Smackdown
Date: April 15, 2022
Location: DCU Center, Worcester, Massachusetts
Commentators: Pat McAfee, Michael Cole

We’re back to the blue guys and now the build seems to be on for Wrestlemania Backlash. Last week saw Shinsuke Nakamura come after Roman Reigns to suggest that he is the next challenger while Charlotte vs. Ronda Rousey in an I Quit match is officially set. Hopefully we get some built towards those matches this week so let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

We open with a long recap of Roman Reigns sending the Usos after the Raw Tag Team Titles, setting up a pair of matches on Raw.

Here are Raw Tag Team Champions Rated RKBro for a chat. We get a lot of posing before Riddle talks about how stoked he is to be back on Smackdown, especially with his best friend Randy. After going on about Worcester being the name for Worcestershire sauce, but it’s named after the one in England, not this one. He learned that off of a Snapple lid, but Orton cuts him off to get serious. Orton wants the Usos out here right now so here they are for the showdown.

The Usos go on a rant about how this is their place and they’re ready for RKBro because they’re twin brothers who are ready to face anyone. Orton says he loves the family but the two of them are a******. Orton says the Big Dog left the b****** off the leash and “frick that” (his words). We hear about Orton’s career in a more fired up way than usual and the challenge is accepted. The Usos go to leave but come back in to pull Riddle off the ropes for a cheap shot, which Cole calls a hit and run.

Sasha Banks/Naomi talk trash to Rhea Ripley/Liv Morgan about Naomi vs. Ripley tonight.

RKBro asks Adam Pearce about the Tag Team Title match but they can only get Riddle vs. Jey tonight, because THAT’S ALL THEY DO FOR TAG TEAM FEUDS.

Naomi vs. Rhea Ripley

Sasha Banks and Liv Morgan are here too because we can’t just have the freaking Tag Team Title match already and have to do a bunch of singles matches first. Ripley powers her into the corner to start and then runs Naomi down with a shoulder for a bonus. A knee sends Ripley to the apron and a big boot knocks her down. Naomi follows her out but gets blasted with a clothesline as we take a break.

Back with Naomi fighting up and hitting an ax kick, followed by a bulldog into the corner. A high crossbody gives Naomi two and she faceplants Rhea for two more. Naomi grabs a full nelson of all things but gets powered into a northern lights suplex. The missile dropkick sends Naomi flying for two but she’s back with a Bubba Bomb (that explains the full nelson) into a cradle for two of her own. Ripley isn’t having that though and grabs the Riptide for the pin at 8:44. Banks looking stunned that a monster like Ripley won a match is kind of funny.

Rating: C+. It’s always nice to see Ripley getting a win like this, even if it keeps Naomi looking as middle of the road as possible. That is about all she does most of the time and the Women’s Tag Team Titles isn’t exactly some huge upgrade for her. Odds are the titles are retained on Raw though, allowing us to have Ripley and Morgan split after….a whole six weeks or so as a team?

The Usos don’t answer any questions and head into Roman Reigns’ locker room.

We look back at Happy Corbin turning on Madcap Moss.

Corbin doesn’t like Moss being called his former associate because Moss was more of a hanger on or a gopher. He blames Moss for losing his undefeated streak and now the loss of dead weight is increasing his happiness levels. Just wait until Moss becomes the laughingstock of Smackdown.

Drew Gulak, auditioning to become part of the broadcast team, asks Moss about what Corbin says. Moss says Corbin bought him his suspenders and taught him how to tell his jokes. That’s why the jokes were bad, because having an audience of bald men with a bad sense of humor will kill anyone. He isn’t worried about facing Humberto either and tells them where the Kiss Cam can go. McAfee explains the joke in case the visual didn’t explain it.

Madcap Moss vs. Humberto

Humberto knocks him into the corner so Angel can get in a cheap shot, allowing Humberto to mock the kissing deal. The chinlock doesn’t last long as Moss fights up and hits an elbow to the face. Moss pulls him out of the air for a fall away slam but the running shoulder in the corner hits Angel. Humberto takes one of his own and the Punch Line finishes for Moss at 2:28. Smart to give him a pretty decisive win, but a grudge match against Corbin isn’t exactly enthralling stuff.

Angel yells at Humberto for losing to a joke.

Charlotte comes in to see Adam Pearce but Drew Gulak interrupts to ask about how he did. Charlotte says Gulak can interview her in the middle of the ring and don’t be nervous.

Usos vs. RKBro is set for Wrestlemania Backlash.

Drew Gulak is in the ring to interview Charlotte. Gulak asks if she is ready for a hard hitting interview but is told to just hold the mic. Charlotte talks about how she turned down the I Quit match with Ronda Rousey because she wanted to keep Rousey safe. Gulak mentions that Charlotte tapped at Wrestlemania but Charlotte INSISTS that she was fixing her bra. That’s not good enough for Gulak, who thinks that had the referee been in place, Rousey would be champion.

Charlotte thinks that is out of line and asks if Drew stopped wrestling so he could hold a microphone and ask stupid questions. She thinks everyone here has quit something, but that is nothing she would ever do. Charlotte tells Gulak to get out of her ring but attacks him before he can. The Figure Eight makes Gulak tap (McAfee: “Charlotte Flair even taps out interviewers!”) and shout that he quits until referees break it up.

We recap Sami Zayn running from Drew McIntyre last week.

Ludwig Kaiser narrates a video about the awesomeness of Gunther.

Drew McIntyre vs. Sami Zayn

Sami says he’s going to prove himself here and then runs to the floor to start. McIntyre follows him out and hits Sami in the face (after avoiding punching McAfee by mistake) before taking him back inside. The Glasgow Kiss looks to set up the Claymore but Zayn runs again, this time taking the countout at 2:29.

Drew isn’t happy post match.

Ricochet is ready to defend his Intercontinental Title.

Sami Zayn runs into Adam Pearce, who makes Sami vs. McIntyre III in a lumberjack match next week.

Intercontinental Title: Ricochet vs. Jinder Mahal

Ricochet is defending and Shanky is here with Mahal. They start fast with Mahal pulling Ricochet away from the ropes for a crash to the mat. Ricochet fights back up and counters the Khallas into a rollup for two. The Recoil sets up the 630 but Shanky pulls Mahal to the floor. That’s fine with Ricochet who dives onto both of them for the big crash. Back in and the shooting star press retains the title at 2:59. Not quite a squash, but Ricochet needed any kind of a win to get him back on track after the Los Lotharios stuff.

Sheamus isn’t happy with Butch losing last week but the solution is that Butch needs to channel his aggression. They try to convince him that New Day is the enemy…but Butch slips away, because he’s treated like a child for whatever reason.

Post break, Butch, Sheamus and Ridge Holland attack New Day, making me wonder why they bothered with the “lost” deal for all of four minutes.

It’s time for part two of the Lacey Evans story. She talks about how her father caught up with her and her mother and had all kinds of anger and mental health issues. He would yell a lot and throw a bunch of things until he was eventually on the run from an assault charge. That helped her learn how to fight from a young age and she knows how to be at rock bottom. No one can phase her because she has been through worse. This continues to be a good bit too serious for a wrestling angle.

Natalya and Shayna Baszler don’t like Lacey Evans treating them like this because Lacey doesn’t respect legends. Lacey is trying to take over the locker room but here is Raquel Rodriguez to say how happy she is to meet Natalya.

