Smackdown thoughts New Years episode
-Great opening promo. I'm happy to see Owens and Reigns still feuding. They have such great chemistry even so on the mic as well, and they definitely have better chemistry than Rollins and Owens had which was decent but, Owens work as a face has really shined more with this excellent written storyline. Love how Owens was referred to as a "social media darling" too. lol! Funny that I thought Uso was gonna get more shit from Roman for losing matches but we got to see this emotionally manipulative bastard side of Roman again, showing how "compassionate" he is towards his family members.
Baron Corbin vs Big E- Now this surprisingly started off pretty well coming from guys I don't rate the highest in the ring. They lost a bit of momentum but overall they seem to have decent chemistry in the ring together. Corbins boys are interesting and add something to Corbin that has been lacking for all of this past year. I don't know what to say about Apollo other than him just filling in. This will all lead to a 8 man tag next week I'm sure.
*watching along*
So it did turn out to be a tag match. Cool. Sami Zayn and Baron are feuding? Or is this an angle to get Sami Zayn to join Corbins stable. That could work.
-Good promo from Owens Take heed from a promo of this caliber everyone in the back that are lacking mic skills.
- Big E mentions the maple leafs? Cool. Felt a bit random though. I always liked his delivery, Apollo needs someone to bounce off of when hes talking so this was alright.
Riott Squad vs. Billie Kay & Tamina & Natalya- Liv Morgan is the cutest girl. #2 behind Alexa. Match was not good. It felt like the flow was scattered, tamnias botched superkick was -1
Sasha & Bianca vs Carmella & Bayley- Sasha made this pace really good. I usually wonder who makes the flow of a match feel awkward and i felt it was carmella tonight unfortunately. It usually is. I really like her, but ring work never felt good to me. Decent finisher though.
-Sonya is back!!! Fuck yes you were dearly missed. Smackdowns womens division is getting solid.
- This script was pretty over the top from the Street Profits but these men are still really talented on the mic. Robert Roode and Ziggler feel like Morrison & Miz to me, all these guys have all had a lot of potential and are arguably under-utilized. Loved how they were brutalizing The Street Profits, Montez in particular.
- Nice to see a promo from Ziggler backstage. These unexpected things like this are why I think this brand is the A show. Him and Bobby Roode were both a little too quiet, but if they actually were holding a mic that would've/could've been better. I've been looking to see Bobby Roode and him win the titles ever since I was hoping for a feud with them and Heavy Machinery.
Daniel Bryan & Otis vs Nakamura & Cesaro- We got started with an interesting group of guys in the ring followed by a back story which I thought was pretty damn funny. They're giving more opportunities to guys like Cesaro and Nakamura who are easily the most awkward guys on the mic which I think makes some interesting comedy.
Solid match though lots of great counters with Nakamura & Bryan. Those guys have great chemistry and DB alone makes everyone look great in the ring.
Jey Uso vs. Owens- Great match. Really felt like a contest. Psychology has to be there with such a heated rivalry. And they delivered. I really don't like to see Uso losing so much. But I'm hoping this bro Jimmy will make a comeback and be the more dominant one.
This is great story telling. And easily the best Owens has appeared in the past while. This has got to lead to a Last Man Standing at Royal Rumble or something. People are saying Owens is getting squashed too much. But like Roman said he's getting some time on the "island of relevancy"
This isnot his time for another run, even though I don't feel KO is that "guy" to be top champion, he's really been proving me wrong lately when i thought he wasn't such a great face originally. This is a badass beatdown. Bashing his face into the screens. Reminds me of Steve Austins intensity as a heel.
Overall I'd rate this show 7.5/10
