By Mark Rodriguez
Smackdown Live approaches it's 1000th episode next Tuesday. This week will bring a rematch between Becky Lynch and Charlotte with the extra stipulation that if Becky is disqualified in any way, she will lose her title. Also Big Show makes his return and faces Randy Orton for the right to compete at the World Cup Tournament at Crown Jewel.
First Match- Becky Lynch vs Charlotte for the Smackdown Women's Title- If Becky is DQ-ed she will lose her title
Becky and Charlotte ran at each other and tried to apply arm locks on each other. Becky got her rival in an Armbar and did a Jack Knife Bridge to make it more painful. Charlotte grabbed Becky's legs but rather than try the Figure 8, she did a Slingshot, tossing Becky face first into the turnbuckle. Becky rolls out of the ring and Charlotte jumps after her.
After the break, Becky managed to get her in the Beck-Sploder but Charlotte still managed to kick out of a pin. Becky grabbed Charlotte with an Armbar, and Charlotte tried to punch her face to get out of it. She lifted Becky with a One-Arm Power Bomb but the Irish lass Kicker was still able to kick out.
The women would try several pin attempts and slug each other out while the commercials played. Becky would try to walk out of the match with the belt again but Charlotte pulled her back in. Becky was going to hit her with the belt but the ref saw her and stopped her. Charlotte got her with a Spear but Becky still kicked out. In the end both women fought outside the ring to the point that the match ended in a Double Countout. Becky Lynch is still the champ.
Charlotte is enraged and went after Becky. Both women fight it out until Charlotte Spears Becky through the LED Smackdown sign. Both women are in horrible shape and it appears that Charlotte broke her arm.
Second Match- Jeff Hardy VS Samoa Joe (Winner goes to World Cup)
Joe enters this with a severe handicap, his injured leg after his fight with AJ Styles at Super Show-Down, and Jeff is quick to target it. This didn't stop Joe from using his size and brutality to throw jeff around. Jeff did an Atomic Drop on Joe's leg but Joe still threw him out of the ring. Joe threw Jeff against the steps, but when he tried to kick him, he accidentally kicked the steps, hurting his leg worse. Jeff would throw him back into the ring and continue to attack the leg until the referee called off the match due to Joe not being able to continue. Jeff Hardy will join John Cena and Kurt Angle at the World Cup Tournament at Crown Jewel.
The commentary tells us that next week for the 1000th episode of Smackdown, Evolution will reunite with Randy Orton, Ric Flair, Triple H and most surprising of all, Bautista.
Paige informs the crowd that due to the match between Becky and Charlotte ending in a no contest, both will fight for the title at Evolution in the first ever (in WWE anyway) Last Woman Standing Match.
Mizz TV (with guests AJ Styles and Daniel Bryan)
Mizz interviews AJ Styles while poking subtle jabs at the family drama he recently recovered from thanks to Samoa Joe. Daniel Bryan comes in and makes fun of how short his victory was over The Mizz at Super Show-Down. Mizz has enough of their camaraderie and poking fun at The Mizz, and Mizz says he's sick of both of them and claims to challenge the winner of their upcoming match at Crown Jewel for the WWE World Championship. Mizz announces that AJ will now go up against Shelton Benjamin.
Third Match- AJ Styles VS Shelton Benjamin
The Mizz and Daniel Bryan would join the commentary and bicker with other as AJ would fight Shelton. AJ Styles would try the Styles Clash but Shelton would lift him for a slam. AJ would slip out of it but Shelton's Flying Knee to the face knocked him out of the ring. Shelton would continue to overpower AJ as the ads run until AJ finally managed to slam him down. AJ got Shelton in the Calf Crusher but his opponent managed to grab the ropes to break the hold. AJ ended the match by successfully landed the Phenomenal Forearm on Shelton and scored the pin.
The Rest of One Night in Milwaukee- with Aiden English
Aiden returns to show the rest of potential footage of Lana coming on to him and cheating on Rusev. The tape shows Lana saying she wants Aiden to know how much she wants him... to know how much he means to Rusev. Just when it looks like things might get fishy between the two, Aiden calls out Rusev. Aiden tells him that he will destroy the tape if Rusev kicks Lana to the curb and reunites Rusev Day. Lana then steps out.
Rusev tells Aiden to play the whole tape. Lana says she will play the tape and Rusev says they hacked him. The video shows Aiden trying to make a move on Lana and she walks out, feeling uncomfortable. Aiden is exposed, but he tells Lana his offer still stands. Rusev angrily changes him around and Aiden escapes his wrath for now.
It's announced that next week Rey Mysterio returns and will face Nakamura for shot at the World Cup.
Main Event- The Big Show VS Randy Orton (Winner goes to World Cup)
Big Show started overpowering Orton, but The Viper managed to get him down. Orton would stomp on Big Show's feet and hands and tried to get him in a sleeper hold. Big Show would slam him and regain control. Orton got Big Show in a DDT off the ropes but he still managed to power out of a pin. Orton tried to go for The Punt but Big Show got him with a Spear, though he wouldn't be able to get the pin. Big Show got him in a Choke Slam and Orton would still kick out of a pin. With the ref distracted, Orton managed to thumb Big Show in the eye. He'd get him with the RKO and score the win.