Jimmy Uso vs. Riddle

Jey Uso and Randy Orton are here too. An early RKO attempt is blocked and Riddle gets sent hard into the corner. The early chinlock goes on but Riddle fights up and they go to the floor. A superkick rocks Riddle again and we take a break. Back with Riddle firing off a kick and a knee to stagger Jimmy. The Bro To Sleep into a German suplex gets two but Jimmy is back with a pop up Samoan drop. Randy and Jey get into it on the floor to distract Riddle, allowing Jimmy to kick him down. The Superfly Splash misses though and a pop up RKO finishes Jimmy at 9:02.

Rating: C+. Here we have another example of a pretty good match that meant absolutely nothing. Odds are we get every combination of these four until we get to the pay per view and while the big match will be good, it is going to have been so watered down by all of these singles matches that it will lose a bunch of impact. I would love to see WWE change up their formula a bit, but that just isn’t going to happen.

Overall Rating: D+. This was as ho hum of a regular Smackdown as I can remember in a long time. The wrestling was adequate enough but it felt like a night where they just said “oh throw whatever out there”. Mahal gets a title shot, two tag matches are built up with singles matches, Sheamus N Pals vs. New Day continues, Charlotte beats up an interviewer and a Madcap Moss feature match. No Reigns, no Rousey, no Nakamura after the end of last week’s show. It felt like they took a week off here (and they may have due to the holiday), but you can’t get a pre-taped promo in from someone that matters?

Results
Rhea Ripley b. Naomi – Riptide
Madcap Moss b. Humberto – Punch Line
Drew McIntyre b. Sami Zayn via countout
Ricochet b. Jinder Mahal – Shooting star press
Riddle b. Jimmy Uso – RKO

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Smackdown
Date: April 1, 2022
Location: American Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas
Commentators: Michael Cole, Pat McAfee

It’s the go home show for Wrestlemania and that could mean a few things. On one hand, it means we could be in for the last big push before the biggest show of the year, which means an exciting night. On the other hand, it could be WWE putting in as little effort as possible as they have more important things on their minds. Knowing WWE, I’ll go with the latter almost every time. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Commentary welcomes us to the show and gives us a video package on Andre the Giant to hype up his namesake battle royal.

Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal

Tommaso Ciampa, Cedric Alexander, Ivar, Erik, Madcap Moss, Drew Gulak, Shelton Benjamin, Mansoor, Shanky, Jinder Mahal, R-Truth, Akira Tozawa, Reggie, Apollo Crews, Commander Azeez, T-Bar, Damian Priest, Dolph Ziggler, Robert Roode, Finn Balor

This field is lame even by this match’s standards. Only Ziggler, Roode and Balor get entrances. It’s a brawl to start with Tozawa being eliminated, followed by Reggie, who makes the dumb choice of flipping around on the apron. There goes R-Truth, followed by Mahal, the latter of whom goes out at the hands of the Vikings. Benjamin knees T-Bar out and it’s time to start brawling near the ropes. Moss knocks Gulak out as I continue not remembering that Gulak works here.

Cue Happy Corbin to praise Moss but almost low bridges him out by mistake when Balor reverses a whip into the ropes. Ciampa sends Moss to the floor but this time Corbin makes the save. Corbin leaves so it’s time to settle down again. Crews knocks out Alexander and Azeez gets rid of Benjamin. Mansoor’s slingshot neckbreaker is blocked and Ciampa knees him out. The Vikings eliminate Crews but get tossed by Shanky and Azeez, leaving them with the giant showdown.

They fight near the ropes and both get tossed out, leaving us with Priest, Balor, Roode, Moss, Ciampa and Ziggler. Balor and Priest remember that they had a feud for a bit and slug it out until Balor tosses him out. Roode puts Ciampa on the apron and Ziggler hits the superkick for the elimination to get us down to four. That leaves Balor to clean house but he can’t get rid of Roode. Ziggler goes to help Roode but Moss tosses Ziggler and Roode. Balor charges at Moss and gets sent out to give Moss the win at 7:11.

Rating: C-. This was every lame battle royal you’ve seen and that is what the Andre battle royal seems to be. It’s everyone without stuff going on at Wrestlemania being added in to a match on TV, which doesn’t make it feel special. Instead, this feels like a match that WWE has to do and picks a random person to win. Moss is part of a bad angle with Corbin vs. Drew McIntyre, but it isn’t like the match has any history or importance for the most part.

Post match Moss celebrates his win but asks what you should call a battle royal with the smartest Texans. A CATTLE royal!

Intercontinental Title: Ricochet vs. Humberto vs. Angel

Ricochet is defending because this is what the title has become these days. Angel and Humberto share an entrance and their chyron says Los Lotharios, which is a bit of a weird way to set up a triple threat. Ricochet gets knocked into the corner to start, with Angel biting his finger. The obvious double teaming begins and Ricochet gets caught with a running knee to the face. Ricochet fights up and manages a double hurricanrana, because that’s something people can do. Angel catches him on top with a super armdrag though and we take a break.

Back with Ricochet having to fight off the numbers game again, which allows the double teaming to take him down. Humberto nails a spinwheel kick for two, which doesn’t sit well with Angel. The Wing Clipper is loaded up but Humberto rolls Angel up for another near fall as greed enters the equation.

Ricochet uses the distraction to crossbody them down, setting up a rolling dropkick to Angel. The standing shooting star press gets two on Humberto with Angel making the save. Humberto gets backdropped to the floor and an enziguri drops Angel. Ricochet drops Humberto onto Angel, setting up the 630. That’s not enough so Ricochet goes straight to Humberto with the Recoil for the pin to retain at 11:15.

Rating: C+. The action was ok, but the fact that it was a relief to see Ricochet beat a tag team to retain the Intercontinental Title tells you everything you need to know. Ricochet at least comes off as a winner to save the slightest bit of face, but he needs a lot more to make up some of the last few weeks. Now he can move on to a singles challenger, but him sitting on the sidelines might be best for both himself and the title at the moment, as WWE doesn’t seem to know any better.

Long video on Kevin Owens vs. Steve Austin. Owens wanted a way to Wrestlemania so he challenged Austin to come on the KO Show. One day Owens remembered that he hated Texas and started insulting it so he wants the embodiment of Texas to show up. Austin responded from what looked to be some road out in the wilderness, which sends us into the Austin highlight reel set to Bawitaba by Kid Rock because 90s.

Naomi/Sasha Banks vs. Queen Zelina/Carmella

Non-title with Liv Morgan/Rhea Ripley and Natalya/Shayna Baszler at ringside. Carmella kicks Banks to the floor to start, allowing her to get in some dancing. Zelina hits some running knees in the corner and Carmella is back in for a chinlock. That’s broken up and Banks gets in a shot to the face, allowing her to get over to Naomi for the tag. With Carmella dispatched, a Vader Bomb hits Zelina and Naomi adds the split legged moonsault for the pin at 3:26.

Rating: C-. This was about as filler of a match as you can get as they were thrown out there to set up a match that isn’t going to have much interest no matter what they do. The Women’s Tag Team Titles continue to be absolutely nothing and I can’t even get annoyed at the champs losing two days before their Wrestlemania title defense. Nothing match with nothing teams getting ready for a nothing match. Why is this a surprise these days?

