Read on for my thoughts on last night's Smackdown.
Nice continuation of Bryan being injured to start the show. I'm generally not crazy about starting the show with a top talent wrestling (since by definition main eventers are featured in the main events), but this match might be leading to something else tonight. In that case, it works.
I really liked Bryan vs. Swagger. The arm injury really gave them something to work with and they made good use of it.
Daniel Bryan gauntlet? Interesting. I think they'll have an "out" if Bryan loses the Chamber match, but I don't know how many people will be satisfied by it.
I enjoyed how they set up the commercial break for Bryan vs. Cesaro. Well done.
That was another great match with fantastic ring psychology. I hope WWE realizes what they have in Cesaro and Bryan.
Funny stuff with Kane. He's shown a LOT of range in his career. Nice to establish Cesaro is still a heel as well.
Good promo by Christian. If this is his last run, it's going pretty well storyline-wise.
The Wyatt Family has been a breath of fresh air as far as characters go. I really want more personalities to sink my teeth into where feuds are more than just athletes competing with each other.
That was an EXCELLENT six-man tag. I don't think I've ever seen Goldust perform as well as he's performed in this run. Great stuff to keep the Wyatt machine going. I'm glad they're using Rey and Goldust to pump up the current act (though both men are still performing well in the ring).
Not a bad Sheamus promo. I'm not sure what exactly his character needs to propel him into the main event scene, but there's just a little something missing.
I can't say I expected the dance-off to go any other way. They're doing a good job of setting up the eventual in-ring debut of Emma.
I'm ready to see Rusev wreck the usual assortment of jobbers. Hopefully he's ready for the big time. I've mostly liked his promos.
I wasn't crazy about Titus vs. Ziggler. The action was fine enough (Titus might have went a little heavy on the barks and such), but I think it hurt Titus' momentum to lose here. I expected WWE to use this angle to really push Titus, but at least from that match it seems like they might be keeping both PTP members fairly low on the card. We'll see what happens at Elimination Chamber.
I liked Road Dogg vs. Jimmy Uso well enough. I still think we're in for the Usos as champions by the end of WM30, but I could be wrong. I don't know how much longer NAO will stick around as active wrestlers.
I liked Sheamus vs. Christian pretty well. It's always good to work with a veteran at the top of their craft.
The ending was good, but it felt like something was missing going into Sunday's PPV.
More wrestling coming up.
PPV predictions:
ReplyDelete- Goldust and Cody will be the focus on the pre-show win, lose or draw. I could see this either being a throwaway match or the next step in Goldust vs. Cody if they're really going that route. We might have to wait until after Mania for that one.
- I'd be surprised if Titus got a big "squash" win. I can easily see there being unfinished business leading to a second match. I have this odd feeling we might be in for the old cliche of Titus dominating before falling to a surprise rollup or something. Hopefully they'll add some heat to the feud. Given how long they've been working together, this one should get more than one match.
- Big E retains, as I don't see any reason to do a title switch.
- Possible NAO win to set up a rematch at WrestleMania? It's been kind of vague how long NAO will be working. They're not listed for upcoming live events, so maybe this IS their last stand.
- Batista's definitely going over. I don't see any way WWE has Del Rio win.
- Wyatts over Shield, since it seems like the latter's breaking up. I don't see any reason to throw a swerve in.
- I see The Authority costing Bryan again so Orton goes over. MAYBE Bryan gets added to the main event at Mania if fans cause enough of a ruckus.
Logical predictions. We'll see what unfolds.
ReplyDeleteI also think regardless of who wins the Ryback/Axel v. Rhodes/Goldust matchup that the focus will be on Rhodes and Goldust, which is more important than a victory at this point. I feel that Rhodes going his way in singles competition and with Goldust having a short shelf life, that it makes sense to split them up soon. If pressed, I'd say Axel and Ryback win, but it really won't give them much bragging rights.
