WWE Smackdown Review (Layin’ the Smarkdown)
October 10, 2015
By: Alex Kahrs of Wrestleview.com
Hello, Wrestle Viewniverse! It’s Alex Kahrs, ready to lay the SmarkDown on another edition of “Thursday Night SmackDown”! (Thank you Rich for being the only one I know that says that…)
New Day Promo: I love callbacks to history, especially when you randomly bring up Los Boricuas for some reason. Between that, mentioning Drake and Meek Mill, and teaching me a new way to spell “Eagles,” New Day were a blast to watch as always.
Dolph vs. Big E: I loved Dolph referring to the time Big E spent with him, again nice callback there. It was interesting to have Dudleys there at ringside, especially given they were taken down long enough for New Day to still play a factor in the finish. Good stuff here.
Rusev/Summer Segment: I’m starting to sense Lana’s involvement in this angle is over due to her recovering from surgery. Oh, well. I like Rusev’s counterproposal of wanting “gold around my waist before you can have gold around your finger,” I hope this is a sign he’s making a comeback in the title scene soon…any title, really.
Six Diva Tag: So glad WWE is following my lead in calling this new team Team NBC. Yes, I know it’s not that original…let me have my moment! Good match here, really enjoyed seeing the work from all six women here. Alicia Fox hit a Northern Lights Suplex, and I wanted to stand and applaud her. I’d forgotten how good she could be. There’s a glimmer of hope for the Divas Revolution yet. #GiveGoodBookingAChance
Paige Interview: I like her jealous look and attitude here. Again, this angle gives some more variety to the proceedings.
Ryback vs. Rusev: Good match from these two, solid stuff all in all. No shenanigans from Owens at ringside was surprising, but okay.
Bray Wyatt Segment: I love the Bray Wyatt character. Sure, he maybe hasn’t been given a proper push beyond “Hey I’m facing John Cena…oh look, I just lost, but I’ll get him ne–no, just lost again, drats” but the promos he delivers are, to me, so on point. Braun’s words take the whole thing just a little over the top, which is nice.
Barrett vs. Neville: Great work from both guys, nice to see Barrett back. Hoping all the best for him soon, would love to see another title run in the near future for the King!
Stardust Promo: Intriguing, to say the least. the bit about it being “written in the stars” has me trying to figure out who he’s looking to feud with next…unless it’s just a segue to another feud with Neville, but I’m okay with that too.
Main Event: Great bit of brawling between both teams. Based on the interactions between them, I’d guess that maybe Luke Harper and Braun Strowman take on Dean Ambrose and Randy Orton? Anyways, loving the different aspects of all this. I’m actually invested in this Roman/Bray feud now.
And before I wrap up, let’s talk about Booker T for a second. I see that the Bookerman has settled into the JBL role on SmackDown, and by that I mean “let’s cheer on the heels and make no sense in the process.” That’s okay, I guess. I respect you, Booker T.
So that’s it for this week. What did you think of SmackDown? Are you looking forward to Hell In A Cell in a couple weeks? Are they finally starting to give Divas a chance? Do you think Rusev and Summer will get married? Let me know in the comments, or on Twitter @Power2TheSmarks and let your voice be heard!
Speaking of voices being heard, I recently brought back the CHIKARA in 15 Minutes or Less podcast, which covers CHIKARA news and media in, well, 15 minutes or less. If you’re a fan of CHIKARA, a wrestling fan looking to learn more about CHIKARA, or just want to know why someone would talk about a single company for 15 minutes or less, come give it a listen! If you like what you hear, subscribe! It’s on iTunes and Stitcher now, too!
Until next time, this is Alex Kahrs reminding you to be excellent to one another. Party on, dudes!