Ronda Rousey was training earlier today (appeared to be with Shayna Baszler) and insisted that she was controlling her anger. She’ll be seeing her baby before the show, where she’ll rip off Charlotte’s arm.

Video on Charlotte vs. Ronda Rousey, looking at their respective in-ring/cage careers. Both dominated their sports and now it is a clash of the two titans, which would have been a bit better had they not already had a Wrestlemania match. It is also presented as a battle of holds, with the armbar/ankle lock vs. the Figure Eight. In other words, this sounds better in theory than it has been in reality.

Here is Charlotte for a chat. She praises the video and says it was more dramatic than Coda. She is going to destroy Rousey and, after mocking the WHAT chants by suggesting they are saying WOO, Charlotte declares herself cool. Every woman wants to be like her and every man just wants her. Having people want her autograph and pictures is cool, just like leaving Wrestlemania as the Smackdown Women’s Champion.

Video on Roman reigns vs. Brock Lesnar. I believe they’re fighting soon or something.

Rick Boogs plays Shinsuke Nakamura to the ring so Pat McAfee gets on the announcers’ table….but Austin Theory trips him up. McAfee gives chase to the back, where Theory runs into Vince McMahon’s office. That slows McAfee down but he kicks the door open, with Vince coming out and threatening to fire him. McAfee seems worried and goes back to commentary.

Rick Boogs vs. Jimmy Uso

Shinsuke Nakamura and Jey Uso are here too and McAfee is back on commentary. Boogs curls Uso to start before throwing him down. Jimmy is right back up with a whip to send Boogs into the post to cut him down but Boogs manages to gorilla press Jimmy….from his knees. Boogs stands up and drops him into a fall away slam, because that’s something a person can do. Cue Theory to grab a cup of ice from a fan and throw it at McAfee, who manages to keep his cool. Cue Finn Balor to go after Theory so all six get in the ring for the double DQ at 3:08.

Rating: D+. That gorilla press alone was worth seeing but that’s all they had in such a short match. Normally I would have an issue with WWE doing so many things in one match, but this is a bit of a weird situation. Balor vs. Theory is a feud that has been going on in recent weeks, though Balor isn’t even on Wrestlemania. I’m not sure why they are building feuds for beyond Wrestlemania, but we seem to be ready for a six man tag here to keep it going even further.

Usos/Austin Theory vs. Finn Balor/Shinsuke Nakamura/Rick Boogs

Joined in progress with Nakamura getting two on Jey. The running knee to the ribs in the corner gets one but a quick shot allows Jey to get over to Theory. Nakamura knees Theory in the ribs as McAfee is VERY pleased with the fans not liking Theory. Boogs comes in and grabs the rotating back and forth gutwrench suplex for two.

It’s off to Balor, who gets sent outside for a cheap shot from Jey to put him down. The villains glare down at McAfee and we take a break. Back with Jimmy missing a splash in the corner but Jey knocks Boogs off the apron to cut off a tag attempt. Balor hits the basement dropkick to rock Jimmy though and it’s a double diving tag to Nakamura and Theory. Nakamura gets to clean house, including a kick to Theory’s head and the sliding German suplex.

Everything breaks down and Boogs is sent hard into the steps. Balor comes in to clothesline Theory to the floor, setting up the big running flip dive. The Sling Blade connects back inside and it’s the shotgun dropkick to knock him down again. A distraction lets Theory break up the Coup de Grace though and the ATL finishes Balor at 11:29.

Rating: C. I knew this was coming and I still cringed at the pinfall. For the life of me I don’t get why WWE feels the need to do this, but if Theory isn’t US Champion by the end of the next pay per view (at the VERY latest), this is another entry on the long list of stupid things WWE has done. The US Champion shouldn’t be losing most of the time, but this is what, three or so falls he has taken to set up a match he isn’t even in? It’s another case of WWE feeling like they are trying to make things worse for someone they seem interested in pushing. Only WWE, thank goodness.

Post match McAfee gets on the apron to stare Theory down but he manages to keep his composure.

Here are Happy Corbin and Madcap Moss for Happy Talk, complete with a table to hold Angela the sword. Moss brags about winning the Andre the Giant battle royal earlier, but Corbin says he was supposed to do that. Corbin is euphoric and thinks that could be his new name. We look at how he got the sword and Corbin brags about everything he has done at Wrestlemania over the years.

The sword is more of an insurance policy and he could decapitate someone with the thing. How depressing is it to name the sword after McIntyre’s dead mother? Corbin: “What does Drew McIntyre’s sword and his mother have in common? He lost them both.” Cue McIntyre, who knocks Moss out with one shot on the way to the ring. McIntyre grabs a chair and throws it at Corbin’s head (that was smart), causing the sword to fall down. The set is cleared out and McIntyre cuts the table in half.

Wrestlemania rundown.

Back in the ring, McIntyre stable the mat a few times to make fire and pyro go off to end the show.

Overall Rating: D+. Oh they didn’t care. It was clear that this was designed to be a way to have a show before Wrestlemania and nothing more. None of the matches were good and a lot of this was about hyping things up. This has been the case for a pretty long time now and that reputation is why I was at other shows on Friday night and the only part I saw that night was at a restaurant between other events. It wasn’t that the show was bad, but rather that it was unimportant and WWE didn’t care. That’s as bad of a feeling that you can have and it was on in full display this week.

Results
Madcap Moss won the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal last eliminating Finn Balor
Ricochet b. Angel and Humberto – Recoil to Humberto
Naomi/Sasha Banks b. Carmella/Queen Zelina – Split legged moonsault to Zelina
Rick Boogs vs. Jimmy Uso went to a double DQ when Jey Uso and Shinsuke Nakamura interfered
Austin Theory/Usos b. Shinsuke Nakamura/Rick Boogs/Finn Balor – ATL to Balor

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Smackdown
Date: March 25, 2022
Location: Barclays Center, New York City, New York
Commentators: Michael Cole, Pat McAfee

We’re eight days away from Wrestlemania and believe it or not, the preview for the show has a picture of Roman Reigns/Brock Lesnar/Paul Heyman, because that is the only thing on this show that matters. It would be nice for the new Intercontinental Champion to get a Wrestlemania match set up, but I wouldn’t bet on it anytime soon. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

We open with a recap of Brock Lesnar’s path of rage last week, including the fork lift attack on the Bloodline’s SUV.

Opening sequence.

Brock Lesnar is outside of Reigns’ dressing room and says that he has paid some fines and bought some vehicles, including a blood red SUV for Reigns himself. Now upper management has told him to not have any contact with Reigns, so he’ll be sitting in Reigns’ locker room and wait for a good provoking. Lesnar goes into the empty room, likes what he has found (“Not as good as mine but not bad”) and puts his feet on the table, breaking it in the process. As Lesnar tends to do.

Jimmy Uso vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Jey Uso and Rick Boogs are here too, with Boogs throwing Jey at Jimmy to send us to a break before the bell. The battle over wrist control doesn’t last long so Nakamura gives us a COME ON before taking Jimmy down. Good Vibrations makes it worse for Jimmy and he heads outside for a breather.

Back in and Jimmy gets two off a belly to back suplex, setting up the chinlock. Nakamura fights up but gets sent to the apron and then out to the floor. Jimmy’s suicide dive is cut off by a kick to the head though and we take a break. Back with Nakamura knocking Jimmy down again but Jey jumps Boogs before Kinshasa can launch. The distraction lets Jimmy hit a superkick for two so Jey goes after the guitar. That distraction lets Nakamura hit a spinning kick to the head, setting up Kinshasa for the pin at 8:36.