The Highs of Tonight's Smackdown Live-
-The Mizz and Daniel Bryan. I love their bickering rivalry here and all the comments of Daniel looking forward to facing a real wrestler, throwing shade at the Mizz. The Mizz TV segment was funny, and the match between AJ and Benjamin was decent, but made much more fun by Daniel and Mizz still bickering throughout. I thought these guys weren't allowed to say wrestlers anymore.
- Becky is still Champion- For better or for worse, but I was positive tonight was going to have Charlotte win her title back. The ending was also quite shocking.
- The Big Show coming back- It was cool seeing The Big Show back.
The Lows of Tonight's Smackdown Live-
What the hell was up with Becky- She gained traction as a heel, but now they're turning her into a cowardly heel that continues to run from Charlotte. Being turned heel shouldn't mean her being a bad ass should go away. Also, what the hell with her once again trying to run away with the belt and also hit Charlotte with it? Did she not understand that if she got disqualified she would have lost her title? Stop making Becky into a cowardly idiot and have her beat Charlotte clean.
Samoa Joe- I'm not sure if his injury was kayfabe or not, but if it wasn't, why even have this match if he was too injured to compete?
Big Show jobs out- Why even bother bringing Big Show back if he was just going to job out to Randy Orton? I just realized that both Jeff Hardy and Randy Orton advanced to the tournament so they are bound to run into each other there and add another chapter to their feud, but it sucks it had to be done at the expense of The Big Show.
Aiden is a weirdo- Not sure how I feel about Aiden being shown as almost creepily obsessive over Rusev but also wanting to mess around with Lana.
Overall thoughts-
It was a decent show, mostly for the Mizz's antics, Big Show's return and the match between Becky and Charlotte. I'm surprised they started right off the bat with that one without building anticipation as it would come later on in the night. Honestly, that match was pretty decent and the finish with Charlotte possibly breaking her arm could have made this match the Main Event. I mean, it would have been much more interesting than Randy Orton and his Unstoppable RKO winning yet again.
I do feel the World Cup qualifier matches should be taken more seriously. They're pretty short and feel like just a formality to decide who will take part. How are we supposed to care if they're not taken seriously? Samoa Joe couldn't perform due to his injury, Big Show jobbed out, Corbin and his mockery of a Battle Royale and John Cena was just randomly added without a qualifier because he's John Cena.
Let's hope they take the Rey Mysterio VS Shinuske Nakamura match much more seriously.
Smackdown Live approaches it's 1000th episode next Tuesday. This week will bring a rematch between Becky Lynch and Charlotte with the extra stipulation that if Becky is disqualified in any way, she will lose her title. Also Big Show makes his return and faces Randy Orton for the right to compete at the World Cup Tournament at Crown Jewel.
Becky and Charlotte ran at each other and tried to apply arm locks on each other. Becky got her rival in an Armbar and did a Jack Knife Bridge to make it more painful. Charlotte grabbed Becky's legs but rather than try the Figure 8, she did a Slingshot, tossing Becky face first into the turnbuckle. Becky rolls out of the ring and Charlotte jumps after her.
After the break, Becky managed to get her in the Beck-Sploder but Charlotte still managed to kick out of a pin. Becky grabbed Charlotte with an Armbar, and Charlotte tried to punch her face to get out of it. She lifted Becky with a One-Arm Power Bomb but the Irish lass Kicker was still able to kick out.
The women would try several pin attempts and slug each other out while the commercials played. Becky would try to walk out of the match with the belt again but Charlotte pulled her back in. Becky was going to hit her with the belt but the ref saw her and stopped her. Charlotte got her with a Spear but Becky still kicked out. In the end both women fought outside the ring to the point that the match ended in a Double Countout. Becky Lynch is still the champ.
Charlotte is enraged and went after Becky. Both women fight it out until Charlotte Spears Becky through the LED Smackdown sign. Both women are in horrible shape and it appears that Charlotte broke her arm.
Second Match- Jeff Hardy VS Samoa Joe (Winner goes to World Cup)
Joe enters this with a severe handicap, his injured leg after his fight with AJ Styles at Super Show-Down, and Jeff is quick to target it. This didn't stop Joe from using his size and brutality to throw jeff around. Jeff did an Atomic Drop on Joe's leg but Joe still threw him out of the ring. Joe threw Jeff against the steps, but when he tried to kick him, he accidentally kicked the steps, hurting his leg worse. Jeff would throw him back into the ring and continue to attack the leg until the referee called off the match due to Joe not being able to continue. Jeff Hardy will join John Cena and Kurt Angle at the World Cup Tournament at Crown Jewel.
The commentary tells us that next week for the 1000th episode of Smackdown, Evolution will reunite with Randy Orton, Ric Flair, Triple H and most surprising of all, Bautista.
Paige informs the crowd that due to the match between Becky and Charlotte ending in a no contest, both will fight for the title at Evolution in the first ever (in WWE anyway) Last Woman Standing Match.