With Titus v. Young, I'm seeing almost a ubiquitous prediction in many picking Titus, since he does indeed seem like the one WWE wants to push. That being said, I could also possibly see: 1) Titus having to "pay his dues" for a bit by losing via rollup and experiencing tough times in the short-run or 2) Young possibly getting a win/some momentum due to his impact on the gay community. Many fans are picking Titus due to his size and how WWE favors big guys, but it may not fare that way. This is an interesting matchup to me to see what happens. If pressed, I'd say Titus gets booked for the win, but I'm definitely not sure about that prediction.
Big E will win with the momentum he's been having. Swagger's one of those guys that WWE just cannot make up their mind on; even after about four years in the company! He'll either go on a long losing streak and be used to get others over or will be a contender for a World Championship. Either way, I'm interested to see what Cesaro's hype will do to the Real Americans as a unit.
The intriguing thing about NAO is that they are a lot like Goldust in that they have a short shelf life, being in their mid-forties. Then again, for them to make a comeback after so many years, I don't see them losing the titles this quickly. It's either sink or swim at this point for them, and I say they'll swim.
The last three or so pay-per-view matches Del Rio has been in, he's had really no chance or momentum to prove he will come out victorious. Even if in a losing effort, I clearly see all of the momentum going to Batista with his WrestleMania matchup coming in a month. I have no idea what WWE has in store with Del Rio, but he's really not in a good place right now.
I also say Wyatt Family over The Shield. My justification here is more centered around the Wyatts showing no signs of breaking up and The Shield definitely are showing signs of breaking apart. It will be interesting to see what will happen from here. I definitely feel Ambrose's title reign could be booked a lot better. There's a difference between having a title reign for almost a year and being the best person to hold the title versus having the title for almost a year and WWE having no idea what to do with the title. I think he deserves a bit better.
I see Orton prevailing, albeit not in a clean fashion. The reason he's lost to four of five of his competitors is more about creating hype around the match, but he will prevail here. I mean, how many times has the WWE champ lost the title right before WrestleMania? I personally hope Batista does not win the title at 'Mania.
My corrections in that Swagger's been in the company since 2008, so it's been six years and not four. It definitely goes by quickly with him.
ReplyDeleteP.S. I know I can be really vague with predictions at times (it could be this, but it might be this), but I've learned with experience how often curve balls get thrown I didn't see coming! It's something of a mind-reading exercise at times.
ReplyDeleteI was really expecting Cody vs. Goldust at Mania, but I'm not so sure now. There's so much else going on with partners splitting up (or potentially splitting up) and other big matches happening that I wouldn't be surprised for WWE to wait until Summerslam to do that one. Last I heard was Goldust had signed on through then as a wrestler and could go back behind-the-scenes after then.
I'd hope WWE would factor in Young's impact on the gay community. I'd be more OK with him winning for that reason than the "pay your dues" thing, since now's no time to be wishy-washy in building new full-time stars. Though I don't know how much they can really do push-wise with Titus before Mania.
I think it's natural for some performers to be shifted around the card, but WWE definitely gets trigger-shy with long-term pushes, too. Swagger's arrest didn't do him any favors with the World Title push.
I've seen talk of Cesaro as a face vs. Swagger at Mania. WWE clearly likes Cesaro now.
Billy Gunn's actually 50 believe it or not. My main reason for thinking NAO isn't going to be around for long is they already have backstage roles in WWE. I see them just being around for Mania season before going back to those.
There are rumors of Del Rio wanting to exit WWE. He could be as frustrated as a number of other stars with their current approach of keeping the same few names as THE top guys year after year, putting too many eggs in the baskets of part-timers, being more "sports entertainment" than wrestling, etc. It'd be a shame to see him go, but I can't say I'd be surprised.
I think WWE really likes The Shield, but as you mentioned doesn't have much in mind for the U.S. Title and feels it's time to split them.
I'd be surprised if we don't see Batista go over Orton at Mania, but they can't deny Bryan's momentum, either. I don't know if they'd want to have Batista as a heel with his movie coming out, but Batista vs. Bryan makes sense post-Mania.