Rating: C-. It’s not a good sign when you need to go double interference and the fact that it’s a singles match to set up a tag match at the pay per view. This is one of WWE’s most overdone tropes and I’m not sure why it is supposed to be impressive. Nakamura is a former multiple time singles champion and a former Royal Rumble winner. Jimmy Uso is a career tag guy with pretty much no notable singles wins. Why is this an accomplishment for Nakamura?

Raw Rebound, focusing on Kevin Owens as Steve Austin.

Brock Lesnar is eating Roman Reigns’ grapes and breaking his bottle of champagne.

Shad Gaspard is receiving the Warrior Award at the Hall of Fame.

Drew McIntyre could take out Happy Corbin tonight but he’d rather do it on the biggest stage of them all.

Video on Happy Corbin’s fall and rise back up to the top of the world. Then he joined up with Madcap Moss and took out Drew McIntyre, leading to their Wrestlemania match.

Kofi Kingston vs. Ridge Holland

Hold on though, as Kofi has a surprise: Holland is facing the returning Xavier Woods! The fact that Woods was introduced as accompanying Kofi to the ring might take away some of the surprise.

King Woods vs. Ridge Holland

Sheamus and Butch are here too. Holland throws him around to start and gets small packaged for the pin at 46 seconds. Ok then.

Paul Heyman joins us from Roman Reigns’ car after a trip to Del Frisco’s Steakhouse. They’re on their way here and know what Brock Lesnar has done. Threats are made if Lesnar isn’t out of there.

Here’s Ronda Rousey for a chat but first we recap her recent issues with Charlotte. Rousey says she isn’t taking Charlotte’s title, because after Charlotte taps, she can give the title over. Then she’ll be the “Women’s Smackdown Champion.” Rousey: “Why do we have to say women anyway? Call me the Smackdown Champion”.

She calls Charlotte out, but here is Charlotte via satellite to say she isn’t here tonight. Rousey says she broke her first arm at 14 and now she has lost count of how many she has broken. Charlotte laughs it off so Rousey threatens to take her arm off at Wrestlemania. As usual, Rousey is not the most natural speaker.

Kayla Braxton comes in to see Brock Lesnar and asks if he should leave Roman Reigns’ locker room. Lesnar says go find Reigns because he is running out of things to break.

Ricochet vs. Humberto

Championship Contenders match. Angel is here with Humberto for the Los Lotharios Kiss Cam and it takes some time for them to find a woman to kiss. We take a break before the match and come back with…this.

Ricochet vs. Angel

Yes they changed the match during the commercial, because WWE likes to do weird things. Angel starts fast but gets set into the corner, allowing Ricochet to nip up. A jumping knee sets up a high crossbody but Humberto offers a distraction, allowing Angel to small package him for the pin at 2:03.

Post match Ricochet says not so fast so let’s do this too.

Ricochet vs. Humberto

Championship Contenders match. Ricochet isn’t playing this time and knocks Humberto outside, setting up the big running flip dive to send us to a break. Back with Ricochet hitting a springboard hurricanrana, setting up a middle rope moonsault. Angel’s distraction lets Humberto roll him up for two but Ricochet rolls some suplexes for two. Angel pulls Humberto out of the way of the 630 so Ricochet hits a big dive to wipe Angel out. That sends Angel underneath the ring so Ricochet hits a tornado DDT on the floor. Then Angel grabs the foot and Ricochet is counted out at 7:03.

Rating: D+. Well that’s to be expected. Since there is absolutely no other way to set up a title match than by having the champ lose twice in ten minutes, here we are. Ricochet couldn’t just say he wanted a challenge, have both of them come out, and then say sure I’ll do it. No, that would be too interesting and make him look too good. This is the best idea that they had and that says a lot.

Austin Theory runs up behind Pat McAfee and slaps his headset off. McAfee gives chase but Theory runs into Mr. McMahon’s office, leaving McAfee slapping the door. Shouldn’t McAfee have tripped on the way there and then paid a janitor for messing something up? Seems how most good guys are on this show.

We hear about HHH’s in-ring career being over, which is rather sobering given how close to death he was.

Sasha Banks vs. Rhea Ripley vs. Carmella vs. Queen Zelina

All of their partners are here too. Banks and Ripley clear the ring to start and Rhea hits the Rey Mysterio sitout bulldog. Everyone, including partners, get inside for a big brawl and we take a break. Back with the partners all gone and Baszler saving banks from the Prism Trap. Zelina comes in and covers all three for two each but gets pulled into the Bank Statement.

Baszler tries another save so it’s a double Bank Statement with Ripley having to make a save. Banks has to save Ripley from the Kirifuda Clutch, leaving Baszler to save Banks from Zelina’s Code Red. With Baszler on the floor, Ripley hits a flip dive but Vega takes Ripley out as well. Back in and the Bank Statement makes Vega tap at 8:48.

Rating: C. The champ loses again because that’s how you set up title matches around here. This was another match where everyone was doing stuff until one of them got the pin, which is somehow supposed to make me want to see these four teams in a match at Wrestlemania. It didn’t do so in particular, and I doubt it will either on Raw when the other four do the same thing.

Roman Reigns and Paul Heyman arrive. Heyman says he’s worried but Reigns says he’ll be fine. Reigns: “But Brock Lesnar won’t.”

We run down the Wrestlemania card.

Here are Roman Reigns and Paul Heyman for the big final chat. Reigns says Brock Lesnar better be out of his locker room so we cut to said locker room, where Lesnar is nowhere to be found. We cut to the parking lot, where Lesnar has a PICKAXE to smash up Reigns’ car. Reigns says there won’t be any weapons at Wrestlemania, so Lesnar comes to the ring.

Cue Lesnar through the crowd to stare at Reigns from the announcers’ table. Security comes out so Lesnar grabs a chair and dives onto the guards. Reigns and Heyman (plus the Usos, who just appeared) bail so Lesnar beats up security some more. Reigns pops up on screen and promises to make Lesnar acknowledge him at Wrestlemania.

This was one of the most frustrating endings to a show I have seen in a long time. The segment was good, as have been most of the Lesnar vs. Reigns showdowns. What makes it frustrating is that WWE knows how to make a match feel important but they would rather just focus on this one match than anything else on the show. They have intentionally made Wrestlemania a one match show and it has been such a huge part of what is wrong with this year’s show.

Overall Rating: D. I don’t remember the last time I was this annoyed at a WWE show and everything turned on those Ricochet matches. This show felt like it was either actively trying to make everyone (save Lesnar) I’m supposed to cheer for at Wrestlemania look like a loser or trying to make every match as uninteresting as possible. Lesnar vs. Reigns might as well be the whole show and WWE continues to use the same tropes they have used for years to weaker and weaker impact. This show got on my nerves in a big way and that is not a good sign eight days before the biggest weekend of the year.

