He cuts a promo talking trash about Vince.

Mike Mizanin (Smackdown) vs. Gene Snitsky (ECW). It's just a matter of time before Snitsky KOs Miz. Unfortunately, Snits sees Miz get up after the match ends, and resumes his assault. Referee Mickey Henson, who had what amounted to a pot of coffee in ECW, reverses the decision.Winner: Mike Mizanin via reverse decision DQ.

Smackdown's 3rd pick: Chris Masters..

Bobby Heenan tries to explain and decipher the secret to Vince's power walk, but can't. I can. I think Vince got it from Robert Crumb's underground comics, maybe something head writer Brian Gewirtz has in his personal collection. Roddy Piper in the house. Piper queues up a vidpack that includes Vince being embarassed by DX (last year), Stone Cold Steve Austin, and once again the aftermath of this year's Wrestlemania..

Candice Michelle (Raw) vs. Kristal Marshall (Smackdown). Looking at the scoreboard, Raw needs a draft pick, badly, and the hottest diva in terms of won-loss record, Candice, delivers. Kristal got some early offense in, but after a semi-tarantula, Candice hit the spin-heel kick to gain the fall. Winner: Candice Michelle..

Raw's 2nd draft pick: Bobby Lashley..

ECW has lost its champion, and you can better believe there's an ulterior motive. Coach is out and claims that per Vince, Bobby is stripped of the ECW title, 8 days after regaining it at One Night Stand. If it winds up back in the hands of the insane chairman tomorrow night, with McMahon declaring himself champion, then you know something's wrong. Lashley promised that in his mind he's still a champ, and on Raw, he'll prove it..

Jeff Hardy (Raw) vs. Elijah Burke (ECW) vs. Dave Batista (Smackdown). Triple threat rules apply here. Don't ya wish they gave this match more time? Hardy hit the Swanton on Batista, but Burke broke up the pin, then went for the cover himself. Hardy then misfired on a Swanton intended for Burke. Batista with spinebusters to both Burke & Hardy, then put away Burke with the Batista Bomb.Winner: Dave Batista..

Smackdown's 4th draft pick: Ric Flair. Batista is ecstatic, and so are Cole & JBL..

Capt. Lou Albano, who hasn't been on WWE-TV since the early days of Raw, makes an appearance. He paraphrases his old line, in this case saying that Vince has the brain of a dehydrated pea-bean. Put it in a pidgeon (instead of a parakeet), it'd fly backwards. Still great..

Battle royal for the last 2 draft picks of the evening. The field:
Raw: Johnny Nitro, Kenny Dykstra, Randy Orton, Viscera, & Eugene ECW: Kevin Thorn, Sandman, Tommy Dreamer, Marcus Cor Van, Matt Striker Smackdown: William Regal, Mark Henry, Chavo Guerrero, Matt Hardy, Chris Masters Team ECW is quickly decimated, as Striker is the first one to go. Sandman, Dreamer, and Thorn follow before the break amidst the carnage. One of the highlights in the battle of the bulls between Henry & Viscera, and Henry eliminated Big Vis all by himself. However, Henry himself would be one of the last to leave. Cor Van, ECW's last hope, was eliminated by Hardy after Matt avoided the Pounce. It came down to Hardy & Orton, and the "Legend Killer", a big money player if there ever was one, prevailed, bumping Hardy off the apron with a forearm shiver. Winner: Randy Orton..

Raw's last 2 draft picks: Snitsky & Ken Kennedy. Snitsky returns to Raw with his new gimmick intact, and Kennedy, as had been rumored, will join the growing list of challengers for the WWE title.

Our final guest of the evening is----who else?---Stone Cold Steve Austin. In an expletive filled tirade that is vintage Rattlesnake, Austin revisits some of his greatest moments.

Vince McMahon is out to end the show, or at least, that's the plan. He simply manages a barely audible, "Thank you", drops the mic, and leaves. He walks through all of this in a daze, and the camera follows him backstage. Howard Finkel, Pat Patterson, & Gerald Brisco are seen backstage with Hacksaw Duggan, Dave Taylor, & Jamie Noble at the end of the line. Coach had to redirect his boss toward the correct exit to his limo, little knowing what awaited. Vince makes his way to the limo, and as soon as he closes the door, the vehicle------explodes. That leaves viewers pondering a mystery to end the show, and setting up a storyline for the rest of the week, leading into Vengeance. Who would have enough hatred for Vince McMahon to want to kill him? I guess, like JBL, we should all be feeling sorry for the man..