With Royal Rumble 2017 almost two months away, the December 6th episode of SmackDown Live was completely focused on the fallout of TLC. Stories were advanced well stemming from TLC, as the blue brand continues to outshine Raw with logical booking and progression in storylines.
The Wyatts dominated Heath Slater and Rhyno in a Tag Title rematch, working as a cohesive unit once again. Carmella continued to fuel the fire of her claim that Natalya attacked Nikki Bella at Survivor Series, with Bella confronting the Queen of Harts backstage.
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The Miz antagonised Dean Ambrose leading to the main event between Miz and Ambrose being announced. James Ellsworth continued to anger Dean Ambrose due to his delusional nature, costing him the Intercontinental Championship inadvertently, to close the show. Overall, another strong show from the blue brand.
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So, which segments prospered, and which fell flat in the fallout from TLC? Let’s find out, as I analyse and grade each segment from the December 6th episode of Smackdown Live.
AJ Styles Promo:
Grade: 8/10
This segment served to announce the cancellation of the WWE title match more than anything, but it turned out to be a strong way to open the show. Ellsworth was far more brash and arrogant than usual, saying Styles was scared to face him.
This will be an interesting development for the Ellsworth character, and something that will keep his character going for longer, especially considering how entertaining it is to see him be so delusional. Hitting Ellsworth with Dirty Deeds, Ambrose was the silent, angry badass seeking revenge here and it was great.
This is a side that should be tapped into for the Lunatic Fringe in the coming weeks. Styles didn’t have much to say here, besides announcing his minor injury, but he was still stellar as always with his brash heel persona. Overall, a solid segment to open the show that logically progressed from TLC’s controversial ending.
Check out the segment here:
The Wyatts vs. Heath Slater and Rhyno (Tag Team Championships):
Grade: 8/10
This was a solid TLC rematch from these two teams, with Orton and Wyatt’s new partnership coming across as dominant as ever. The commentators did a great job, emphasising how dangerous Orton and Wyatt’s alliance is, and another strong win over Slater and Rhyno will allow the Wyatts to move on to better opponents.
The finish was perfect as well, with Wyatt placing his trust in Orton, by allowing him to hit the RKO for the victory instead of finishing it himself with the Sister Abigail. The Wyatts’ storyline continues to be very entertaining, and their run on top of the tag division looks set to be splendid.
Where Slater and Rhyno go from here is worrying, and a split was teased on Talking Smack between the duo. While the tag division won’t suffer greatly from this, it is a shame to see the two splitting up after a fun couple of months. Still, the Wyatts were the main talking point here, and they emerged victorious once again, in dominant fashion in a solid match.
Carmella vs. Natalya:
Grade: 7/10
This was a decent segment, which capitalised on Carmella’s claim at TLC, that Natalya was the woman who attacked Nikki Bella at Survivor Series. Carmella continues to get better as a heel, with her promo work improving week by week. She may be heavily involved in this story for the next few weeks, and that isn’t necessarily a bad thing.
It gives the Princess of Staten Island something to work with, after two losses on PPV to Bella, as well as putting her in the position of antagonist which should work well. However, why is Natalya being portrayed as a babyface? She has been a heel since the brand split, but now she is pleading with Bella to trust her, playing innocent?
If Bella’s accused attacker were Naomi, for example, it would be a much stronger story, considering her babyface status. Hopefully, that will be cleared up in the next few weeks, but besides that, this story between Bella and Natalya has potential.
Carmella portrayed the Queen of Harts as jealous of Bella, which could be an interesting aspect of Natalya’s persona moving forward. With both women’s ability, the Bella/Natalya feud has potential, and it is off to a decent start with this segment involving Carmella.
The Hype Bros vs. The Ascension:
Grade: 6.5/10
This was a filler match that did little for either team, but it was nice to see WWE putting in some effort to revitalise both tandems. Pre-match video promos for each duo, was a wise choice for some slight character depth, and the Hype Bros picked up a solid win here.
The match was your usual mediocre TV tag team affair, with the babyfaces coming out on top. If WWE is serious about revitalising the Hype Bros, a series of wins over the next few weeks over more significant teams (Usos?) would be helpful.
Until then, these matches only serve to give the duo a small victory. A prolonged rivalry with another team would help as well, instead of throwaway matches with no stakes. Still, a decent win for the Hype Bros, and an effort from WWE to give these two teams something to work with.
Miz TV with Guest Dean Ambrose:
Grade: 8.5/10
This was a splendid segment that capitalised on Ambrose’s attack on Ellsworth earlier on, with Miz playing the perfect antagonist here. Miz continued to emphasise Ambrose’s failures involving Ellsworth, while Ambrose responded with anger.