Results
Shinsuke Nakamura b. Jimmy Uso – Kinshasa
King Woods b. Ridge Holland – Small package
Angel b. Ricochet – Rollup
Humberto b. Ricochet via countout
Sasha Banks b. Queen Zelina, Shayna Baszler and Rhea Ripley – Bank Statement to Vega

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Smackdown
Date: December 24, 2021
Location: Allstate Arena, Rosemont, Illinois
Commentators: Michael Cole, Pat McAfee

It’s Christmas Eve and thankfully we are taped instead of running a live show. We have a stacked card this week too, with a 12 man gauntlet match for to crown a new #1 contender to the Intercontinental Title, along with a showdown for the SmackDown Women’s Title as Charlotte defends against Toni Storm. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

We open with a recap of the end of last year’s show, with Roman Reigns hugging Paul Heyman, then firing him and laying him out with the Superman Punch. Then it was Brock Lesnar coming out and attacking Reigns to wrap things up.

Earlier today, Kayla Braxton sat down with a disheveled Paul Heyman (he needs to shave) so he can tell his side of the story. What happened was he was publicly fired, publicly attacked and publicly shamed. He told Roman Reigns the truth and he paid the price for it, publicly. Heyman doesn’t regret telling the truth because he was doing his job as special counsel.

Last week, his things had been thrown out of the locker room, but he had done his job. Reigns is the greatest Universal Champion of all time, but he needs to be protected from Brock Lesnar. Maybe now he needs to go to NXT and cherry pick a top talent and start over. But no, not at this stage. He put everything into Roman Reigns, but without him, maybe it’s time to acknowledge that his career is most likely over. Sweet goodness this man is talented.

Women’s Title: Charlotte vs. Toni Storm

Charlotte is defending. They fight over a lockup to start with Storm not being able to get very far. Charlotte kicks her in the ribs but gets crossbodied down for an early one. The champ needs a breather on the floor before coming back in to stomp/chop away in the corner. We hit the figure four necklock for a bit until Charlotte flips her over, setting up the nipup. Back up and Storm scores with a headbutt, only to get kicked out to the floor as we take a break.

We come back with Charlotte slapping her in the face and shouting about how much better she is than Storm. That’s enough to get Storm back up, so Charlotte blasts her with a clothesline. Storm finally hits a snap suplex but Charlotte forearms her in the corner. The Downward Spiral into the middle buckle cuts Storm off yet again, setting up the double moonsault for a double two.

Natural Selection is blocked though and Storm hits a quick German suplex. Not that it matters as Charlotte pulls her into the Figure Four (it takes a bit but she gets there), forcing Toni to roll into the ropes for the break. Back up and a big boot sends Storm out to the floor to keep up the near dominance. Some rollups give Storm two but Charlotte reverses into a small package of her own to retain at 14:35.

Rating: B-. Charlotte dominated the majority of the match until it felt like she caught Storm in the end. This was a feud that saw Charlotte get the better of things far more often than not and then beat Storm up in the title match. I’m not sure how this helped Storm in almost any way, but it wasn’t exactly a great look for her. I’m almost scared to see what is next for Charlotte, as she is running out of people to beat.

We look back at Drew McIntyre pulling Angela out of the desk after Happy Corbin and Madcap Moss couldn’t make it work.

Drew McIntyre and New Day are ready for the Usos and Madcap Moss tonight. It might even be time for some SEASONS BEATINGS!

Xia Li doesn’t like women like Natalya, who crush other women’s spirits. Violence/vengeance is promised.

Gauntlet Match

It’s a 12 Days Of Christmas Gauntlet Match with the winner getting an Intercontinental Title shot against Shinsuke Nakamura (ringside with Rick Boogs). Angel is in at #1 and Mansoor is in at #2 with the latter being pulled off the top for an early and nasty crash. An enziguri doesn’t get Mansoor very far as Angel hits the Wing Clipper for the pin at 1:36.

Erik is in at #3 and gets kicked off the apron before the bell. Angel tries a moonsault to the floor but gets pulled out of the air. Erik slams him hard on the floor and we take a break. Back with Erik kneeing him in the face for two but missing the running knees in the corner. Another Wing Clipper ends Erik at 6:59 and it’s Shanky in at #4.

A dropkick has no effect on Shanky, who knocks Angel hard into the corner. Wade Barrett’s old Wasteland ends Angel at 8:31 and it’s Ivar in at #5. A big boot drops Ivar but he’s right back up with some corner clotheslines to put Shanky down for a change. The Viking Splash ends Shanky at 9:51 so here is Sheamus in at #6. Sheamus hammers away but gets punched out to the floor as we take another break. Back again with Sheamus grabbing the chinlock to keep Ivar in trouble. That’s broken up with viking power but Sheamus Brogue Kicks him for the pin at 15:50.

Drew Gulak is in at #7 and gets Brogue Kicked for the pin at 16:31. Cesaro is in at #8 with bad ribs but hits a high crossbody for two anyway. That’s a Regal roll onto the ribs and we hit an armbar of all things to keep Cesaro down. Cesaro fights up but it’s a Ridge Holland distraction so Sheamus can hit another Brogue Kick for the pin at 21:18. Ricochet is in at #9 and kicks Sheamus outside for a heck of a top rope Asai moonsault to send us to another break.

Back again with Sheamus hitting the Irish Curse and grabbing a chinlock. Sheamus powerslams him to cut off a comeback attempt, setting up the ten forearms to the chest. A top rope clothesline misses though and Ricochet grabs a tornado DDT for two more. Ricochet’s Lionsault hits knees so Sheamus grabs a small package for a very near fall. Sheamus gets knocked off the top to set up a standing moonsault for two more. Holland offers another distraction though, allowing Sheamus to knee Ricochet off the apron. Cue Cesaro to take out Holland to distract Sheamus, with Ricochet getting the rollup pin at 30:52.

Humberto is in at #10 but first, Sheamus gets to knock Ricochet silly again. Humberto’s moonsault hits raised knees though and it’s the Recoil for the pin at 32.21. Jinder Mahal is in at #11 and drops Ricochet onto the apron toput him in trouble. The Khallas is countered into a cradle to give rid of Mahal at 33:01 though and it’s Sami Zayn in at #12. We take another break and come back with Sami pounding him in the corner and hitting a clothesline for two.

Sami goes up and talks trash, with the delay being enough for Ricochet to snap off a super hurricanrana for two of his own. Ricochet blocks the Blue Thunder Bomb and hits a crossbody for two more. The Blue Thunder Bomb gives Sami a rather near fall but he can’t hit an exploder into the corner. Another attempt does connect but the Helluva Kick is cut off with a superkick. The Benedriller gives Ricochet a very close two so Ricochet heads up top. The shooting star press only hits knees though and it’s a second exploder into the corner. Now Sami can hit the Helluva Kick for the pin and the win at 42:16.

Rating: B-. This was rather long and that’s a good idea on a show like this one. Sami winning wasn’t quite a huge surprise, as he has been quite the focal point of Smackdown for the last few weeks. It wouldn’t surprise me to see him getting the title in the end. Nakamura has done well as champion, but Sami has more of a story going and it would make sense to see him win. The rest of the match had its moments, especially from Ricochet and Sheamus, but a lot of people were in and out without much going on. You have to do something like that in this kind of a match, though it does mean things go rather fast.

We look back at Roman Reigns firing Paul Heyman again.

We get a long, detailed look at Paul Heyman’s career, including a good bit of WCW and ECW footage. After a look at everything that happened to him with Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns, we wrap it up with the ending of the show’s opening segment, with Heyman saying his career is probably over. This was pretty cool and showed you just how far Heyman has come in his career.