Mizz TV (with guests AJ Styles and Daniel Bryan)
Mizz interviews AJ Styles while poking subtle jabs at the family drama he recently recovered from thanks to Samoa Joe. Daniel Bryan comes in and makes fun of how short his victory was over The Mizz at Super Show-Down. Mizz has enough of their camaraderie and poking fun at The Mizz, and Mizz says he's sick of both of them and claims to challenge the winner of their upcoming match at Crown Jewel for the WWE World Championship. Mizz announces that AJ will now go up against Shelton Benjamin.
The Mizz and Daniel Bryan would join the commentary and bicker with other as AJ would fight Shelton. AJ Styles would try the Styles Clash but Shelton would lift him for a slam. AJ would slip out of it but Shelton's Flying Knee to the face knocked him out of the ring. Shelton would continue to overpower AJ as the ads run until AJ finally managed to slam him down. AJ got Shelton in the Calf Crusher but his opponent managed to grab the ropes to break the hold. AJ ended the match by successfully landed the Phenomenal Forearm on Shelton and scored the pin.
The Rest of One Night in Milwaukee- with Aiden English
Aiden returns to show the rest of potential footage of Lana coming on to him and cheating on Rusev. The tape shows Lana saying she wants Aiden to know how much she wants him... to know how much he means to Rusev. Just when it looks like things might get fishy between the two, Aiden calls out Rusev. Aiden tells him that he will destroy the tape if Rusev kicks Lana to the curb and reunites Rusev Day. Lana then steps out.
Rusev tells Aiden to play the whole tape. Lana says she will play the tape and Rusev says they hacked him. The video shows Aiden trying to make a move on Lana and she walks out, feeling uncomfortable. Aiden is exposed, but he tells Lana his offer still stands. Rusev angrily changes him around and Aiden escapes his wrath for now.
It's announced that next week Rey Mysterio returns and will face Nakamura for shot at the World Cup.
Main Event- The Big Show VS Randy Orton (Winner goes to World Cup)
Big Show started overpowering Orton, but The Viper managed to get him down. Orton would stomp on Big Show's feet and hands and tried to get him in a sleeper hold. Big Show would slam him and regain control. Orton got Big Show in a DDT off the ropes but he still managed to power out of a pin. Orton tried to go for The Punt but Big Show got him with a Spear, though he wouldn't be able to get the pin. Big Show got him in a Choke Slam and Orton would still kick out of a pin. With the ref distracted, Orton managed to thumb Big Show in the eye. He'd get him with the RKO and score the win.
The Highs of Tonight's Smackdown Live-
-The Mizz and Daniel Bryan. I love their bickering rivalry here and all the comments of Daniel looking forward to facing a real wrestler, throwing shade at the Mizz. The Mizz TV segment was funny, and the match between AJ and Benjamin was decent, but made much more fun by Daniel and Mizz still bickering throughout. I thought these guys weren't allowed to say wrestlers anymore.
- Becky is still Champion- For better or for worse, but I was positive tonight was going to have Charlotte win her title back. The ending was also quite shocking.
- The Big Show coming back- It was cool seeing The Big Show back.
The Lows of Tonight's Smackdown Live-
What the hell was up with Becky- She gained traction as a heel, but now they're turning her into a cowardly heel that continues to run from Charlotte. Being turned heel shouldn't mean her being a bad ass should go away. Also, what the hell with her once again trying to run away with the belt and also hit Charlotte with it? Did she not understand that if she got disqualified she would have lost her title? Stop making Becky into a cowardly idiot and have her beat Charlotte clean.
Samoa Joe- I'm not sure if his injury was kayfabe or not, but if it wasn't, why even have this match if he was too injured to compete?
Big Show jobs out- Why even bother bringing Big Show back if he was just going to job out to Randy Orton? I just realized that both Jeff Hardy and Randy Orton advanced to the tournament so they are bound to run into each other there and add another chapter to their feud, but it sucks it had to be done at the expense of The Big Show.
Aiden is a weirdo- Not sure how I feel about Aiden being shown as almost creepily obsessive over Rusev but also wanting to mess around with Lana.
Overall thoughts-
It was a decent show, mostly for the Mizz's antics, Big Show's return and the match between Becky and Charlotte. I'm surprised they started right off the bat with that one without building anticipation as it would come later on in the night. Honestly, that match was pretty decent and the finish with Charlotte possibly breaking her arm could have made this match the Main Event. I mean, it would have been much more interesting than Randy Orton and his Unstoppable RKO winning yet again.
I do feel the World Cup qualifier matches should be taken more seriously. They're pretty short and feel like just a formality to decide who will take part. How are we supposed to care if they're not taken seriously? Samoa Joe couldn't perform due to his injury, Big Show jobbed out, Corbin and his mockery of a Battle Royale and John Cena was just randomly added without a qualifier because he's John Cena.
Let's hope they take the Rey Mysterio VS Shinuske Nakamura match much more seriously.
Comments
Post a Comment
Leave your thoughts on this article!