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For the first time since this column began over four years ago, there are no 'worsts' for a WWE SmackDown review. This episode of WWE SmackDown was a breath of fresh air, almost like the beginning of a new season of exciting WWE content, and there was almost nothing to complain about for the duration of the program.
Yes, there will be mentions in the Best/Worst column because, to an extent, there was room for improvement for WWE SmackDown. However, bear in mind that this is the opinion of one reviewer only and if you agree or disagree with the views expressed here, you have the freedom to state your own thoughts and views in the comments section.
Can we all agree, however, that WWE SmackDown is heading in the right direction and great things happen when Vince McMahon and Bruce Prichard decide to listen to the fans, for a change?
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#1 Best: 2 Major surprises are teased on WWE SmackDown
Everyone loves a good mystery, whether it's in a movie, a book, a TV show, or on WWE SmackDown. Bray Wyatt has promised us that there will be a new member of the Firefly Fun House who will be revealed to us next week, and while the first name that pops up in one's mind is Alexa Bliss, it may be far too obvious a swerve.
Perhaps a far more compelling swerve is the other one that was teased on this week's episode of WWE SmackDown, that of a glamourous mystery woman appearing on the show.
Many have said that this could be the arrival of Tessa Blanchard to WWE, but it could also be Vanessa Borne or Chelsea Green.
The possibilities are more limitless than Keith Lee.
#1 Best/Worst: Did the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship match on WWE SmackDown run for too long?
Let's look at the good before we focus on the bad. The match between Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler and Sasha Banks and Bayley on WWE SmackDown was a good one, as one would expect from four women at this level so far into the Women's Evolution and the highlight of WWE SmackDown- the fact that Bayley betrayed Sasha Banks following the contest, has to be seen as a pretty major development from a storyline perspective.
And yet, one can't help but think that the first showing on WWE SmackDown from the newly crowned champions Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler should have been a lot less competitive and a lot more like a squash match.
One of the biggest issues with the NXT and AEW format is that everyone has competitive matches, and so a hierarchy of dominance isn't necessarily established, as it is on WWE SmackDown and WWE RAW.
Also, wasn't the Sasha Banks and Bayley split far too predictable?
#2 Best: Jey Uso steps out from the shadows on WWE SmackDown, rising up the ranks
Sure, Matt Riddle could have won the Fatal Fourway Main Event at the end of WWE SmackDown, but let's be honest, we would much rather see a storyline driven angle with Roman Reigns and Jey Uso. It is great to see that he is being given a major push and is not sitting on the sidelines while his brother heals because of being dubbed as a 'tag team specialist'. No, he is being thrust right into the limelight into a feud with Roman Reigns, who is the top dog on WWE SmackDown, at the moment.
Roman Reigns needs a new opponent to plow through and there is none better suited for this particular role than Jey Uso, for whom this is a step up.
One wonders if he could be thrust into the WWE Intercontinental Championship picture on WWE SmackDown while his own brother sits on the bench. Do you guys think he has a massive potential to succeed on his own?
#2 Best/Worst: Writing Big E out of the WWE SmackDown main event
There is a groundswell of support for Big E becoming the face of WWE SmackDown as the next Universal Champion, but one has to think that Clash of Champions 2020 may not be the best place for him to pick up this monumental victory considering that it's just not a big enough pay-per-view. Much like Kofi Kingston, Big E's big moment should come at WrestleMania, where he takes down the biggest heel on WWE SmackDown at the moment- Roman Reigns. Until then, there is a feud for Sheamus and Big E to engage in, that could stretch out for a few months.
Sheamus needed more heel heat and the best way to achieve that was to take down someone as beloved as Big E on WWE SmackDown this week.
That said, writing him off WWE SmackDown for a period may quell a bit of his momentum, but it really depends on how WWE plans to bring him back and more importantly, when they plan to do so.
#3 Best/Worst: The not-so-curious case of the stolen lunchbox on WWE SmackDown
Whether or not you are a fan of WWE SmackDown star Otis is certainly a matter of acquired taste, and one certainly cannot blame you if you find what he does extremely goofy and silly. Did John Morrison lose a step or two by accidentally stealing his lunchbox, thinking it was the Money in the Bank contract on WWE SmackDown this week?
Yes, the segment on WWE SmackDown was silly but no, it wasn't embarrassingly bad at all, all said and done. One has to be worried, however, that John Morrison and The Miz may have slid a rank or two into the comedy mid-card and once you go there, there is no coming back out of it.
That said, Alexa Bliss has preached forgiveness and we urge you to forgive the missteps on WWE SmackDown this week, because, for the first time in quite some time, there wasn't anything really bad on the show at all. Did you think so, as well?