Madcap Moss/Usos vs. Drew McIntyre/New Day

Miracle on 34th Street Fight with Happy Corbin in Moss/Usos’ corner. Woods headlocks Jey to start and then decks him with a forearm. It’s off to Kofi for the slingshot Vader Bomb but he gets taken into the wrong corner. That doesn’t last long though as McIntyre gets the tag so he can hammer on Moss for a bit. Everything breaks down and it’s Corbin coming in with a candy cane kendo stick to drop McIntyre. The other four fight on the stage, with New Day being thrown through boxes and trees.

We take a break and come back with everyone at ringside, including the Usos still using the boxes on New Day. Kofi gets crushed between two trees (Cole: “The old Christmas tree sandwich!”) as Moss stops McIntyre with some raised boots in the corner. McIntyre is back with a suplex as Woods finds a chair in one of the boxes. We go ECW with a Van Daminator to Jimmy but some egg nog seems to slow him down.

That leaves Kofi to Boom Drop Jimmy, followed by a top rope spinning hurricanrana (cool). It’s time to bring in the cookies, which Kofi slams onto the Usos’ heads, because it’s a theme thing. Moss yells at McIntyre so it’s some snap belly to belly suplexes into a neckbreaker for Moss’ troubles. Corbin breaks up the Claymore though so Kofi egg nogs him. McIntyre does the same to Corbin and Moss at the same time, leaving Woods to kick Corbin into the announcers’ table. The Claymore finishes Moss at 12:30.

Rating: C. This is a match where your tolerance for goofy themed comedy will decide everything. Ignoring all that though, this was mainly a not that great six man, with the good guys fighting from underneath to win in the end. That’s not the most thrilling way to wrap it up, but at least McIntyre got to kick Moss in the face. For a fun main event on a less than serious show, not too shabby though.

Post match McIntyre and New Day throw presents into the crowd (McIntyre seems rather proud of one of his throws) to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. The Heyman stuff was excellent and makes me wonder where the story is going. Throw in a good and rather long gauntlet match, a somewhat depressing Women’s Title match and a fun enough main event and we’ll call this a goodish show. It’s definitely a week that seems like they were taking the night off, but at least they did enough good things to carry us to the last week of the year.

Results
Charlotte b. Toni Storm- Small package
Sami Zayn won a gauntlet match last eliminating Ricochet
New Day/Drew McIntyre b. Madcap Moss/Usos – Claymore to Moss

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Smackdown
Date: November 26, 2021
Location: Greensboro Coliseum, Greensboro, North Carolina
Commentators: Michael Cole, Pat McAfee

We’re done with Survivor Series, where a grand total of very little took place. Raw won the Battle For Brand Supremacy but Roman Reigns beat Big E. in the show’s main event. We are now on the way to Day 1 and Reigns’ next challenger will be determined this week via a battle royal. Let’s get to it.

Here is Survivor Series if you need a recap.

Kayla Braxton is in the ring to talk about Brock Lesnar’s suspension but here are Paul Heyman and Roman Reigns to interrupt. Heyman says we don’t deal with rumors like this one on the Island of Relevancy. The fans aren’t pleased but Heyman tells them to stop booing Braxton. He wants Braxton to go get some sources and find some real news. Stop living through an Instagram filter because there is no real journalist filter. Braxton is allowed to leave so the fans want Brock. McAfee: “Did they say let’s go……Brandon?”

Reigns says the problem with rumors is they give losers false hope. Compared to him, everyone around here is a loser. He has beaten everyone around here and Brock is the biggest loser of them all. After Survivor Series, Big E. is a loser too and it’s getting embarrassing around here. Tonight we have a Black Friday Battle Royal to crown a new #1 contender. Why not let three or four of them win tonight because he can smash them all? When his days are done around here, which could be sooner than later, the world will acknowledge him.

We recap Drew McIntyre helping Jeff Hardy last week vs. Happy Corbin/Madcap Moss.

Happy Corbin/Madcap Moss vs. Drew McIntyre/Jeff Hardy

Corbin jumps Hardy to start and gets atomic dropped into the basement dropkick. Moss comes in and gets elbowed in the face to give McIntyre two. The fans are very pleased with Hardy as he comes back in to work on Moss’ arm. Moss is sent outside and Hardy dives off the apron to hit Corbin as well. A clothesline puts Hardy into the timekeeper’s area though and we take a break.

Back with Corbin throwing Hardy into the corner but he’s back up with a double clothesline to put himself and Moss down. The hot tag brings in McIntyre, who cuts off the slide under the ropes clothesline. Moss’ interference lets Corbin grab Deep Six for two and everything breaks down. The Glasgow Kiss drops Moss into the Claymore into the Swanton to give Hardy the pin at 8:25.

Rating: C. Perfectly watchable tag match here and the hometown star even gets to win for a change. It was a simple match that played off of last week’s stuff and gave the fans something to cheer about. Again: WWE knows how to do this kind of thing and a (fairly long) string of matches like these could do a lot of good for restoring some fan confidence.

Aliyah and Kayla Braxton are chatting but Paul Heyman comes in to scare Aliyah off. Heyman asks if Braxton has any confirmations yet, before saying that Reigns isn’t scared of Lesnar. If she doesn’t have a confirmation by the end of the night, he’s pushing to get rid of her. Or is that just a rumor?

Cesaro vs. Ridge Holland

Sheamus is on commentary to sing Holland’s praises. Holland runs Cesaro over to start and grabs an early chinlock. That’s broken up so Holland busts out a heck of an overhead belly to belly for two. A powerslam drops Cesaro again for no cover as Holland would rather elbow him in the face a few times. Holland pauses for a second though and gets rolled up for the pin at 2:48.

Drew McIntyre says he wants in the battle royal but Adam Pearce and Sonya Deville don’t have a final lineup yet.

Rick Boogs vs. Angel

This is billed as a Thanksgiving Leftovers Throwdown. McAfee: “THINGS ARE MESSY IN MY PANTS RIGHT NOW!” There are a bunch of Thanksgiving leftovers around the ring and Boogs teases putting Angle through a table of them to start. That’s broken up and we hit the crossarm choke back inside. Boogs powers up and busts out a heck of a gutwrench suplex. Humberto has to be dealt with and it’s a gutwrench powerbomb for two on Angel. Humberto grabs the guitar but Shinsuke Nakamura puts him through the table. The distraction lets Angel hit a superkick into the Wing Clipper for the pin at 3:12.

Rating: C-. This was a bit messy, but the weirder part is that they didn’t even bother with the Thanksgiving stuff. What is the point in having it out there if you could have the same match without the stuff included? Boogs losing to Angel isn’t a terrible thing, and should lead to a big tag match, or maybe an Intercontinental Title match.

Video on Becky Lynch cheating to beat Charlotte at Survivor Series.

Kayla Braxton asks Adam Pearce about Brock Lesnar’s suspension, and happens to have a clip of Lesnar attacking Pearce ready. Pearce isn’t happy and says Lesnar’s suspension isn’t being lifted anytime soon.

Here is Charlotte for a chat. Charlotte says Becky Lynch had to cheat to beat her because Charlotte is the better woman. Cue Toni Storm to say she’s stepping up to Charlotte before Charlotte has the chance to come after her. Charlotte isn’t pleased and offers to beat Storm up right now. The brawl is on and Charlotte is sent outside, where she grabs a leftover pie to knock Storm down. Then Charlotte does it again for a bonus, with Storm….just standing there and looking at her. And yes, that’s the whole segment: Storm interrupts, gets pied twice, and does absolutely nothing.

