I’m a sucker for a decent number one contendership match. In whatever form. Be they tournaments, multi man (or woman), or the good old-fashioned one-on-one grudge match, I’m all for it. The drama, the anticipation, the unpredictability. It’s like sweet, sweet nectar, and I want its undiluted goodness pumped directly into my veins.
And SmackDown Live gave us two of them last night! …Oh, be still my beating heart.
Admittedly, in true WWE fashion, they couldn’t quite get both right. That would always be too much to ask. So one of the matches naturally had to devolve into somewhat of a non-sensical, circular, half-baked excuse for a number one contenders match.
Giving the Usos a match against the tag champs with a future match against those same champions on the line is terribly uninspired. Especially when you consider the alternatives. How about a tag team gauntlet for instance? Give SmackDown’s tag division 45 minutes to an hour to showcase their abilities, elevate new teams and invite new, exciting encounters. It’s worked before, with Seth Rollins being the most notable example.
Of course, that would have distracted from WWE’s true focus here, which was to further develop the Miz / Shane McMahon storyline. A hastily thrown together pairing, who have now ostensibly leapfrogged every other team in the division to claim a tag team title match against The Bar at the Royal Rumble. Because time is a flat circle, where Shane McMahon gets pushed in 2019.
Doctor Strange could foresee 14 million possible outcomes to this mess and still not find the one which doesn’t drive me insane.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BsZU4xWlOOu/?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet
So while we were left slightly disappointed on one front, oh boy, did SmackDown deliver when it came to the women. Becky Lynch vs Charlotte vs Carmella. That’s how you decide your next challenger for Asuka’s SmackDown Women’s Title. It’s the kind of threesome that’s guaranteed to deliver an excellent match. The first woman is the hottest star in wrestling at the moment, the second is the most decorated champion in the company today, and the third… is Carmella. Okay, they can’t all be winners.
But in all sincerity, this was a really compelling main event. Carmella’s in-ring ability is often derided, but she more than held up her end last night. Her transitions were smooth – most notably when she seamlessly manoeuvred Charlotte into the Code of Silence – and her suicide dive through the middle rope was particularly impressive. Ultimately though, as most could’ve predicted, ‘Mella’s greatest contribution to the match was being there to take the submission loss, thus granting Becky a shot at reclaiming her title against Asuka at the Royal Rumble.
https://twitter.com/BeckyLynchWWE/status/1082847774968819712
I am all about this. The match was great, the outcome was perfect and Becky is fantastic. The prospect of Lynch taking on Asuka in a couple of weeks should genuinely excite us all.
So you already know what I loved about last night’s show. But how did our writers feel about the blue brand’s offering? Keep reading to find out what they considered good, what they deemed less good, and how they felt about the show overall.
What was your favourite moment from SmackDown Live?
Brian Farrell
Almas and Joe vs Mysterio and Ali. This was the best of a trio of good matches on the show. There were some incredible spots, most notably the variation of the sunset flip powerbomb by Rey to Almas. I was glad to see Almas get a needed victory, while keeping Ali clean. A great match that protected the younger, fresher stars.
Kyle Payne
The entire show was absolutely great from start to finish. The theme of the show was definitely promos because a lot of them were cut and all of them were good. I loved how the entire night built up the main event between Becky Lynch, Carmella and Charlotte Flair. Each one of them had a sit-down promo of sorts, tweets from their social medias were shown, and during the match the announcers even called back to their history.
The main event itself was great, action packed, and dwarfed Raw’s. The show even started hot with Daniel Bryan and his excellent character change and he had a fun match with R-Truth. It was Bryan’s second promo as he left the arena that was absolute gold, with its intensity and ominous promise.
Tag team matches on this show were also good. Mustafa Ali is really establishing himself as a key player and he didn’t look out of place next to Joe, Almas and Mysterio. The match was action and the heels went over. The Usos and The Bar also had a great tag match with a sketchy finish. The feud between Nakamura and Rusev is actually getting interesting and I want to see more.
Steven Lugo
Andrade ‘Cien’ Almas and Samoa Joe vs. Rey Mysterio and Mustafa Ali. This was just a very good match with four terrific wrestlers, and the right finish. I love Rey and Ali, but we definitely didn’t need to see Joe or Cien take another defeat, so, well-played, WWE. At least for now. I’d love to see more from every one of these guys in 2019.
