WWE SmackDown Live: 5 things we learned from this week's episode (January 8, 2019)

SmackDown Live kicked off in emphatic fashion on Tuesday night and ended even higher than most expected.

Daniel Bryan started the night to trash talk the crowd before the first match of the night. Later on, we saw a really good mid-card non-title match, which has become relatively rare since the past few months, as Mustafa Ali and Rey Mysterio took on Almas and Samoa Joe.

The fallout of the match could see a rivalry develop between Mysterio and Joe, and Ali and Almas, which could both become extremely good.

To slow things down, Rusev cut an emotional promo which was interrupted by Nakamura on the screen who continued to develop into a top heel amongst superstars like Samoa Joe and Randy Orton.

The highlight of the night saw three top women compete for the number one contender’s spot for the Smackdown Women's Championship at the Royal Rumble which turned out to be the match of the week.

Overall, SmackDown again delivered a solid show and we learned quite a few things from it. Check out the five things we learned from this week’s episode of the blue show.

---

#5 Nakamura needs something more

Shinsuke Nakamura did well in becoming a heel after WrestleMania 34 and has continued his character well since then. He did not manage to win the WWE Championship, but he did get his hands on the United States Championship, which he won not so convincingly.

Since he has lost his championship to Rusev, he has been doing well to further his character as a heel, and he will get a rematch for the title.

Nakamura is one man who can actually turn into one of the best heels as he seems like an outsider and a different character than anyone else on the roster, but WWE should work on giving him a more convincing storyline and convincing wins to support that.

He should not only work on his actions and promos to become a dangerous heel but also perform well in matches to become one.

#4 SmackDown’s Tag Team Division is following Raw

Raw’s tag team division took a major hit when part-time and makeshift tag teams popped up to take over the championships.

First, it was the team of Braun Strowman and Nicholas who caused the disruption, which was followed by the Deleter of Worlds, and then Bobby Roode and Chad Gable. All this happened in the presence of tag teams like The Revival and Authors of Pain.

Similarly, The Miz and Shane McMahon have formed an unlikely storyline tag team who have already gotten a chance at The Bar’s SmackDown Tag Team championships without even competing in a competitive match.

The duo will get their chance at the Royal Rumble at a time when SmackDown is packed with great tag teams such as The Club, The New Day, Sanity, and The Usos.

This sends a bad message across, as even though some fun is allowed, such matches at such grand stages put other teams and superstars down who work hard to earn their place for something they work towards for years.

#3 Rey Mysterio and Mustafa Ali vs. Samoa Joe and Andrade "Cien" Almas was the complete package

Ever wondered what a perfect combination of superstars in a match would be? Well, we came to near perfection this week on SmackDown when Rey Mysterio, Mustafa Ali, Almas, and Samoa Joe competed in one match.

Rey Mysterio is the high flyer, and Mustafa Ali is the technically sound risk-taker. On the other hand, Samoa Joe is the bully and the powerhouse, while Almas is a near perfect all round wrestler. The combination provided us with some really good spots in a match which included some really good technical work and some high-flying maneuvers.

The match, which was won by the heel team of Joe and Almas, was a really good booking move for both Joe and Almas who have either faced a few too many defeats or have been underused.

Mysterio doesn’t need a win at this point to further his career, and Ali did not take the pin and has already received a giant push.

#2 SmackDown knows how to continue a story forward

This episode of SmackDown started off with WWE Champion Daniel Bryan criticizing fans for putting such disgusting food into their bodies while speaking from the concession stand.

He continued, calling AJ Styles a Superstar fans use to fill the voids in their pathetic lives and are worthless.

Surprisingly, R-Truth appeared from nowhere to attack the champion to get the first match of the night underway.

Bryan had targeted Truth and attacked him, and it was refreshing to see a superstar who isn’t pushed much to come out and exact revenge.

This is actually great since Raw has often failed to cash in on such stories, and usually start something one week which is forgotten the next. We saw this happen between Braun Strowman and Drew McIntyre, and Elias and Baron Corbin at the end of last year.

After Bryan scored a win over Truth in the match, Styles attacked from out of nowhere, which furthers his aggression which Vince wanted to get out of him.

#1 The women deliver yet another masterpiece

Remember when the women’s division was secondary to the men’s division in the WWE? Well, now it seems like it might become the primary division, on SmackDown at least.

Three top women of WWE, namely Carmella, Charlotte, and The Man herself Becky Lynch provided us with a treat to headline the show on Tuesday night.

The three women put up yet another A-grade match for the women’s division which is now becoming almost customary.

At TLC last year Asuka, Charlotte and Becky battled in the main event of the night which was possibly the match of the year. With Asuka out and Carmella in, the match was still great and showed that every single woman wants to step up since last year and become better than they were just a week ago.

At this rate, we could see women getting more spotlight and more high-level matches in WWE which will be great for the division and the WWE Universe.