10/4 WWE Smackdown Report by Greg Parks

WWE Smackdown review
October 1, 2015
Taped 9/29/15 in Albany, N.Y.
Aired on SyFy
By Greg Parks, PWTorch Columnist (Twitter: @gregmparks)

– WWE Open.

– A video package aired from Raw, with Ashley from HR giving her report about Kane and Seth Rollins, follow by the attack by Rollins and Kane’s return.

– Seth Rollins opened the show proper by coming out with his WWE World Title around his waist. He interrupted Eden Stiles and his own music, beginning to cut his promo on his way to the ring. He continued his diatribe from the last week, saying Kane is not fooling him. He demanded Kane come out and admit the truth in front of everyone. Kane, in his suit, came out onto the stage on crutches. He said Rollins wiped the smile off his face on Raw, dissipating any passion he still had for his job. Rollins reminded Kane that Kane launched the first salvo by attacking him at Night of Champions and trying to drag him through the ring to hell. But Kane has tried to excuse that behavior by blaming it on The Demon Kane.

Rollins said Kane must think he’s stupid to try to pass off this charade. Either that, or Kane has a severe personality disorder and requires serious psychiatric care. Kane said psychiatric care is required for Rollins, who is delusional. Kane said he’s no Demon…he’s the Director of Operations. Rollins asked if the person attacking him was just in everyone’s imagination. Maybe it was Festus. Kane said Rollins is just trying to get out of his U.S. Title match at Madison Square Garden Saturday night. He said he doesn’t believe Rollins is making it up, and went into his Demon Kane voice. Rollins said that proves he’s the Demon, but Kane said while there is a demon, it’s not him.

Kane then said these attacks have turned Rollins into a Negative Nancy, so he’s teaming Rollins up with the poster-boys of positivity, New Day. They’ll take on The Dudley Boyz and…The Demon. Rollins said there’s no way he’s agreeing to that match…unless Corporate Kane is seated at ringside to watch. Kane smiled and said he wouldn’t miss it, then wished Rollins luck. Rollins wore a look of confusion on his fae.

– Rich Brennan, Jerry Lawler, and Booker T. discussed the previous segment at ringside.

– For the Intercontinental Title, Kevin Owens puts his title on the line against Ryback.

– Team Bella came out. They take on Team BAD, next.

[Commercial Break]

– When Team BAD came out, Naomi and Sasha Banks worked the mic. Naomi said there’s been a lot of talk about who started the Divas Revolution. Sasha asked if anyone cared who started it. She said the only thing people are going to care about when it comes to the Divas Revolution is how Team BAD will end it.

1 – TEAM BELLA vs. TEAM BAD

Brie delivered kicks to the chest of Sasha early on. Sasha caught one and turned it into a roll-up for a two-count. Naomi and Sasha double-teamed Brie, but it didn’t keep Brie down for long. Blind tag to Tamina, who delivered a double-clothesline to Brie and Alicia Fox. Nikki tagged in for a dramatic lock-up with Tamina. Nikki flexed after nailing Tamina with a forearm, so Tamina took her down with a shoulder tackle and a Samoan drop. She went to the top for a splash, but Nikki’s teammates pulled her out of the ring. A baseball slide by both Banks and Naomi took out the illegal women on Team Bella. They went to break at 3:21 of the match.

[Commercial Break]

Back at 7:21 with Naomi holding Nikki in a rear chin-lock. It looked like Brie and Fox were still selling the effects of the baseball slides four minutes later, unless there was another double-team move hit during the break. After a distraction, Nikki took back over, and the other Team Bella members pulled Naomi out of the ring by the legs with her landing front-first onto the ringside mats. “We want Sasha” chant from the crowd. Double-clothesline by Naomi and Fox. Nikki tagged in and she cleared out the Team BAD apron, by Sasha hopped right back up and made the tag anyway. Double-knees in the corner by Sasha, but Nikki came back with a pinning combination. Sasha with the double-knees to the mid-section in the corner. Fox nearly missed her cue to break up the pin. The match broke down at this point with everyone involved. Nikki caught a Tamina kicked and tossed her out of the ring. That allowed Sasha to get the Bank Statement locked in. Brie was held at bay and Nikki tapped out.

