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I really thought that WWE SmackDown this week was awesome. It wasn't necessarily the most eventful episode but everything came together and I wasn't bored for a moment.
The depth of the WWE roster is something to be marveled at and I have to say that Bruce Prichard is doing an incredible job with the booking of talent. I have to say that there's nobody in the roster who's being wasted right now and even the Superstars who're not necessarily getting TV time (like Carmella) should be back in the mix very soon indeed.
So with that said, I present the best and worst of SmackDown this week. Be sure to leave a comment and let me know if you liked the show just as much as I did, folks.
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Who do you think will win the men's and women's Royal Rumble matches, readers?
#1 Best: Ramblin' Rabbit or Jon Moxley?
Shoutout to my colleague and good friend, Alan John, a man who works tirelessly behind the scenes to make Sportskeeda tick, for this particular point. He's the guy who pointed out the fact that the black piece of clothing used to cover Ramblin' Rabbit's eye is a lot like what Jon Moxley wore after the attack from Jericho, this week on Dynamite.
That aside, I loved the opening segment this week, from Kane's return and how the mind-games from Bray Wyatt backfired as Kane and his best friend Daniel Bryan lay a trap for the Universal Champion. I loved the fact that Bryan has his dreadlocks, which means that they may play an integral part in the next chapter of the story.
I wouldn't be opposed to a match between The Fiend and Kane if WWE decides to go down that route.
#1 Worst: A strap match isn't very exciting
And maybe this wasn't the only shot fired at AEW this week. Daniel Bryan challenged The Fiend to a strap match, which seems ironic considering MJF's shocking stipulation to face Cody Rhodes is that he'll be lashed 10 times on live television.
But even that aside, one has to be a little underwhelmed that the match between these two individuals will be a strap match. Honestly, when you think of a Supernatural being like The Fiend, you think of a steel cage or even an inferno match, and a strap match is just not exciting.
I know that both Daniel Bryan and Bray Wyatt are consummate professionals and they will make it work somehow. However, even a normal match between these two individuals would have made a lot more sense because a strap match is far too old-school and may especially not make sense in this scenario because of the red lighting that's certain to be on during the match.
Do we really need stipulation matches at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view?
#2 Best: The main event match and Roman's win
There were a lot of rumors when he got suspended that Robert Roode would come back only to lose his push on television. I can't comment on his wellness violation but it would have been a shame to push Robert Roode down the card because he's such a talented individual. I'm glad to see that all the rumors were unfounded and that he's returned to WWE at a stronger position, main-eventing a show against The Big Dog.
Roman Reigns vs. Robert Roode was exactly what one expected the match to be, with interference from Ziggler, Corbin, and later, The Usos. It went back and forth and Roman Reigns picked up a big win in a well-booked match that had the crowd cheering for him. These hard-fought victories are very important especially if the plans are for him to win the Royal Rumble this year.
WWE cannot afford another situation where the Royal Rumble winner gets booed and these solid performances from Roman Reigns are going a long way towards building him as the company's top dog.
#2 Worst: Cancelling yet another Sasha Banks match?
So, let me say at the outset that I hope that Sasha Banks is okay and not dealing with an injury or an illness at the moment. But if not, why would WWE announce Sasha Banks vs. Lacey Evans for the second week in a row and cancel it? I wonder if it's just a running joke right now, or if there's a deeper reason for what happened on SmackDown?
I had absolutely no problem with Lacey Evans vs. Bayley and even thought that the result was exactly what it needed to be with Evans picking up a victory ahead of their match at the Royal Rumble match. But it raises the question of why Sasha Banks wasn't around, and unless it's all revealed to be a ruse where Sasha Banks turns on Bayley and faces her at WrestleMania.
But yeah, I will have to slot this into the 'worst' section for the time being because you don't advertise The Boss and then not have the match happen.
#3 Best/Worst: The whole Otis and Mandy Rose storyline
I have to say that WWE is handling the Otis and Mandy Rose storyline with a very different sort of treatment as compared to the ongoing controversial WWE RAW storyline with Lana, Liv Morgan, Bobby Lashley, and Rusev. This is a very sweet and tender storyline with a man who's in love with a woman far outside his league who finds him sweet and has been reciprocating to a degree at certain times.
I would have loved the spot where Mandy Rose fell off the turnbuckle right into Otis' arms, had I not seen the exact same spot with Alexa Bliss and Braun Strowman during the whole WWE Mixed Match Challenge. And I even like the idea that Sonya Deville thinks that Mandy Rose is using Otis to pick up victories when she claims that she is not because it is a great setup for a heel turn from Deville.
I just don't think it was executed to perfection, honestly.
But hey, as long as Alexa Bliss wins!
