By: Keila Cash
Hello everyone and welcome to another installment of The SmackDown Files. Tonight’s episode of SmackDown Live emanated from the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. Sin City served as the backdrop for three championship matches featuring AJ Styles vs. Tye Dillinger for the United States Championship, The Usos vs. The New Day facing off in a Sin City Street Fight for the SmackDown Tag Team Titles, and Natalya vs. Naomi battling for the SmackDown Women’s Championship.
Also, Vince McMahon would confront Kevin Owens regarding Owens’ pending lawsuit against WWE after Shane McMahon attacked him last week. Did The Boss lay down the law or did Owens clap back in more ways than one? The answer to that question can be found throughout this blog. Without further ado, let’s dissect tonight’s show in no particular order.
· The highlight of the opening segment was Dolph Ziggler trolling the audience as he came out to Shane McMahon’s theme music. Ziggler’s attempt at cosplay sucked last week, but it worked tonight. He gets a reprieve. For now…
· Kevin Owens cut a great promo heeling on the crowd as he vowed to fire Sami Zayn and cancel the Fashion Files. He’s greatest dig was making Tom Phillips and Byron Saxton wear one suit because they sound alike on commentary. Corey Graves’ facial expressions pushed things over the top in terms of hilarity.
· Daniel Bryan came out and reminded Owens that he was in charge and informed KO that he wouldn’t like what Vince McMahon had to say later tonight. Owens said the feeling would be mutual as the opening segment came to an end.
· This was a good way to start the show. Kevin Owens was an excellent prick heel who managed to get under everyone’s skin while WWE played it smart by delaying the appearance of Mr. McMahon until later in the show. Their confrontation should be interesting, to say the least.
· AJ Styles retained the United States Championship when he made Tye Dillinger tap out to the Calf Crusher in a solid match that was slightly marred by outside interference from Baron Corbin. Styles was about to nail the Perfect 10 with the Phenomenal Forearm when Corbin climbed on the ring apron to cause the distraction. Styles nailed him with the forearm which allowed Dillinger to roll Styles up for a near fall.
· Styles went for the Styles Clash only for Dillinger to counter with the Tye Breaker for another close fall. Styles managed to regroup and locked in his submission hold for the win.
· Both men shook hands after the match, but the feel-good moment was ruined when Corbin dragged Styles out of the ring and tossed him over the barricade. Dillinger tried to make the save, but Corbin nailed him with a Clothesline before dropping Styles with the End of Days on the floor.
· Corbin grabbed the mic and informed an unconscious Styles that he would challenge him for the United States Championship next week as the segment came to an end.
· Even though Dillinger and Styles were shortchanged on time, the match was good while it lasted. This was a clever way to insert Corbin in the US Title picture, but I still wanted Dillinger and Styles to have a strong television match. I hope they are given another chance in the near future because both men are capable of doing so much more than what we saw tonight.
· The Good News About Jinder Mahal’s Promo: Mahal showed more personality than ever before on the mic.
· The Bad News About Jinder Mahal’s Promo: The material he was given sucked for the most part and I’m not a fan of WWE making fun of Shinsuke Nakamura’s facial expressions. The overacting by The Singh Brothers was especially grating which took me out of the segment as well. Plus, the creative team fell into the trap of comparing Nakamura to Michael Jackson in the worst possible way. I hated Dolph’s Ziggler promo from earlier this year when he went on a similar spiel that pissed me off to no end.
· Furthermore, the Pikachu having a seizure joke was classless. The Singh Brothers doing Nakamura’s mannerisms made it worse. The whole segment irked me even though I somewhat applaud the creative team for giving Mahal a spark of a personality for a change. If he’s given less offensive material, he might actually get over as a pompous heel who draws heat for all the right reasons.
· The New Day defeated The Usos to become the NEW SmackDown Tag Team Champions when Big E and Kofi Kingston dropped Jimmy Uso with the Midnight Hour for the win. The Sin City Street fight was very good as it featured hard hitting action throughout. If I’m not mistaken, there are no rules in a street fight with the exception of pinning or submitting your opponent. From some strange reason, the referee pulled Kingston away from one of the Usos after hitting him repeatedly with a Kendo Stick. That was weird, but the overall flow of the match wasn’t interrupted for the most part.
· The Usos nailed Big E with a double Superkick and was about to finish him off with a double splash from the top rope when Kingston shoved Jey Uso off the top rope and sent him crashing into a table that was set up at ringside. It was a sick spot that left Jimmy high and dry. Kingston nailed him with Trouble in Paradise which led to the finish moments later.
· The title change is a little surprising, but both teams have played hot potato with the belts as of late. One can only presume that their rubber match will take place at Hell in a Cell to blow off this feud once and for all. It should be another barn burner if they are given enough time to shine.
