The second Smackdown Live-exclusive PPV of the new era, No Mercy, had a mixed bag of a match card on paper. The triple threat match for the WWE World Title and the potential retirement match for Dolph Ziggler garnered enough interest to make the event worth watching, but the remainder of the card highlighted the lack of depth on the Smackdown roster.
However, that doesn’t necessarily mean that matches like Becky Lynch vs Alexa Bliss or Randy Orton vs Bray Wyatt couldn’t over achieve on the night and possibly steal the show.
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So how did the event pan out? Was it an undisputed success, or did some of the booking decisions leave you saying to yourself “Say What?”…
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#1 - Main Event opens the show
The first “Say What?” moment of No Mercy came a couple of hours before the show even started when it was announced that the show would open with the match that was expected to close the show, the triple threat match for the WWE World title.
This is normally a bad move in my personal opinion as while it is great to kick-off a PPV with a big match, putting the World Title on the line in the opening match hurts the prestige of the belt. Also, in regards to No Mercy specifically, there didn’t seem to enough star power or other big time matches to follow this opener.
#2 - Styles submits, but retains the Title
In regards to the match itself, it was an entertaining bout, which was to be expected considering the personnel that was involved.
There was a nervous moment for most fans when Cena and Ambrose both had Styles in a submission hold and the ‘Phenomenal One’ tapped out. Thankfully, the referee ruled the submission null and void as it was impossible to decide a winner.
A lucky escape for Styles was followed by a cheap victory when he attacked Cena with a steel chair and pinned him for the third time this year.
#3 - No Women’s Title match
Another “Say What?” moment that came before the show began was the confirmation to the rumour that spread in the days prior to No Mercy that Becky Lynch would be unable to compete.
Therefore the announced Women’s Title match between Lynch and Alexa Bliss was postponed.
The unspecified reason for Lynch’s absence came at a bad time for not just her but the entire Smackdown Live Women’s division but hopefully the division can get back on track once she returns.
#4 - Carmella impresses
A positive element for the Smackdown Live Women’s division came in the form of the Nikki Bella vs Carmella match.
Although Carmella lost this surprisingly physical match, the ‘Princess of Staten Island’ came out of this match looking stronger than she did going in. Her ruthless and aggressive heel work was impressive and helped to show how much she has improved since joining the blue brand.
#5 - Slater & Rhyno retain
A fairly unexpected result from my perspective came when Heath Slater & Rhyno retained their Smackdown Live Tag titles.
I was expecting The Usos to get the win in this match as they have had somewhat of a resurgence since their recent heel turn and Slater & Rhyno have lost some steam since winning the belts at Backlash last month.
Also, it’s hard to see where Slater & Rhyno will go from here as presumably, The Usos will feud with American Alpha now which leaves some very underwhelming challengers for the Tag Titles.
#6 - Bray vs Orton goes on last
When it was announced that the WWE World Title bout would open No Mercy, the general expectation was that the Intercontinental Championship match would close the show.
However, when Ziggler vs Miz took place around the midway point of the show, it became clear that Bray Wyatt vs Randy Orton would be going on last. This decision, at least on paper, seemed like a strange choice from the booking team as the feud between Wyatt and Orton has been very underwhelming and was the third most anticipated match on the card at best.
#7 - Title vs Career
The crowd was emotionally invested in the Career vs Title match between Miz & Ziggler from the get-go and it felt like the main event of the show, even if the powers that be in WWE didn’t see it that way.
The two Cleveland natives have great chemistry in the ring and put on another entertaining match with plenty of shenanigans and challenges for Ziggler to overcome. Yet again Maryse’s spray came into play and there was also interference from Dolph’s former Spirit Squad partners.
However, when everybody at ringside was sent to the back by the referee and it was down to just Miz & Ziggler, Dolph was able to get the victory to win the Intercontinental Championship and save his WWE career.
#8 - Curt Hawkins appears and botches his promo
Although the return of Curt Hawkins is not something I am greatly anticipating, he lived up to his promises and returned to ‘step into teh ring’.
Hawkins’ in-ring debut is expected to come this Tuesday but we’ll have to wait and see whether or not WWE stick to their plan this time. He came into the ring and cut a short yet botchy promo, in which he believed he was in San Francisco. For everyone who may be wondering, the PPV was held in Sacramento, California. I could also be that Hawkins was juts trying to garner heat from the Sacramento crowd with the mention.
#9 - Bad night for Bliss
Although the Women’s Championship bout was cancelled due to Becky Lynch’s injury, it was announced that Alexa Bliss would be in action.
When Bliss did make her to way to the ring for a promo, she was interrupted by Naomi.
As if having her title match postponed wasn’t bad enough for Alexa, she would then go on to lose her bout against Naomi, raising questions as to whether Naomi will be added to the future Title match.
#10 - Harper returns
The unexpected closing bout of the night between Bray Wyatt and Randy Orton was a decent match but was far from PPV main event-worthy.
The build-up to this match was very lacklustre with the creepy mind games between the two rivals falling way wide of the mark in recent weeks. While the two men have a fair amount of chemistry, the overall program and match didn’t feel anywhere near as special as it should have.
The undoubted highlight of the match came when Luke Harper made his much-anticipated return to help Wyatt defeat ‘The Viper’.
This was a much-needed win for Bray and will hopefully get his stumbling career back on track.
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