This segment also showed how good a future rivalry between Ambrose and Miz could be, especially with this side of Ambrose on display. The Miz continues to prosper as heel Intercontinental champion, and a new feud for him should be outlined in the next few weeks.
Considering how awesome (pun intended) he has been in recent months, expect his next rivalry to be a main part of SD Live heading into Royal Rumble. Daniel Bryan coming out to make the main event between Ambrose and Miz for the IC Title later in the night was great, as his issues with the Miz continued to be highlighted.
Overall, a stellar segment that led to a strong main event later in the night.
Kalisto vs. Baron Corbin:
Grade: 7.5/10
This was a strong match to follow up their surprisingly good Chairs match at TLC, with Kalisto seeking retribution for his loss at the PPV. The storytelling here was top-notch, with Kalisto, using his speed and size to outpace the taller and more powerful Corbin, but eventually, the power caught up with Kalisto, putting him down for the three count.
However, this should be the end of the rivalry, as both men could benefit with a change of scenery. For Corbin, he should move up the card, to face tougher opponents now that he has triumphed over a number of undercard talents.
For Kalisto, he should slowly move into the Cruiserweight division, as he would fit in perfectly with the high-flying talent on 205 Live. He has a perfect reason as well, as he could state that his size doesn’t allow him to beat the bigger guys, but he can beat people his size any day.
Overall, this was another strong bout between Kalisto and Corbin, who should both move on to bigger and better things (especially Corbin).
Chad Gable vs. Tyler Breeze:
Grade: 6.5/10
This was a very short match that showcased American Alpha well while giving Breezango something to do. Other than that, it accomplished very little. While giving American Alpha some nice wins, is a fine choice, a much more useful route WWE could take would be to build them with an emotional story, getting the fans invested in the duo.
More promo time, video packages and more on Gable and Jordan would give fans a reason to get behind them, especially if WWE plans to pit them against the Wyatts for the SD Tag Team Championships. While seeing them wrestle is great, some more character depth for Gable and Jordan would be ideal in the coming weeks.
Still, a solid win for Gable, as American Alpha continue to garner momentum with wins.
Alexa Bliss’ Championship Win Celebration:
Grade: 8/10
This was a strong segment that continued Lynch and Bliss’ bad blood, after the shocking title change from TLC. Lynch was angry and determined to get her rematch, while Bliss was brash and tactical as the new champion, retreating from Lynch’s demands for a rematch on the spot.
Bliss continues to shine on the mic, with her heel promos flourishing every single time. The way she delivers her lines and the vigour she uses to express her view is incredible, and WWE did not make a mistake by giving her the title so early into her main roster run.
Her in-ring work is rapidly improving as well, and she looks set to thrive as women’s champion on SD Live. Lynch’s character will go back to its best as well, as she has reverted to her focused, hungry chase for the gold.
Although this wasn’t a major step in the rivalry, this was a nice fallout from their TLC clash, and it was wise of WWE not to rush into the heat of the build for this rematch, straight away, with the next PPV (Royal Rumble) almost two months away.
Overall, a strong segment that began the slow build to the Bliss/Lynch rematch, with Bliss proving here that WWE didn’t rush by making her champion.
The Miz vs. Dean Ambrose (Intercontinental Championship):
Grade: 9/10
This was a stellar main event that continued the Ellsworth-Ambrose saga while keeping the Miz strong, in his sub-feud with GM Daniel Bryan. Ambrose and Miz’s chemistry was good, and some of the near falls, made fans think for a second that they may put the belt on Ambrose.
Although it felt like they were holding something back in the action, that was probably for the best, as these two should save the highlights for a potential feud down the line. The finish was perfectly executed here as well, with Ellsworth attempting to make amends with Ambrose, by helping him fend off Maryse’s tactics, but inadvertently costing Ambrose the IC title.
This added more fuel to the fire of Ambrose’s anger towards Ellsworth while giving Miz the cheap win off a distraction. Ambrose will be even angrier next week at Ellsworth, while Miz can rub it in Daniel Bryan’s face that he retained despite the fact that the GM booked him in a title match.
This match (and the finish) successfully created anticipation for Ambrose’s revenge on Ellsworth heading forward, as well as for Bryan’s response to Miz’s title win. Overall, a very strong main event that successfully progressed the Ambrose/Ellsworth story, while keeping Miz’s title reign intact with another cheap win; creating anticipation for who will challenge him in future weeks.
Check out the main event here:
Overall Grade for SD Live December 6th: 8/10
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