Earlier today, Sasha Banks blamed Sonya Deville for costing them the Survivor Series match for not putting Naomi on the team. Deville doesn’t like that but Banks suggests that Deville is jealous. All Deville is now is a suit, which Deville says makes her the boss. Deville makes a tag match.

Xia Li is still coming soon.

Sasha Banks/Naomi vs. Natalya/Shayna Baszler

Sonya Deville is on commentary. Baszler goes with an early ankle lock on Banks but the Kirifuda Clutch is backed into the corner. Naomi comes in but gets taken to the floor, where Natalya gives her the release atomic drop. Back in and Banks has to break up the Kirifuda Clutch with a Backstabber to Baszler as we take a break.

Back with Baszler knocking Banks off the apron again and cranking on Naomi’s leg. A double suplex puts Naomi down and Natalya grabs a chinlock. That’s broken up and Naomi flips out of a suplex but Natalya pulls her back down. The discus lariat gives Natalya two and a Michinoku Driver is good for the same. Back up and Naomi grabs a quick rollup for the pin at 10:16.

Rating: C. Banks kind of disappeared near the end, but this wasn’t about her anyway. I’m glad to see Naomi actually win something for once to get one up on Deville as their eventual showdown continues to loom. Overcoming the odds is the point to one of these evil bosses stories so this was a good way to move things forward.

Deville reluctantly applauds the winners.

The lineup has been released for the battle royal…but Drew McIntyre didn’t make it. Sneering ensues.

Raw Rebound.

Battle Royal

Ivar, Erik, Sheamus, Sami Zayn, Drew Gulak, Ricochet, Jinder Mahal, Humberto, Angel, Cesaro, Happy Corbin, Shaky, Mace, Rick Boogs, Mansoor, Madcap Moss, Ridge Holland, Jeff Hardy

Hold on though as here is Drew McIntyre with the sword to chase everyone off. Adam Pearce comes out to try and calm things down as we take a break. We come back with things having started and the Bloodline watching in the back. Mahal is out early and Sami kicks Gulak out. Sheamus and Holland knockout Mansoor and there goes Mace. Moss manages to get rid of Shanky and Cesaro dumps Holland, only to get tossed by Moss as well.

Corbin doesn’t seem to notice Moss’ success, but Moss tries to toss him instead. That’s fine with Corbin, who eliminates Moss instead. We take a break and come back with more halfhearted elimination attempts. Sheamus punches Zayn to the apron and Angel tosses Boogs. The Vikings get rid of Angel and Humberto and Zayn goes through the ropes (not out) to the floor. Sheamus gets beaten up by the Vikings as well but he manages to send both of them out. We’re down to Ricochet, Sheamus, Hardy, Corbin and Zayn as Ricochet hits a springboard crossbody to drop Sheamus.

A rolling dropkick hits Hardy but Corbin clotheslines Ricochet. There’s a chokebreaker to drop Ricochet again but he comes back with an enziguri. Sheamus Brogue Kicks Ricochet though and he’s out without much trouble. Corbin and Sheamus slug it out but Hardy is back up to catch Corbin with a Twisting Stunner. Sheamus is back up to help Corbin go after Hardy but Corbin turns on him for the elimination. Hardy tosses Sheamus….and forgets that Zayn is still in and gets eliminated to give Sami the win at 19:43.

Rating: C. It was a battle royal with the most annoying ending possible and the hometown star slipping on a banana peel to lose in the end. The “hey he’s still in” finish is one of the most overdone concepts that WWE loves to use and you could see it a mile away here. Zayn winning is interesting, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see something take that title shot away.

Roman Reigns is rather pleased in the back.

Kayla Braxton gets in the ring to interview Sami but we have BREAKING NEWS: Brock Lesnar’s suspension has been lifted and he will be back next week. Now Reigns isn’t pleased to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. This certainly wasn’t a great show but they did enough to make things work. I would still expect King Woods to wind up getting the next major Universal Title shot but they still have tome to get there. At least some things were moved forward here and it was a more interesting show with the Survivor Series stuff out of the way.

Results
Drew McIntyre/Jeff Hardy b. Happy Corbin/Madcap Moss – Swanton Bomb to Moss
Cesaro b. Ridge Holland – Rollup
Angel b. Rick Boogs – Wing Clipper
Naomi/Sasha Banks b. Natalya/Shayna Baszler – Rollup to Natalya
Sami Zayn won a battle royal last eliminating Jeff Hardy

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Smackdown
Date: November 19, 2021
Location: XL Center, Hartford, Connecticut
Commentators: Michael Cole, Pat McAfee

It’s the go home show for Survivor Series and that means it is time to hype up the Battle Of Brand Supremacy. We don’t have anything else to talk about on the show because there are no title matches or really anything personal to build towards, but maybe Big E. can show up to avenge his friends. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

We open with a recap of last week’s main event, with the Usos getting Roman Reigns DQ’ed against Xavier Woods. Reigns got the crown anyway.

Here are the Usos to promise to win on Sunday and gives a passionate introduction to Roman Reigns. The throne is set up and Paul Heyman talks about how much he deserves to be crowned king more than anyone else. Heyman says Xavier Woods should never be king, nor should Big E., who will be smashed this weekend by the Tribal King. Reigns asks for the mic and wants to know whose idea this was. He has no idea why anyone would want this because he has already put in the work. Reigns: “HARTFORD, ACKNOWLEDGE ME!”

Cue Xavier Woods to say he challenges Reigns for tonight, with the Usos (referred to as the goons) staying in the back, but the stuff in the ring doesn’t matter. Reigns likes that and tells the Usos to destroy the throne and everything else. Only the crown is left, so Reigns gives him one more change to save it. Woods charges in and gets beaten down. Reigns has him dragged to the middle and says he doesn’t need props. The crown is destroyed and Woods is sent into the pieces. This is one of the best feuds going in WWE today and I’m looking forward to Woods challenging Reigns at Day One in Atlanta.

Post break Woods can’t walk through the back but he’ll be in the ring to face Reigns tonight. Everyone knows the Roman Empire wasn’t built in a day but it will fall tonight.

Cesaro vs. Sheamus vs. Ricochet vs. Jinder Mahal

The winner gets the final spot on the Survivor Series team. Cesaro and Sheamus knock the other two down to start so Sheamus can clothesline him. Sheamus does the Bar pose and then beats Ricochet up, only to get sunset flipped for two. Mahal is back up with a knee to Ricochet’s head and they pair off again. Ricochet is tied in the ropes so Sheamus can hit the forearms but Mahal rolls Sheamus up for two. That sets up the forearms to Mahal’s chest but Ricochet is back in to clear out Sheamus and Cesaro. A crazy high springboard flip dive takes out everyone and we take a break.

Back (with a graphic showing everyone’s name and face, which is a REALLY nice thing to have and something that should have been around a long time ago) with Sheamus superplexing Mahal, followed by Ricochet’s super hurricanrana to Cesaro. We hit a parade of taking each other down, leaving Cesaro to Swing Mahal.

The parade of secondary finishers is on but Mahal can’t Khallas Ricochet. Instead it’s Ricochet up with the 630 to Mahal but Sheamus Brogue Kicks him down. Sheamus gets two on Mahal with Cesaro making the save before uppercutting Sheamus out of the air. The Neutralizer is loaded up but here’s Ridge Holland for a distraction, allowing Sheamus to Brogue Kick Cesaro for the pin at 11:01.

