By: Keila Cash
Hello everyone and welcome to another installment of The SmackDown Files. Tonight’s episode of SmackDown Live emanated from the Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, Michigan. After much speculation, Sami Zayn turned heel by helping Kevin Owens defeat Shane McMahon during the Falls Count Anywhere Hell in a Cell match.
Zayn saved his former best friend from certain doom by pulling him off the announce table while McMahon was flying in the air to deliver his signature elbow drop. Shane-O-Mac crashed and burned while Owens unknowingly picked the bones thanks to his former arch nemesis. Did Zayn offer a reasonable explanation for his actions or did he give fans the silent treatment instead? The answer to that pressing question can be found throughout this blog. Without further ado, let’s dissect tonight’s show in no particular order.
· SD Live kicked off with The Usos seemingly turning babyface as they offered an olive branch to The New Day. Jimmy and Jey cut a very good promo about how they survived Hell in a Cell and realized that The New Day was the only other team that could feel their pain. Both teams were the class of the tag team division and wanted to call a truce on their epic rivalry.
· The New Day was about to seal the deal with a handshake when The Hype Bros came out to break up the Mutual Admiration Society. Mojo Rawley was upset that he and Zack Ryder were being looked over while The Usos and New Day hogged the spotlight. Jimmy put Rawley in his place by telling him to sit on the bench like he did for the majority of his NFL career in a great dig that popped the crowd.
· Chad Gable and Shelton Benjamin came out to stake their claim followed by Breezango and The Ascension. The Usos told everyone to get in the back of the line, but The New Day told them to spare Tyler Breeze and Fandango because they were cool. The twins agreed and challenged all four teams to step up to the plate.
· A less than jovial Daniel Bryan came out and told The Usos and New Day to get out of the ring as the crowd chanted “No!” Bryan added some bass in his voice and reiterated that he meant business which drew even more boos.
· However, The SD Live GM turned those boos into cheers when he booked The Hype Bros, Chad Gable & Shelton Benjamin, and The Ascension in a Fatal Four Way match to determine the new number one contender for the SmackDown Tag Team Championship which took place after the commercial break.
· This was a good way to start the show. The Usos are so awesome on the mic and it’s not surprising that they’re becoming fan favorites. Here’s hoping Jimmy and Jey don’t lose their killer instinct as babyfaces because their bravado makes them stand out for all the right reasons.
· Chad Gable and Shelton Benjamin won the right to the right to face The Usos when they hit Tyler Breeze with The Tech Fall in a solid Fatal Four Way Match. Breezango was the fan favorite, but Gable and Benjamin won them over by showing off their wrestling prowess down the stretch by delivering a series of suplexes and spine busters respectively.
· In storyline related news, the slow burn disintegration of The Hype Bros continued when Viktor of The Ascension caused Mojo Rawley to bump heads with Zack Ryder which led to a prickly verbal exchange.
· Plus, this was a sly way for The Ascension to save Tyler Breeze which might lead to the foursome becoming friends someday. *Sniff*
· Becky Lynch defeated Carmella with the Dis-Arm-Her in a decent match. The announcers emphasized that the W puts her in back in the Women’s Championship picture. I wonder what Charlotte has to say about that? Hmm…
· Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn have reconciled and are best friends once again as Zayn offered an explanation for his actions at Hell in a Cell.
· Owens kicked off the second hour by explaining that he saw the light and was floating towards the heavens when Shane McMahon climbed to the top of the cell to deliver his patented elbow drop. KO cut through the lines at the Pearly Gates and had a chat with St. Peter about going back down to Earth because his work wasn’t done. A guardian angel in the form of Sami Zayn came to his rescue which allowed us to bask in the glorious place known as Kevin’s Heaven. Owens introduced Zayn to tell his side of the story.
· Zayn had a very reasonable explanation for what happened. He was tired of carrying the load of being the virtuous one who never did anything wrong. He was tired of being the moral compass that wallowed in a sea of mediocrity.
· Zayn thought things would change once he moved to SD Live. He claimed that Shane McMahon assured him that he would find success in the Land of Opportunity. He noted that McMahon never spoke to him again until their confrontation last week which saw Shane-O-Mac blow off Zayn’s advice about Owens being dangerous.
· Therefore, Zayn had to spring into action when Shane threatened to end Owens’ career. He saved his brother and had an epiphany that being a good guy was seriously overrated. Embracing the dark side is Zayn’s new calling and thanked Owens for opening his eyes.
· Zayn and Owens shared an embrace as they took turns congratulating each other as the segment came to an end.
· This was a great segment that explained Zayn’s heel turn in a plausible way. Both men were pitch perfect, but I have feeling that their reconciliation is not long for this world. Expect the implosion to take place just in time for WrestleMania season. Just a hunch.
· Randy Orton and Shinsuke Nakamura defeated Aiden English and Rusev when Nakamura nailed English with the Kinshasa for the win. Based on what happened on Sunday, it appears that Nakamura is out of the WWE Championship picture for now. This was a nice bounce-back win for the King of Strong Style, but his feud with Jinder Mahal did him no favors in terms of getting over as a marquee star which is unfathomable on so many levels.
· Luke Harper and Erick Rowan are now known as The Bludgeon Brothers. They looked creepy and intimidating which is a positive in my book. It looks like the tag team division is on the come up once again. About damn time!
· Bobby Roode and Dolph Ziggler exchanged words to set up a rematch for next week’s show. This was so boring. Zzzzz…
· Baron Corbin retained the United States Championship when he pinned AJ Styles with End of Days in what has to be considered the most important win of Corbin’s career so far. Corbin silenced his critics by beating the Phenomenal One clean as a sheet.
· The action was hard-hitting throughout as Corbin nailed Styles with some stiff shots early on. Styles gained the advantage when he dropped the Lone Wolf with the Fireman’s Carry Neckbreaker, but Corbin’s weight landed on Styles’ knee which slowed him down towards the end of the match.
· Styles tried to shake off the injury by kicking Corbin in the face, but Corbin caught him mid-move and flipped Styles onto the floor in a sick bump which led to the finish moments later.
· After the match was over, Renee Young interviewed Corbin in the ring. Corbin taunted the crowd and wanted to buy a boat to float in their tears as SD Live went off the air.
· Styles is now out of the US Title picture after losing in decisive fashion. What’s next for the man that built SD Live from the ground up? A feud with Jinder Mahal over the WWE Champion seems likely. However, a higher calling might steer Styles in a different direction heading into Survivor Series next month. We shall out his fate soon enough.
· Overall, I thought tonight’s episode of SmackDown Live was decent at best. The show had a nice beginning, middle, and end in terms of promos and in-ring action. It appears that WWE has formulated a game plan for the blue brand heading towards the end of the year, but it’s not without its flaws.
· The Tag Team Division is starting to heat up once again with viable teams stepping up to the plate. However, the mid-card scene is still in a state of flux in terms of depth while the WWE Champion was too unbothered to show up for a couple of minutes to brag about his successful title defense at Hell in a Cell.
· There might be forward momentum heading into Survivor Series, but there is still a level of inconsistency when it comes to the booking of the mid-card and main event scene. The creative team has to find a way to maximize their talent by properly by setting them up for success instead of failure. They have five weeks to figure it out. Let’s hope the Powers That Be can get the job done. 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!
No comments:
Post a Comment