Emma Heeley
While I thought the start to the show did smack with similarity to how Raw opened, I still loved it. Heel Daniel Bryan is the best thing that could have happened to SmackDown, especially if they let him just run away with the mic like that. I find ‘the new’ Daniel Bryan a strange oddity; I actually love hating him. Even though he never speaks a word of a lie in his promos, you can’t help but want to spite him in the best way possible. The guy is priceless.
I also very much enjoyed the Usos vs The Bar. I love a good tag team match and this foursome never fail in putting on a great showing. Plus the separate love triangle storyline with Jimmy, Naomi and Mandy entertains me no end!
What was the worst part of last night’s episode?
Brian Farrell
Lana is hurt. Now, I’m happy the US title finally has a feud built around it, but this angle just doesn’t interest me. It doesn’t make sense how someone who regularly wrestles (Lana) can be knocked out of action by falling on her back.
This promo seemed rather clunky, and never really got going. The backstage fight at the end was a good spot to end on, but didn’t save this from being the worst moment on a show with very little bad TV.
Kyle Payne
I was originally going to put the segment between Miz and Shane because I didn’t know where this was going and I didn’t really care about it. With that said, the Miz has won me over with how passionate he is about this team and I’ve got a strong feeling he’s going to stab McMahon in the back.
Steven Lugo
Carmella’s promo. This was short, and I prefer the pre-taped interview style segment to hype big matches, like they did here. Still, any of the new, likeable Carmella seemed long gone in this segment, replaced with a person who reminded me far too much of the pushed-to-the-moon Women’s Champion we had over the summer.
Also, minor point, but “Becky Lynch finally learned to have a personality.” C’mon, ‘Mella. That’s like saying Hulk Hogan finally learned to have big arms. Even for kayfabe it seems like a ludicrous thing to say.
"You really think we can win?" – @ShaneMcMahon
"I KNOW we can win." – @mikethemiz
"Let's do it at the rumble!" – @ShaneMcMahon#SDLive #RoyalRumble pic.twitter.com/N8JEvj1jUI
— WWE (@WWE) January 9, 2019
Emma Heeley
I’m just not a fan of the whole Miz / Shane ‘Best in the World’ tag team shtick… I just don’t get the premise of it. Is it buildup to a match at WrestleMania? Are they seriously going to be considered The Bar’s next opponents? I’m a big fan of The Miz, but he and Shane just have zero chemistry, and I’ll be quite happy when this goes away for good.
How would you rate the show overall? (From best to worst: SmackDamn, SmackTastic, Smack Bang in the Middle, SmackDowner and A Smack in the Face)
Brian Farrell
High Smack Bang in the Middle. I loved Daniel Bryan’s opening, loved the Almas, Ali, Joe and Rey tag match, and thought Carmella vs Lynch vs Charlotte was very good. The Bar vs the Usos was also good, but that’s been seen many times before.
There were many good moments on the show, but a lot of dullness in between keeps it from breaking past just an above average show.
"@AJStylesOrg will see what I'm capable of at #RoyalRumble… and he will never, never, never, never take the #WWEChampionship away from me… and The NEW @WWEDanielBryan will be champion FOREVER!" pic.twitter.com/hD807o3B0n
— WWE (@WWE) January 9, 2019
Kyle Payne
This show was definitely a SmackDamn! It was over before I knew it and from start to finish, it was a fun ride. Everyone looked good, looked strong, and seeds for next week and the Rumble were planted and/or grew.
The emphasis was on the ladies, as it should be because they are the hottest topic on SmackDown at the moment. The tag team action was great, the promos were great, everything about this show was pretty commendable. I can’t wait to see what happens next.
Steven Lugo
Smack Bang in the Middle. I liked this instalment of SmackDown Live more than most in recent memory. The McMahon authority figure shtick was kept to a minimum (just Shane doing comedy things with The Miz backstage), the match quality was very good, and Bryan’s opening segment at the concession stand was hilarious.
I could have used a ‘Mella promo that didn’t seem like it was some passive-aggressive rant on Becky, direct from Vinny Mac. And seriously, is Vince Russo back, and booking Mandy Rose?
PERIOD! https://t.co/H4JzD5Bw0b
— Trinity (@TheTrinity_Fatu) January 9, 2019
Emma Heeley
As a whole, SmackDown once again put out a consistently great show. Unlike Monday’s Raw, I was pretty much captivated for the full two hours. The matches this week were solid, promos didn’t feel overlong or stale, and there was only a brief Shane McMahon appearance!
With that in mind, for me, this week’s SmackDown is SmackDamn.
[totalpoll id=”46607″]
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