· Natalya retained the SmackDown Women’s Championship when she made Naomi tap out to the Sharpshooter in a solid match. Both ladies didn’t receive ring entrances which meant the show was running short on time. Nonetheless, both ladies had another competitive match that featured outside interference towards the end.
· Naomi knocked Natalya out of the ring which led to a confrontation between the champ and Carmella who was sitting in on guest commentary. Nattie shoved Carmella to the floor which allowed lay out Carmella and James Ellsworth with a cross body from the top rope. Natalya took advantage of the situation by slamming Naomi head first into ring post which led to the submission finish.
· It appears that Naomi is out of the championship picture for now. It should be very interesting to see who's next in line for Natalya’s SmackDown Women’s Title.
· Remember the reprieve I gave Dolph Ziggler during the beginning of this blog? It’s officially been rescinded. Ziggler came out and imitated Bayley and The Ultimate Warrior in order to show fans that they love a gimmick more than what he can do in the ring. It was a word-for-word replay of what he said last week. Once again, Ziggler’s promo was dumb and pointless. This has to be a setup for a feud with Bobby Roode at Hell in a Cell. Right? Right?!?
· Chad Gable and Jason Jordan defeated The Hype Bros when Gable and Benjamin dropped Zack Ryder with the Tech Fall. The match was fine, but it was slotted in the 9:30 p.m. Lull Period of Doom and Gloom. Things ended on a newsworthy note when Ryder refused to shake hands with Gable and Jordan. He also gave the cold shoulder to Mojo Rawley which plays into a possible heel turn that has been hinted at in recent months.
· Vince McMahon told Kevin Owens that it would be in his best interest not to sue WWE because he might end up fired or bankrupt. McMahon informed Owens that he didn’t suspend Shane McMahon because he crossed the line as an authority figure. He suspended him because he didn’t finish the job. Shane would get another chance to avenge the McMahon family when he faces Owens inside Hell in a Cell at the eponymous PPV next month.
· Owens wanted McMahon’s assurance that he wouldn’t be fired for hurting a McMahon. Vinnie Mac agreed and sealed the deal with a handshake. Owens broke the handshake and head butted Vince in the face moments later. KO stated that The Chairman of the Board gave him permission to beat up a McMahon and he did just that as he kicked Vince’s ass. He kicked him in the ribs before nailing him with a Superkick and Frogsplash from the top rope. Adam Pierce tried to intervene, but he let his boss bite the bullet in an unintentionally hilarious spot.
· Owens eventually walked away, but Stephanie McMahon confronted him before tending to her father as SD Live went off the air.
· This was a hot way to end the show. Kevin Owens was a sinister heel as he attacked the man that signed his paycheck every month. Vince McMahon must really like Owens because it’s rare to see him get beat up. McMahon even did a blood job to push the closing segment over the top. I give Vince props for taking bumps at 72. It’s ill-advised, but the boss has the final say.
· In any event, this adds more heat to the Kevin Owens-Shane McMahon feud leading up to their Hell in a Cell match next month. I am not looking forward to Shane’s Charmin Tissue Paper punches, but Owens should carry him over the finish line by going batshit crazy in the best possible way. It will be quite the spectacle when WWE christens in the new Little Caesar’s Arena in Detroit, Michigan next month. “Pizza, Pizza!”
· Overall, I thought tonight’s episode of SmackDown Live was solid. The Sin City theme gave the show a sense of purpose, but the in-ring work wasn’t as strong as the Wild Card Finals which took place last December. The SmackDown Tag Team Championship match between The Usos and The New Day was the best thing on the broadcast from a wrestling standpoint. The United States and SmackDown Women’s Title matches were hampered by outside interference, but the in-ring action was solid for the most part.
· The show will be best remembered for Kevin Owens kicking Vince McMahon’s ass. It was a surprising moment that reminded me of Randy Orton punting Vince in the head 8 years ago. Will Owens become a sociopath who destroys the McMahon Family from the inside out? We shall see how it all plays out, but I like how Owens has become more menacing in recent weeks. He’s not cracking jokes in order to get cheered. KO is a cold-hearted bastard who should be despised from the moon and back.
· Shinsuke Nakamura, Bobby Roode, and Randy Orton not being on tonight’s show was a little surprising. Their star power was missed, but should they be back next week as SD Live emanates from the Oracle Arena in Oakland, California. The march towards the Hell in a Cell PPV continues. Here’s hoping the blue brand continues to raise their profile heading into the fall season. Fingers crossed!
On that note, this wraps up another edition of The SmackDown Files. I hope you enjoyed it and I will be back next week with a brand new installment of The Raw Exposé. See you later, boys and girls!
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