By Jon Mezzera, PWTorch Specialist

SMACKDOWN HITS

The Shield Differentiated: I have mixed feelings about separating Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose at this point. I don't want to see a new Shield member introduced. Part of me would like to see Reigns and Ambrose continue as a tag team, but part of me wants to see them on their own. So, I am ok with having them on their own, though I would still like to see them remain friends and have each other's back. Time will tell what WWE does with them. For now it is good to see WWE doing things to differentiate them from each other. I wasn't a fan of how similar Seth Rollins' outfit was on Raw to what he used to wear in The Shield. Therefore, it was good to see him in different ring attire on Smackdown. I like the street clothes look for Ambrose. It made sense on Raw since he was in an impromptu match, and I like seeing him keep that look. It fits his character to me. They both also have new music. And I think it is smart to keep Reigns the same with the old Shield music and look.

Ziggler vs. Barrett: This is a minor Hit for the in ring work of Dolph Ziggler and Bad News Barrett. I don't like seeing a 7 minute match have a commercial break. We only saw about 4 minutes of this match. But, I did like what we saw of it. I'm not a fan of having champions like Barrett losing these non-title matches. But, it was still a good match and I liked how Barrett got the heat back in the end with the Bull Hammer Elbow to Ziggler.

Ambrose vs. Kane: This is another minor Hit. I liked what we saw out of this match, but it was another short match at under 4 minutes. The action was good. Ambrose looked credible in taking on Kane here. Rollins was solid on guest commentary. And it fit perfectly into the storyline that WWE is telling with Ambrose trying to get his hands on Rollins at any cost. This should make the fans want to see him finally get a match against Rollins as he keeps getting close, but not quite getting his full revenge.

Main Event: After a show with several short matches, it was nice to see a long main event tag match to end Smackdown. It was a pretty basic formula with Sheamus and John Cena both getting beat down for stretches of the match, keeping Reigns on the apron for the majority of the match, really building anticipation for him to finally get that tag. The formula worked well with the live audience who couldn't wait for Reigns to get into the match and exploded with excitement once he got that tag. There was nothing special here. But, for a Smackdown main event, it was good with solid to good wrestling action throughout and the right ending with Reigns getting the pin on Alberto Del Rio.

It will be interesting to see whether WWE goes all the way with Reigns right now and gives him the WWE World Title at Money in the Bank, or just gives him another strong showing in a losing effort in that ladder match. I'm also curious to see who will end up as Mr. Money in the Bank. I am worried that Triple H will announce that the other participants in the MITB ladder match will be surprises who will find out at the PPV. Then, Seth Rollins will come out for the match with the briefcase hanging above the ring. The announcers will be speculating on who else will be challenging Rollins, but Triple H will come out and say "ring the bell!" Rollins will then go out and get a ladder and climb it unopposed to win and become Mr. Money in the Bank. Hopefully we'll find out I'm wrong on Raw.

SMACKDOWN MISSES

Opening Segment: As a general rule, I'm not a big fan of these kinds of segments where you get one wrestler after another coming out and interrupting each other. It doesn't really allow any one of them to shine. I did like the confidence shown on the mic by Roman Reigns, but this rapid fire promo approach doesn't appeal to me. It makes a scene involving several top stars in the company feel forgettable and segments involving guys like John Cena, Randy Orton and Roman Reigns shouldn't be forgettable.

Adam Rose: WWE isn't really giving Adam Rose a chance to show the fans what he can do in the ring. He has already had a chance to show off his music and his rosebuds and his ring entrance and his personality. Having him win two very short matches in a row against Titus O'Neil on two quick roll ups (right after the previous match also ended with a roll up) doesn't help him connect with the audience that much. This Miss isn't just for this match. It is really for the lack of in ring time that he's gotten since coming to the main roster. Fans who don't watch NXT probably don't have any clue about his moves or skills in the ring. I'm fine with short squashes for new wrestlers like Rose, but then you have to have him actually establishing his signature moves and his finisher, and not just rolling up his opponent for a quick pin.

Dallas vs. Fandango: This was the third very short match of the show that ended with basically one move. This fit in perfectly with Bo Dallas' character, but I question having him take advantage of a fellow heel. Are we supposed to feel bad for Fandango in this situation? He isn't a likable character. The two women who are fighting for his affection are also both heels and come across as horrible people. It leaves me not caring about their angle at all. And then throw in Dallas who was good in his role, but shouldn't have been involved here, and you get a mess of a segment.

Jon Mezzera is PWTorch.com's WWE Hits & Misses Specialist, providing his point of view for Raw and Smackdown each week. Email him at jmezz-torch@sbcglobal.net.

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