I never thought I’d see the day when beating up The Miz created a universally despised villain. After all, pretty much everyone’s walked that road. John Cena, Dolph Ziggler, Finn Bálor – just to name a few – have all tossed The Miz around for a bit, except those actions only served to make them even more sympathetic in the audience’s eyes.
Similarly, I never thought I’d be forced to admit to actually liking Shane McMahon. My arch nemesis for so many years now, the humanoid puddle of sweat has long been the most intolerable part of Tuesday nights. From his ham-fisted delivery to his infuriating tendency to go blow-for-blow with some of the greatest wrestlers of our era, the senior McMahon offspring is one of the worst elements of wrestling. Perhaps only outdone by his shrill younger sister.
And yet, for this reason and many others, SmackDown Live never ceases to surprise me.
The blue brand has somehow successfully merged my hatred of Shane O’Mac with the sudden babyface turn of the career heel Miz, and created something truly magical. It’s like mushrooms on pizza – you don’t expect it to work and yet somehow it’s better than you could ever imagine.
So this was the shocking phrase repeatedly running through my head as Shane McMahon ordered Greg Hamilton to announce him as “the Best in the World” for the third time: “God I’m loving this Shane McMahon segment.” All it took to convert the most detestable presence on Tuesday nights into true villainous excellence was for him to embrace his delusion, self-aggrandising, unbearable self. The puddle of sweat has become self-aware.
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bu7Z8Zql24h/?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet
There’s clearly something magical in being termed the “new” anything. It’s worked for Daniel Bryan, it clearly improved New York (regular York is a bit of a drag), and now Shane appears to be the latest beneficiary. Heading into their WrestleMania encounter, both Miz and Shane appear to be hotter than ever. And – as much as I can’t believe I’m saying this – I’m looking forward to the next three week’s of build to this match.
But this was only the opening segment in what was an excellent night for the McMahon family. With Becky, Kofi, AJ, Orton and Vince taking centre stage, there was a lot to get through this week. So let’s get to the best the blue brand had to offer.
What was your favourite moment from SmackDown Live?
Steven Lugo
Orton / Styles promo. I wouldn’t usually choose a promo as a favorite moment, but I think that’s because of the dreaded Raw format. It’s no fun when the show opens with a twenty minute segment of scripted talking.
Yet, I had an enjoyable time when Randy Orton and AJ Styles took to the ring with microphones tonight. The dialogue exchanges did not feel wooden, and it’s always entertaining to hear tidbits about the business that you usually wouldn’t hear on WWE programming. Orton name-dropped Dixie Carter as he ran down AJ’s career, while AJ said Randy was handed everything, and could never make it in the indies. It’s adding something special to their WrestleMania encounter which clearly wasn’t there before.
Nate Craver
I love a good 80’s sitcom. So, when I heard Charlotte say it was going to be Golden Girl’s Main Event at WrestleMania, I got pretty excited. Unfortunately, that’s not what she meant. So that’s out of the running for the best part of SmackDown. That means I’m going to go with the Randy Orton and AJ Styles segment.
Whoever is in charge of writing the material for Triple H and Ronda Rousey’s “real” dialogue on Raw should pay attention to this segment. This is how you blend reality into a scripted television show seamlessly. Both guys scored points and took some shots that probably hit close to home. It’s amazing how a simple story can be so effective. I loved this segment. L-O-V-E-D it. I really didn’t think it was possible for me to be excited for a Randy Orton match in 2019, but somehow, I am. Good job SmackDown.
Kyle Payne
My favorite moment of this week’s SmackDown was the back and forth promo between Vince McMahon and Kofi Kingston. McMahon is so good at coming across as a truly vile and evil person and the throwback to what he used to call Daniel Bryan (a B-plus player) was so, so good. After everything that Kofi had to say in defense, how can you not hope for him to win the belt at this point?
I love Kofi but I felt, at the beginning, that it was too soon for Bryan to lose the belt. But dammit, Kofi has won me over and I’m genuinely hoping he can win the belt. If you haven’t seen this promo, look for the full thing on YouTube and not the edited version on the official WWE channel.
Speaking of promos, another amazing exchange of words came between AJ Styles and Randy Orton. Shoot promos always have the potential to be great and come across as authentic disdain and this one definitely felt real, as the two blasted each other. A match between the two of them is most definitely a dream match and has the strong potential to steal the show at WrestleMania.
If @TrueKofi wants to challenge @WWEDanielBryan for the #WWETitle at #WrestleMania, he has to face @RandyOrton… and @SamoaJoe… and @WWESheamus… and @WWECesaro… and @ERICKROWAN NEXT WEEK on #SDLive! @WWEBigE @XavierWoodsPhD pic.twitter.com/7NsbLvAlJC
— WWE (@WWE) March 13, 2019
Nicholas Holicki
Let’s get this straight. The New Day / Vince exchange at the end of the night was far and away the greatest aspect of SmackDown Live this week. Kofi’s impassioned promo in the face of Vince undermining him was possibly one of the best speeches of the past several years, and I can’t wait for him to face (and hopefully overcome) each of the competitors in next week’s gauntlet match. But I’d like to mention someone else too.
Rey Mysterio was absolutely phenomenal last night. While his… unique… flesh colored bodysuit complete with black thong was a bit off-putting, everything that he did in the ring certainly wasn’t. After his tag partner R-Truth was laid out, Mysterio decided it was time to flip around the ring for a little bit, taking out Andrade before securing the roll-up victory over Samoa Joe. Even at 44-years-old, it’s clear that the diminutive luchador is still as great as he’s ever been.
