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I thought that Extreme Rules was a fine show where WWE showed that when it wants to, the company still has the firepower to come out, guns blazing. The RAW that followed was filled with fun segments as well, especially highlighted by Bray Wyatt's appearance as the heinous 'fiend'.
SmackDown Live wasn't as noteworthy as those two shows, but I felt like it did not need to be. It was a fast-paced affair, which had a great deal of action and excitement spread over two hours.
I would love for you to voice your thoughts and views about the show as well, in the comments section. Did you think that this week's SmackDown Live began on the right note, presumably under the leadership and guidance of Eric Bischoff?
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I thought that it was a great show, and here is the 'best and worst' review column...
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#1 Best: Kevin Owens gets the Stone Cold push
I know that Kofi Kingston is, on paper, the most important person on the blue brand right now. But I wouldn't be surprised if he drops the title soon enough to someone else very soon indeed.
It is clear from the way that he's being booked that Kevin Owens is the real star of the show, and Shane McMahon is the top heel. Owens is part of the opening segment, and a part of the main event too.
This is a really good thing because it's been a while since WWE really got behind someone and did not pull his push soon after. Case in point, even when Rusev was extremely over as a part of the 'Rusev Day' campaign, WWE somehow had Aiden English turn on him in a feud that went nowhere at all, and one can see this won't happen with Owens.
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#1 Worst: Shane messes up a stunner
As our very own Sportskeeda writer, Greg Bush, exclaimed when this segment happened- 'nobody in the McMahon family can take a stunner.' Kevin Owens sneaked up on Shane McMahon to deliver a stunner in what could have been a great segment, but McMahon would ruin it.
All Shane McMahon really had to do was get in place to eat the stunner, but whatever happened looked really awkward on camera. This is yet another reason why Shane McMahon should not hog up all the TV time, that actual sports entertainers should get.
I know that the fact that Shane McMahon takes up all the TV time is a storyline, but it works because there's an element of truth in it. Despite everything, he still gets the most amount of time on TV, in the whole WWE roster.
Maybe he takes time off after SummerSlam is done!
#2 Best: Ali teases a massive Intercontinental Championship feud
Ali is one of those Superstars who came into the main roster with a lot of fanfare. He would rack up a lot of acclaim in a very short amount of time and even be put over by Daniel Bryan, to kickstart his push on the right note. But then KofiMania happened and Ali was all but forgotten.
I think that a feud with Nakamura will benefit both men. Balor will obviously be on RAW in the months to follow, feuding with Bray Wyatt, so he's out of the Intercontinental Championship picture for the time being at least. This gives Nakamura and Ali the chance to put on a series of really good matches on the blue brand.
Even if Ali comes up on the losing end of these matches, it would help him regain the momentum that he's lost. Maybe he even brings in glimpses of his new vigilante persona, as we've seen from his vignettes.
#2 Worst: Still the same old theme song for Liv Morgan
I loved the fact that Liv Morgan got TV time. Even though she came out on the losing end during her match with Charlotte Flair, the main thing is that she finally got a chance to showcase how good she is. She has always been a background player when it comes to the main roster, so this was a good thing.
But I will tell you what I did not like about Morgan's recent showing on TV. She is still using the Riott Squad theme song, which is just extreme all-round laziness by WWE. Just about any other theme song would have sufficed in this case, but this is a step back showing us that WWE doesn't know what they plan to do.
Maybe Morgan returns with a new song in her attempt to be 'real'. It'll still be a week too late.
#3 Best: Ember Moon finally gets into the title picture
This almost made it to my 'worst' column. When Bayley came out as Ember Moon's tag team partner after a week of hype, I was ready to rant about the same.
But now that Bayley vs. Ember Moon has been made official for SummerSlam, I get why this happened and I like it a lot. Moon has been in the main roster for a long time and even though she's impressed every time that she's stepped into the ring, she hasn't done much at all, because of an abundance of talent in the roster.
We know that Bayley has reinvigorated herself and rediscovered the energy that she was lacking. She could bring the fight to Ember Moon when the bell rings.
This is a feud that will not merely benefit both women but something that the two of them need to remind the world how good they are.
#3 Worst: No announcement from Daniel Bryan
Everyone who tuned in to SmackDown Live waited impatiently for Daniel Bryan's big announcement. There was much speculation on the internet, from him going to 205 Live to him dropping the Planet's Champion gimmick for good.
A visibly distraught Daniel Bryan would come out with Rowan and then step back into the backstage area, over and over again. This was a complete waste of everyone's time because even if the whole thing extends for a few more weeks, people will certainly lose interest, considering they were disappointed in this case.
This is a running theme for WWE if you consider the fact that they promise to deliver certain things during the show and end up disappointing the fans when it doesn't happen. This was possibly the worst thing about the show, by a long shot.
Not the best way to start your stint, Mr. Bischoff.
#4 Best/worst: Randy Orton pins Kofi Kingston
Because Randy Orton pinned Kofi Kingston on live TV, one assumes he's next in line for a title opportunity. I know that a lot of our own staff groaned in unison when they saw this. However, I wonder if it is all bleak if you consider all the facts.
Kofi Kingston has been the WWE Champion for a while now and he's put away top-tier opponents such as Dolph Ziggler and Samoa Joe. And yet his reign seems so underwhelming like he's not done anything at all. Picking up a win over Randy Orton if that's the way they plan to go, will launch his career into high gear one more time.
Nobody cheers for Kofi Kingston the way they used to before WrestleMania. Now it's just scattered and polite applause for him.
In any case, I end this week's review with this picture.
