Reverse Hipster and Rob list off what mattered and what didn't on Smackdown. Comment your thoughts do agree or disagree?
Reverse Hipster What mattered
1.Edge
I think Raw had the better overall show this week, but I do not think Raw had anything that was head and shoulders above the return of Edge. Roman said there was nobody left to face. Then Edge came out, and he looks like a jacked mad man, and he tore Roman apart. I am very excited to see their one on one match at MITB. Edge is in a different zone.
2.Big E
He finally got back on track. Big E beat Apollo to qualify for the MITB briefcase. What I love most about this match was the story they told. As soon as Captain Aziz was thrown out, Apollo lost. This result lets us know that the only thing that has prevented Big E from being champion was Aziz. Big E is on the rise.
Corbin
I am very interested in this broken Corbin character. He lost everything. I want to see where this is going. Corbin has been cocky since we were introduced to him in nxt. So I am glad they are switching it up.
Women's money in the bank
The creative team did a good job working with their lack of depth. Giving Carmella the automatic bid to MITB was an excellent way to get heat on her. Also than having Liv beat her was good babyface momentum for her going into MITB. The match was entertaining. Carmella dominated the match to show she was worthy of her spot, and Liv won to show she deserved hers.
Jimmy vs. Ziggler
This match was fantastic. Ziggler keeps delivering in the ring. Get this man a storyline because he is still insane in the ring. I want to be able to invest in him as a fan. Jimmy won the match and proved to Roman that he could do what his brother does and proved he is a skilled singles star.
Mixed Tag match
As an in-ring product, this was a hot start to Smackdown. The match was long and exciting. They incorporated a few moments of intergender action. My favorite part of this match was the outside brawling while the match was being decided. It was almost like a tornado tag team match.
Rob’s What mattered
1. Edge returns
This was the most exciting part of a somewhat lackluster SmackDown. It was a complete surprise to me, and it made sense for Edge to follow up on his wish to have a true singles match with Roman Reigns. If this is anything like his last run, I expect Edge to bring star power and nuanced story to his renewed feud with Reigns.
2. MitB Qualifier: Big E vs. Apollo Crews
I thought this was the best match on SmackDown this week. Qualifying matches are always a great excuse to have a PPV-quality match on weekly TV. Big E and Apollo Crews already have great chemistry, and I think this match paid off all the effort they’ve put into their feud this year. In losing, Crews is in danger of losing his edge: his character right now is dependent entirely on being the champion. On the flip side, Big E’s win continued to launch him into main event territory.
3. Jimmy Uso vs. Dolph Ziggler
I thought this was a great use of both the guys involved. I am still always intrigued to see how the storyline between Roman Reigns and the Usos will develop on any given week. Dolph Ziggler has been absent since losing the tag title, so it was nice to see him on TV again, and I think this performance reminded people of his potential for great matches.
Rob’s What didn’t matter
1. Announcing Carmella in Money in the Bank
I think this continued to highlight the major problems in the way women are perceived in WWE. The men fight in tense, multiple-segment matches to qualify for the Money in the Bank, but Carmella is just announced for the match? Continuing on the theme from Raw, this showed me that WWE does not put as much time and effort in the women’s division. In terms of roster, this is a continuing problem with the lack of depth in the women’s division: maybe creative thought there weren’t enough contenders on SmackDown to make worthwhile qualifying matches.
2. Mixed Tag Match
I absolutely love all the performers involved: Cesaro, Seth Rollins, Bayley, and Bianca Belair, and they did their best to make this match work. The problem is that these feuds should not still be going on. Cesaro and Rollins have been fighting since before WrestleMania, and Bayley and Belair have been feuding since just after WrestleMania. We are two PPV’s past that now. On top of that, the mixed tag match rules are clunky and necessitate chemistry beyond just two concurrent feuds. The time for this match was weeks ago, not now.
Reverse Hipster What Didn't Matter
Renewed feuds
Despite the match being good the overall direction was bad. Bayley beating Bianca one day after she lost at hell in the cell just invalidates everything that happened before and means this feud that should be over will continue. Same with Seth and Cesaro this should have been over at WM but yet here they are fighting again. Also it seems like even worse Cesaro may be falling to the back burner as Seth rises.
2.Women's Depth
Firing the IIconics and Ruby Riot has made the Smackdown women's roster super thin. Its got them in a bind. Bayley and Bianca are still fighting because in the absence of Sasha which would also be a rematch their is nobody to challenge Bianca. Natalya and Tamina have their own titles to defend. Also Carmella and Liv have money in the bank to fight for and even then the Smackdown roster doesn't have enough women for qualifying matches to produce four women to represent Smackdown. Its things like this that remind us the women's roster and the mens roster are not equal and its why Evolution PPV is still necessary.
3.Roman and Jimmy Story
I feel like i'm the only one who has noticed that this story has gone off the rails. Yes the story they are now telling which that Jimmy needs to prove himself is being done well. However this story doesn't exist in a vacuum. This new direction makes no sense. Jimmy has watched Roman abuse and manipulate his brother all year and all he has wanted to do since he returned was get Jey away from Roman. So why would Jimmy want to prove himself to Roman after Jey finally left. Jimmy working with Roman makes zero sense it feels like the whoever was in charge of this story has changed or Jey is injured.
4. Nakamaura
I just didn't care about this at all. Nakamaura just put on a crown and did what he has been doing for weeks. He didn't even cut a promo. What should i be excited about? He has been king for weeks. What should I be looking forward to? To me this is an example of WWE doing something cool seeing that it was cool and then running it into the ground.
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