The victory all but secures his place in what seems a likely multi-man match at WrestleMania for the United States Championship and frankly, after last night’s display, I’m looking forward to it even more.
6️⃣1️⃣9️⃣✖️ 2️⃣#SDLive @reymysterio pic.twitter.com/zbagnHaikk
— WWE (@WWE) March 13, 2019
What was the worst part of last night’s episode?
Steven Lugo
What was I saying about the dreaded Raw format? Oh yeah. Enter, Shane McMahon, with his silly trophy and heel promo. There’s just so much about Shane being a credible threat in SmackDown Live men’s division that I hate. His promo was an explanation for his actions on Sunday, sure, but how good an explanation, really? He’s mad at fans and employees because people come to him for stock options? Well, that’s what I got out of it anyway. Seeing it was Shane and not one of SmackDown’s many up-and-coming wrestlers in this spot made me not pay attention much.
Nate Craver
Shane O’Mac as a heel. It was AW….FUL. At least, they got it out of the way early. Wow, Shane as a heel fell flat. Shane wasn’t able to convey any emotion. I’m not sure what else to say. It was just boring and stirred no emotion whatsoever. I thought about going with Rey’s outfit, but it definitely got more of a reaction than Shane’s heel turn.
Kyle Payne
The crowd was such a disappointment for such a great show. If you’re going to buy a ticket, at least be excited to be there.
Nicholas Holicki
Everything about The New Day wiping out Rusev and Nakamura baffled me. On commentary, Byron Saxton was driving home the idea that Kofi and his chums had simply reached their breaking point, fed up with the treatment they’ve received from Vince McMahon in recent weeks.
While that’s notionally fine, the execution was slightly confusing. Ambushing a team halfway through a match is a decidedly heel tactic, which doesn’t gel particularly well with The New Day’s happy-go-lucky personalities. But even accepting that they have become so angry that they simply couldn’t restrain themselves, I don’t see the logic in this. Vince had already made it clear that he would be “offering Kofi a WrestleMania opportunity” later in the evening, with his mind evidently set on some larger plan. I just don’t see how ruining a tag match and beating up one of the participants would have any impact on what Vince had to say later on.
As it turned out, by the end of the night this beatdown didn’t really have any bearing on proceedings whatsoever. It was all just… really weird and unnecessary, as proven by The New Day closing the night by beating up even more people, only this time while standing their ground like true babyfaces.
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)
Steven Lugo
Smack Bang in the Middle. This show was full of solid wrestling, as well as strong angles involving Randy Orton, AJ Styles and Kofi Kingston. I liked it. I was less keen on the… third(?) straight match involving the same people in the US championship picture. This installment was a tag match, but it felt like an automatic rematch.
I’m also not sure why they persist in acting like Ricochet and Aleister Black are nothing but a proper tag team. It’s just… weird. In fairness, I thought this show was an improvement over last week, even with the Shane McMahon segment. Let’s hope we go higher and higher the closer we get to WrestleMania.
#SDLive was definitely missing something…I just can't put my finger on it 👒
— Macey Estrella (@LimitlessMacey) March 13, 2019
Nate Craver
SmackDown had some highs, but there were a couple of bad segments on the show as well. There were also a lot of tweets out there asking if Teddy Long was back because of all the thrown together tag team matches, playa. Regardless, the show seemed to move along at a really fast pace and didn’t drag.
I’m going with a Smack Bang in the Middle. I loved AJ / Orton. The Joe / Andrade vs. Truth / Rey match was good. The 8-man tag was great. I enjoyed the main event. Kofi and the New Day were on fire. On the other hand though, Shane stunk it up. Becky’s great on the mic, but I had some issues with the fact that she’s barely been able to walk for over a month now and suddenly she’s better after taking 5 – 10 minutes of directed attack on her leg on Sunday. Throw in the fact that they are doing absolutely nothing with Asuka. I just can’t go higher.
.@BillieKayWWE @PeytonRoyceWWE Do not question us or what we stand for. We said we’d be on every brand so we will be on every brand. We’ll see you soon
— Bayley (@itsBayleyWWE) March 13, 2019
Kyle Payne
SmackDamn! What a great show! Raw depresses me but SmackDown seems to always make things better. We had excellent promos from the Usos, Styles, Becky, Orton, Vince McMahon, and The New Day. I loved that the implications for next week’s show were made this week and that next week’s outcomes will affect WrestleMania. It hypes you up for next week and fills you with excitement and intrigue as to where the stories will take us next.
We also had great matches between Samoa Joe & Andrade vs. Rey Mysterio & R-Truth, the massive 8-man tag match, and Bryan / Rowan vs. Ali / Owens. Also, we are getting Shane McMahon vs The Miz following the heartbreaking turn at Fastlane. The show was a ton of fun.
Oh, before I forget. The IIconics deserve more TV time because they are spectacular and have been making a valid point over the past couple of weeks. Since winning the women’s tag team championships, Bayley and Sasha Banks have yet to make a SmackDown appearance despite being repeatedly called out by the talented Australian duo.
Nicholas Holicki
SmackDown has the ability to blast through its runtime without overpacking it with singular great segments, while still remaining great. It’s just a show of surprises.
The new incarnation of Shane O’Mac was unexpectedly good, Mandy Rose’s dynamic with Sonya Deville has me intrigued (despite my better judgment) and the back and forth between Orton and AJ Styles was properly entertaining.
Add in the decent Becky promo and excellent – if tonally strange – Kofi angles, and you’ve sold me on another good show. Keeping it’s streak alive, this week’s SmackDown was a high SmackTastic.
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