WWE SmackDown Live: 5 things we learned from this week's episode (January 29, 2019)

The first episode of SmackDown Live after Royal Rumble played out on all the storylines that came out of the event. SmackDown was the only brand which saw title changes at the event, as new United States and Tag Team Champions were crowned, while Becky Lynch won the women’s Royal Rumble.

Following that, all the winners and losers from the event took part in matches and segments, and Becky Lynch and Charlotte were the first to make an impact on the show.

Shane McMahon and The Miz celebrated their championship victory, and Shane announced a fatal four-way match for the night to determine the number one contenders for their titles.

Andrade took his rivalry with Rey Mysterio forward, while a new United States Champion was crowned to everyone’s surprise. The show was solid, and delivered well, which resulted in good storyline developments.

Take a look at 5 things we learned from this week’s episode of SmackDown, and share your favorite moments from the show in the comments below.

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#5 The Bar are WWE’s scapegoats

The Bar consists of two of the best superstars in WWE today, Sheamus and Cesaro.

The duo became an unlikely tag team who have managed to dominate the tag team divisions of both Raw and SmackDown for almost two years.

While they were four-time Raw tag team champions, it was these two men who lost to Braun Strowman and Nicholas at WrestleMania 34, which was a huge slap.

Soon after getting drafted to SmackDown, they got in contention for the brand’s tag team titles, and managed to win it on SmackDown 1000 after beating The New Day.

Sadly, once again The Bar lost the titles to a makeshift tag team consisting of The Miz and Shane McMahon. While The Bar has managed to overcome the biggest threats in the tag team division, it is weird to see WWE booking them to lose against makeshift teams.

The duo lost their match for a chance at the number one contender’s spot for the championship, and it seems as though they will slowly slip away on the blue brand’s tag team division for some time.

#4 Charlotte will not be out of the title picture

SmackDown kicked off once again with none other than their biggest superstar, Becky Lynch.

What wasn’t surprising was that Charlotte made her way out and a brawl broke out between the two women. WWE has repeatedly tried to shove Charlotte down our throats, and this was no different.

Even though Charlotte cleanly lost the Royal Rumble after being eliminated by Lynch, there was no reason for her to come out and confront The Man.

This makes one wonder whether Charlotte will be able to wriggle her way into the WrestleMania match between Lynch and Ronda Rousey.

While Lynch has made her intentions clear to go after Ronda Rousey and the Raw Women’s Championship, it seems as though WWE is keeping options open for Charlotte at the moment, and could either give her a chance at the SmackDown Women’s Championship or insert her into the Lynch vs Rousey match.

#3 SmackDown’s championship scene is slipping

A couple of Raw’s championships have become a joke over the past year, as the tag team titles were won by Nicholas and Braun Strowman, and then tossed around between makeshift teams, and Brock Lesnar won the Universal Championship once again.

Similarly, it seems as though SmackDown is heading down a similar path, as we first saw the SmackDown tag titles won by Shane McMahon and The Miz at Royal Rumble.

What followed this week was absolutely outrageous, as Shinsuke Nakamura lost his United States Championship after only two nights to R-Truth. Truth then also went on to beat the next biggest competitor for the title, Rusev, in a match that followed.

Truth is past his prime, and there was no reason for WWE to put the title on him. Instead, if they wanted to surprise the crowd, they could have allowed someone like Rey Mysterio, Mustafa Ali, or even The Miz to win the championship, opening up the US Championship scene.

Whatever SmackDown is trying to do with their championships at the moment is not humorous at all, and could result in a dip in value.

#2 Becky Lynch can carry multiple feuds forward

Is there anything The Man can’t do? She has had multiple on screen and social media feuds in the past six months, and it seems as though she isn’t stopping any time soon.

Just 24 hours after winning the Royal Rumble, Lynch came out to face Ronda Rousey and layed down a challenge. This instantly pushed their rivalry to new heights, which could even lead to them headlining WrestleMania 35.

Little under 24 hours later, Lynch again came out, this time on SmackDown, and her rivalry with Charlotte continued.

While we have seen writers struggling to carry rivalries forward on Raw recently, and also creating holes in storylines on SmackDown, it’s obvious that Lynch’s storylines are solid as a rock, and she is able to transition into any role required with ease.

Becky Lynch’s character is now poles apart from anyone else’s on both brands, and it’s evident that she has become as big as any other superstar in the WWE.

#1 The new championship design is perfect for Daniel Bryan

WWE has used championship designs in the past to either further a wrestler’s character or make it very obvious to the WWE Universe.

Bryan made it evident that he wants to be one of the most hated heels in the business, and he is working well towards that.

Just like WWE did for Edge, John Cena, and a few others - making customized championship belts to go with the character and their persona, it seems like they are investing a lot into Daniel Bryan’s character too.

For that very reason, the new championship design seems almost perfect for The Beard who has been trying hard to piss off the WWE Universe, and has also used his stance at being a vegan to his benefit in doing so.

Bryan arrogantly announced this new title would last forever, and everyone had something to say about that, which goes perfectly with the fact that he has vowed to remain champion forever.

WWE has done a great job in using the WWE Championship to push Bryan’s character to a new level.