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If you were in Jacksonville, Florida to attend the AEW rally, I'm sure you were in for a few pleasant surprises. But if you were in Jacksonville for SmackDown Live, I'm sure you got your money's worth too. This was such a fast-paced episode, that I wanted more of it by the time it was finally done. I could not say the same about RAW this week.
From the very start, it seemed obvious that SmackDown Live would be really fast and furious. I'd like to hear your thoughts, both good and bad, about the show. Did you think it delivered as per your expectations?
SmackDown Live did beat RAW in terms of viewership over the last two weeks. This could be attributed to the fact that RAW coincided with both Christmas and New Year Eve over the past two weeks.
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This week there are no excuses and it'll be interesting to see which show eventually comes out on top.
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#1 Best: The Usos vs. The Bar
When you have four of the best in-ring workers in the company working together, the match is almost guaranteed to be good. This week, Cesaro and Sheamus took on The Usos. If The Usos won the match, they would get a future title opportunity. I thought this was a spoiler of sorts, about them winning!
Therefore, I liked the fact that The Usos did not win the match as well. The four men have amazing chemistry with one another. I mean no disrespect to Roode and Gable, but The Bar is clearly the better team of the two.
I do hope we get to see these two teams work each other again. I know that Shane McMahon and The Miz are next in line.
But somewhere down the line, these two teams must clash once more.
#1 Worst: Mandy Rose ruins the match
Who could possibly complain about seeing Mandy Rose in a towel, right? And if you've read my articles, you know I'm always harping on storyline continuity. Why then, did I not like Mandy Rose's interference? I just thought that she ruined a very good match.
I don't know if I want to see The Usos dragged down this path. They would be better served kicking rear end inside the ring, and not getting involved in Total Divas style plots, in my opinion. Bringing in too much 'sports entertainment' can ruin tag team wrestling.
Just look at the storyline with Drake Maverick taking Bobby Roode's robe to the toilet. Is that seriously what we want SmackDown Live to become as well, with these dramatic elements thrown in?
Do let me know what you thought about her mid-match inteference, guys.
#2 Best: Daniel Bryan's opening salvo
Less than a year after you return from being told by doctors you'll never wrestle again, how do you get the WWE Universe to turn against you? You go out among them and call them out on being 'fickle'. Daniel Bryan is completely committed to his character and I thought he did a great job at the start of the show this week.
I loved the character work that Daniel Bryan did at the top of the show, this week. He made his way from the merch stand to the arena, through the crowd. On the way, he got a lot of his fans to turn on him and boo him strongly.
I really loved the fact that R-Truth came out and attacked Bryan to maintain continuity from two weeks ago. WWE is known to abandon this approach sometimes, and I'm glad such wasn't the case this week.
#2 Worst: Same guy in a different show?
Last week, we saw Seth Rollins and Bobby Lashley engage in a fist fight at the top of the program. Rollins would attack Lashley from the back, midway through the first segment as well, setting up a six-man tag team match. AJ Styles launched a very similar attack on Daniel Bryan this week.
In fact, if you look at both men, they have a few aspects in common. Both men are considered to be the very best at what they do. Both were fired up respectively by Vince McMahon and Triple H; and asked to tap into a dark, animalistic side of theirs and be vicious competitors again.
I think it's a little lazy to do the same storyline with two of your top stars, on your two brands. This is especially because most WWE viewers do watch both shows anyway and would prefer distinct content.
#3 Best: The main event
I had the honour of speaking to Charlotte Flair a few hours ago. The article will be published after 'Best and Worst'. She seemed confident that this is the year when the women main event WrestleMania at long last. Looking at their performances, it is hard to dispute this.
The women main-evented an episode of SmackDown Live this week and did they ever steal the show. I particularly loved the fact that Carmella, who I had assumed was just in the match to take the fall, had a good showing as well. She has come such a long way from when she was the Champion.
There was a very well deserved 'this is awesome' chant towards the end of this match from the entire WWE Universe. Every time the women get a chance to show how good they are, they deliver.
Becky Lynch ended up winning the match and will face Asuka next.
#3 Worst: Becky Lynch missing the Royal Rumble match
Let's be honest for a minute here. Yes, we all want to see Becky Lynch become the SmackDown Women's Champion. But there would have been a greater sense of pleasure in seeing Becky Lynch becoming RAW Women's Champion. She could have accomplished this by winning the Royal Rumble and challenging Ronda Rousey.
Lynch and Rousey have some unfinished business from TLC. Rousey cost her the SmackDown Women's Championship and is the reason that Asuka became Champion. It would have been great to see Becky Lynch win the Royal Rumble and then challenge Ronda Rousey for the title she has defended proudly.
Lynch could still go up against Ronda Rousey at WrestleMania. In fact, she could even lose the match and make it to the Royal Rumble match.
But both are rather unlikely possibilities.
#4 Best/worst: The Shane McMahon/Miz alliance
I am a big fan of The Miz and used to be a Shane McMahon fan, back in the day. Of course, both of them are huge WWE superstars. I just don't like them cutting in line ahead of every other Tag Team for a SmackDown Tag Team title opportunity. Especially when actual tag teams are part of the current roster!
Are Gallows and Anderson just going to be bodies in the Royal Rumble match? Are SAnitY never going to reach the kind of success that they did while they were down in developmental? As entertaining as The Miz and Shane McMahon can be in their skits, they're not going to be nearly as much fun in the ring.
Let's hope they don't become Champions, at the Royal Rumble. This would be a very Nicholas-like move.
Becky Lynch is another story.
