This was a good episode of SmackDown that saw good in-ring action and compellingly advanced several storylines. The night's highlight was the promo battle between Paul Heyman and LA Knight. It heightened the buzz around the match between LA Knight and Roman Reigns. The low point of the show was the tag match where A-Town Down Under defeated Dragon Lee and Cameron Grimes. The match was good but not a ton of story there.
The matches were good but none reached the level of amazing. The show structure was good but the main event wasn’t the high point of the show. The atmosphere was great during some segments but wasn’t consistent. The LA Knight-Bloodline story and Rey Mysterio-Logan Paul story were advanced well but a few segments were just acceptable. The production level was great but no theme to set apart this episode.
Logan Paul comes to SmackDown after calling out United States Champion Rey Mysterio. Will the legendary luchador respond to Paul’s request for a title match? Santos Escobar goes one-on-one with Montez Ford. Will Escobar come away with the win against the high-flying Ford? In the main event, Iyo Sky defends the Women’s Championship against Charlotte Flair. Will the Empress of the Sky defend her title or will the Queen add another title to her resume?
MUST WATCH Paul Heyman and LA Knight:
While an admirer of LA Knight, Paul Heyman said Knight will get destroyed in his match with the Tribal Chief. Unfettered by Heyman’s threats, LA KNight responded that Reigns would have to put him down permanently to stop Knight from pursuing the title. This was a great promo segment featuring two of the best talkers on the roster.
Matt Cookson WR Star Rating – 4.75 Star
GOOD Santos Escobar (w/Cruz Del Toro and Joquin Wilde) vs Montez Ford (w/Angelo Dawkins and Bobby Lashley):
This was a good match that featured good back-and-forth. One highlight came when Santos Escobar hit a hurricanrana off the turnbuckle. Activity outside the ring decided this match as Angelo Dawkins threw Escobar into the ring post. Escobar fought back but this distraction allowed Montez Ford to roll up his opponent for the win.
Results: Montez Ford by Pinfall
Matt Cookson WR Star Rating – 3 Stars
The Brawling Brutes attacked Pretty Deadly while the latter were at the Spa.
Paul Heyman reacted in horror when he saw John Cena arrive at the arena.
GOOD John Cena:
Cena has not won a televised singles match in over 2,000 days and questioned if that means he should retire. After the crowd encouraged him otherwise, Cena said it is time to end the streak. He called out anyone in the back to face him and Solo Sikoa answered. Sikoa and Jimmy Uso then beat down Cena until Jey Uso came to help Cena. No match as they hinted there might be.
Matt Cookson WR Star Rating – 3.25 Stars
The Unholy Union hinted in a video package they are coming for the Women’s Tag Team Championship.
After disagreeing about the punishment for Jey Uso, SmackDown GM Nick Aldis had Uso AND Raw GM Adam Pearce kicked out of the building. Upon leaving, Pearce commented that the games had begun.
GREAT Logan Paul and Rey Mysterio:
Paul gloated about his boxing victory and then talked about how much has changed since he defeated Rey Mysterio in a match. The Maverick called out Mysterio’s parenting in addition to challenging for the US Title. Then, Rey Mysterio came to the ring and told Paul he was in need of a humbling but accepted the challenge. Rey Mysterio vs Logan Paul for the United States Championship at Crown Jewel.
Matt Cookson WR Star Rating – 3.5 Stars
GOOD Grayson Waller and Austin Theory vs Cameron Grimes and Dragon Lee:
Despite having as much tag team experience together, Lee and Grimes took an early advantage in this match. However, they were unable to overcome the crafty team of A-Town Down Under. Theory hit A-Town Down to score the victory.
Results: Grayson Waller and Austin Theory by Pinfall via A-Town Down
Matt Cookson WR Star Rating – 3 Stars
Kevin Owens is excited to be a part of SmackDown but was sad to leave his former tag team partner.
GREAT Charlotte Flair vs Iyo Sky (champion) for the WWE Women’s Championship:
Sky went for a hurricanrana off the ring apron but Charlotte caught the champion and dropped her face first onto the apron. Later, Flair hit Sky with a nasty German suplex and some signature chops. A key moment came when Charlotte Flair countered a moonsault from Iyo Sky. Charlotte hit a spear and went for the pin. However, Bayley moved Sky’s leg onto the bottom rope to save the champion. An irate Flair attacked Bayley and threw her across the announcer’s table. In the finish, Dakota Kai distracted the ref, giving Iyo Sky the chance to hit the challenger with her title. Damage Control tried to continue the attack but Bianca Belair returned to rescue the Queen.
Results: Iyo Sky by Pinfall
Matt Cookson WR Star Rating – 3.5 Stars
Overall…
This was a good episode of SmackDown that saw good in-ring action and compellingly advanced several storylines. The night’s highlight was the promo battle between Paul Heyman and LA Knight. It heightened the buzz around the match between LA Knight and Roman Reigns. The low point of the show was the tag match where A-Town Down Under defeated Dragon Lee and Cameron Grimes. The match was good but not a ton of story there.
The matches were good but none reached the level of amazing. The show structure was good but the main event wasn’t the high point of the show. The atmosphere was great during some segments but wasn’t consistent. The LA Knight-Bloodline story and Rey Mysterio-Logan Paul story were advanced well but a few segments were just acceptable. The production level was great but no theme to set apart this episode.
Matches: 0.5/1 Stars
Show Structure: 0.75/1 Stars
Atmosphere: 0.5/1 Stars
Storytelling: 0.75/1 Stars
Production/Theme: 0.75/1 Stars
Overall Rating. 3.25/5 Stars
Photo Credit: WWE
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