Rating: B-. There were some awesome spots in here and Ricochet looked like a star. You could go with a few different choices for the win here and Sheamus works well enough. You can always use a big brawler on a team and while it would be nice to see Ricochet getting the spot, at least it isn’t trying to shine Mahal up again.

Jeff Hardy is excited to team with some very talented people this year, but Happy Corbin is in his own world. Cue Happy Corbin and Madcap Moss, with the latter calling Hardy a redneck. Adam Pearce comes in to say he wants Smackdown to win on Sunday (Since when?) but for tonight, it’s Moss vs. Hardy. That makes Hardy point and laugh in a nice moment.

Sheamus is happy to have Ridge Holland in his corner and can’t believe he was Holland’s inspiration. To the bar they go.

Commentary introduces a long video on Charlotte vs. Becky Lynch, with an acknowledgment of their feud that the media has been talking about. This is a really weird feud as the most of the thing is about something that didn’t officially happen on WWE TV but everyone has heard about it and WWE is running with the thing. I could go with some kind of a direct acknowledgment, but this is feeling more like the AEW model where “yeah but everyone knows what we mean.” You can’t do it all the time, but it’s working here.

Anyway, we see the awkward title exchange and get a talk about how their careers will always be intertwined, including the first women’s match to main event Wrestlemania. Then we move into their on-screen stuff as of late, which is more of a traditional feud between two titans of the division.

Natalya/Shayna Baszler vs. Aliyah/Naomi

Aliyah starts fast with a hurricanrana to Natalya and everything breaks down in a hurry. Shayna grabs the Kirifuda Clutch on Naomi but Natalya tags herself in. That’s broken up and Natalya grabs a rollup for a fast count pin at 1:03 (with the referee bolting to the back). I don’t know if you’re picking up on this, but we might have a corrupt authority figure around here.

Sami Zayn tells Sonya Deville that everything is wrong with his documentary but Sonya has an idea: let’s have a 25 man battle royal at Survivor Series in honor of 25 years since the Rock’s debut. Hold on though as the referee pops in to ask if she did a good job in the women’s tag. Sonya has no idea who she is because she doesn’t associate with crooked referees so get out of here.

Madcap Moss vs. Jeff Hardy

Happy Corbin is here with Moss, so Hardy brings out Drew McIntyre to be in his corner. Hardy starts fast and takes Moss down, setting up the Swanton in a hurry. Corbin goes for a distraction so McIntyre throws him over the announcers’ table. Moss catches Hardy on top and tries a suplex but gets reversed into into a small package to give Hardy the pin at 1:45.

Post match McIntyre kicks Corbin in the face and Hardy adds the Swanton to Moss.

We recap the opening sequence.

Kayla Braxton scares Paul Heyman again and yes he has heard Xavier Woods’ challenge. He is tired of this idea that Roman Reigns needs the Usos. Reigns loves the challenge like Kayla loves Heyman, so tonight Reigns will face Woods later tonight.

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Angel

Non-title and Angel TAKES OFF HIS PANTS before the bell. Nakamura starts fast and kicks Angel down, only to dive into a dropkick. We see Los Lotharios photoshopped onto People Magazine as the Sexiest Men Alive as Nakamura hits a knee off the apron. Rick Boogs beats up Humberto and the distraction lets Nakamura hit Kinshasa for the pin at 1:43. This was really messy with too much going on at once despite how short it was.

Post match, Humberto jumps Nakamura and runs off.

We look back at Shotzi turning on Sasha Banks a few weeks ago.

Shotzi and Banks glare at each other in the back with Sonya Deville cutting them off. Shotzi goes on a rant about how payback is a….and she’s cut off. Banks says everyone tries to make a name off of her and yeah, payback is a b****, and so is she. Sonya wants them to shake hands after their match.

Sasha Banks vs. Shotzi

Shotzi drives her into the corner to start but Banks cools things down with a headlock. Banks grabs Three Amigos but has to bail out of the frog splash attempt. Shotzi misses a charge to the floor, where she avoids Banks’ dive off the apron. The arm gets caught in the steps so Shotzi can kick away, allowing her to dive back in and break the count. Back to the floor and Banks gets sent inside for one before sending Shotzi back outside.

The Meteora off the apron drops Shotzi and we take a break. Back with Shotzi working on the arm but Banks kicks her away and hits a really good looking top rope Meteora for two of her own. Shotzi is right back with another arm snap over the top and a ram into the post. Back in and the Ball Pit connects, only to have Sasha roll outside. Banks is fine enough to grab the Bank Statement, but uses her leg to pull Shotzi’s head back for the tap at 11:09.

Rating: B-. This felt like a fight and that’s how they should have been going at each other. Banks nailed some of those Meteoras and the Bank Statement at the end was a cool finish. It would be nice to not have Shotzi lose all the time, but beating Banks is a career win that she isn’t quite reach for yet. Good match though as Shotzi continues to be treated like a somebody.

Post match Sonya Deville comes out to watch the handshake. They do shake hands, but Banks pulls Shotzi into a Backstabber.

Roman Reigns asks Paul Heyman if it is time, with Heyman confirming that it is. The Usos are told to stay in the back for this one.

We get a vignette from Xia Li in the form of a comic book. She talks about her dad protecting her as a kid and then dying for some reason. It made her feel vulnerable and their landlord was all over them. He threw their stuff out of their house and into the street, which made her hate vultures. Now she is the protector and she is coming to Smackdown. Cool.

Toni Storm is fired up for Survivor Series, but also after challenging Charlotte last week. We see Charlotte turning her down last week and Toni thinks that makes Charlotte vulnerable. After Survivor Series, she still won’t be scared of Charlotte. Cue Charlotte to say Toni can be next on the list after Becky Lynch. Charlotte makes threats of destruction and walks away, which Toni interprets as fear. Of note: Toni’s 80’s deal was nowhere to be seen here and she was just a normal person.

Here is Xavier Woods to call out Roman Reigns. Last week the Usos interfered when Woods has Reigns beat, because Reigns can’t beat him. Cue Reigns and Heyman, with the latter calling for the Usos. They don’t come out but do get tossed through the entrance….because Big E. is here. The fight is on in the aisle and Reigns is sent into the barricade. Big E. sends Reigns inside and the beating is on.

The Usos come in and get beaten up as well, setting up Woods’ big dive. Reigns is back up with the Superman Punch to Big E. but the spear is countered into a Big Ending attempt. Reigns bails away (while seeming to favor his left arm a lot) to end the show. This was a hot segment and what they have been waiting to do for a long time now.

Overall Rating: B. This was a heck of a show with the Woods vs. Reigns stuff being flat out great. It’s a story that anyone can identify with as they would want to see Woods get some revenge on Reigns. Other than that, they did a nice job of setting up the pay per view, plus whatever is coming next. They were focused this week and that has been lacking over the last few weeks.

Results
Sheamus b. Cesaro, Ricochet and Jinder Mahal – Brogue Kick to Cesaro
Natalya/Shayna Baszler b. Naomi/Aliyah – Rollup with a fast count to Naomi
Jeff Hardy b. Madcap Moss – Small package
Shinsuke Nakamura b. Angel – Kinshasa
Sasha Banks b. Shotzi – Bank Statement

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