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Some have said that SmackDown is the inferior show on WWE television, now that Paul Heyman is in charge of RAW and Bruce Prichard, who is not known to be nearly as much of a genius as his red brand counterpart is on the blue brand. However, in my opinion, SmackDown has been a significantly easier show to watch and enjoy.
It could be because SmackDown is an hour shorter than RAW is, but I genuinely think that it has been the better show over the past few weeks to me. Maybe it is because SmackDown has realized that it cannot come to rely on Roman Reigns for everything, that it needs to build the rest of the roster as well.
And while RAW is doing a commendable job in its own right, building stars like Austin Theory and even Angel Garza in a massive way, it seems like the stars on WWE SmackDown just have a better connection so to speak with the audience watching at home.
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Here's my 'Best and Worst' of SmackDown, delivered hot and fresh to you.
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#1 Best: A singles push for Otis
Yes, the SmackDown tag team division may lose a very competent team in Heavy Machinery because of the way that Otis is being pushed to the moon. But we always knew from the moment that we first saw them in NXT that Otis and Tucker had one breakout star, and his name wasn't Tucker Knight.
Otis has gone on to qualify for the Money in the Bank ladder match and even if he doesn't win, this is a huge step up for him. He's one of the most likable Smackdown stars in recent times and his storyline with Mandy Rose has done wonders to help him reach the next level.
#1 Worst: Men and women to compete at the same time?
I know that this is essentially a SmackDown review, but let me take you back in time to the Attitude Era, where Vince Russo, the head writer created some of the most compelling segments in the history of the company but was always reined in by his boss, Vince McMahon. After his stint in WWE, Russo would go on to WCW and TNA, and many have said that he never attained the same level of success elsewhere, because he never had a filter like Vince McMahon.
Creativity is obviously a good thing, but I wonder if the think tank on RAW and SmackDown may be going a little overboard by having the men and women in the Money in the Bank ladder match at the same time. One can be confident of the outcome based on the Boneyard match and the Firefly Funhouse match, but there are numerous other examples from WWE history (and even recent memory on RAW and SmackDown) that aren't nearly as good.
While this was not technically on SmackDown, because the announcement was made during the show, this point makes it to the list.
#2 Best: Sonya Deville shines brighter every week
We always knew that Sonya Deville was special but none of us knew just how special she was until she came unglued recently on SmackDown, delivering a fiery promo. And this week on SmackDown, she took the world by storm again as she distracted her former best friend Mandy Rose and cost her a chance to qualify for Money in the Bank.
I absolutely loved everything about the segment, this week on SmackDown, because it made Mandy Rose look strong even in defeat. And while Carmella did go on to the big pay-per-view, I am definitely interested in the next chapter between Rose and Deville, so in a way, everyone wins in this case.
As for Sonya Deville, I am also intrigued by her relationship with Dolph Ziggler which is very unique considering that Ziggler's affection for Rose seems to be genuine and somehow Deville's part in this whole equation is very strange indeed. Kudos to the SmackDown team for attempting to actually tell stories that we can sink our teeth into.
#2 Worst: The Forgotten Sons
The tag team division on SmackDown has always been a lot stronger than the one on RAW primarily because of The New Day and The Usos. The two teams have ensured that tag team wrestling remains a priority and have always worked with other teams to ensure that it never falls from grace on SmackDown.
I just think that The Forgotten Sons gimmick is not something that everyone will be able to identify with at once considering that they are supposed to be real-life heroes because of their background in the armed forces, but they are heels. There is just something about them that is a little off-putting and it's not the fault of any of the three men who are all supremely gifted.
I just don't want them to go the SAnitY route, who also came to SmackDown with much pomp and fanfare but did not go anywhere at all, even though so much could have been done in their case.
There should have been more of a build, just as SmackDown is doing with Sheamus, before pushing them straight to the top.
#3 Best: Daniel Bryan vs. King Corbin
While the match between Daniel Bryan and King Corbin was on, at the very start of SmackDown this week, there were a whole bunch of Sportskeeda writers on our official chat that declared that King Corbin is one person who is ready to become the next WWE Universal Champion after cashing in the WWE Money in the Bank contract in 2020. I wonder how many other contenders there are in the said match, from both the RAW and SmackDown side, who are worthy of the said opportunity, to be quite honest with you.
But that aside, I absolutely loved the match between King Corbin and Daniel Bryan, and before you say that Daniel Bryan can have a good match with anyone at all, just hear me out. King Corbin has come a long way in the ring from the time that he started and can hang with almost anyone at all on the SmackDown roster.
In fact, with Roman Reigns out of the picture, he is an invaluable part of the WWE roster on SmackDown currently.
#3 Best/Worst: The Strowman vs. Bray Wyatt build
There is absolutely nothing wrong with the build for Braun Strowman vs. Bray Wyatt, but honestly, I do believe that the think tank on WWE SmackDown could have done so much more to make the feud far more terrifying than it is, at the moment. I just think that SmackDown would have been a far more entertaining show if the horror aspect of the character was delved into, considering that the two men were once part of a swamp cult.
But, that said, Bray Wyatt remains the most unique thing on WWE television and everything he does stands out of the clutter, in my personal opinion. It would be interesting to see what happens when Bray Wyatt and Braun Strowman come face to face on next week's episode of SmackDown.
In conclusion, all I'd like to say is that SmackDown was a fun show but it wasn't necessarily a must-watch show, to me, at least. For example, you could fast forward to Money in the Bank without having watched this episode and not miss much.
What did you guys think of it?