WINNERS: Team BAD, at 11:36. WWE hasn’t given me a compelling reason to cheer either of these teams. There’s some solid one-on-one potential combinations with these six women. Also: Nice to see Sasha get the tap-out win over Nikki. That’s big.

The finish of the match was replayed.

– Tonight, Bray Wyatt addresses Roman Reigns.

– Also: The Dudley Boyz & The Demon Kane vs. Seth Rollins & The New Day. Technically, Kane only referred to “The Demon” being in this match. What’s Dale Torborg up to these days?

[Commercial Break]

– WWE won 18 Silver Awards and the WWE App won two Gold Awards for the Academy of Interactive and Visual Arts.

– Seth Rollins came upon The New Day backstage. They clapped and chanted “Seth Rollins” to their “New Day rocks” theme. Rollins was in no mood to share the cheer. They told him there’s only one way to exorcise his demon. And that way, is to be positive. New Day tried to get Rollins to confidently say, “I’m the man.” After they had Rollins convinced and all four walked out of the shot, Kane limped in on his crutches, smiling.

– JoJo was backstage with Charlotte and Becky Lynch. JoJo showed footage of Paige walking out on the other members of Team PCB, with Natalya trying to make the save before Paige pulled her off the apron. JoJo asked if they felt Team PCB can get back in-sync. Charlotte said Paige unleashed this spoiled brat campaign out of nowhere. Becky called Paige annoying and said they’re trying to give her the benefit of the doubt. Becky stopped her promo and the camera panned over to show Paige standing next to JoJo. Did no one see her walk up? Charlotte told Paige she’s either with them or against them. Paige asked if she was giving her an ultimatum and Charlotte said they left her no choice. They walked away without Paige giving an answer. Paige turned into Natalya and Nattie said if Paige ever disrespects her like she did on Raw, Paige will be sorry they ever met.

– Ryback came out for his I.C. Title match. It’s next.

[Commercial Break]

2 – RYBACK vs. KEVIN OWENS – INTERCONTINENTAL CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH

The match spilled to ringside early on, with Owens getting the advantage once back inside. Ryback picked Owens up and slammed him. Ryback held Owens up for a long vertical suplex before bringing him down to earth. Risking a disqualification, Ryback jammed his shoulder into the gut of Owens so many times the ref had to pull him out of the corner to break. Thesz Press by Ryback. Ryback missed a shoulder charge and Owens DDT’d his foe for two. They went to break at 2:14 of the bout.

[Commercial Break]

Back at 5:22 with Owens kicking away at Ryback. Back elbow by Owens found the mark, with great sound accompanying it. Owens with a rear chin-lock. Neck-breaker for a two-count. Booker T. predicted that Owens would be a World Champion, and soon. The crowd chanted “Feed Me More” as Owens grabbed another hold. Ryback caught a charging Owens and delivered a belly-to-belly suplex. Diving shoulder tackle took Owens off his feet. Falcon Arrow for two. Ryback again had to be restrained in the corner, lest he get DQ’d. Side kick by Owens for a near-fall. Spinebuster by Ryback. Meat Hook clothesline found the mark. Owens got the ropes on a Shell Shock attempt and Owens left the ring. Double-clothesline and both men were down. Ryback snuck back into the ring, but Owens had second thoughts. He allowed himself to get counted-out.

WINNER: Ryback, via count-out, at 10:56. I thought it might end in a double count-out, which I wouldn’t have minded. This feud could easily be about the brains of Owens vs. the brawn of Ryback if WWE wanted to emphasize those aspects.

Ryback and Owens brawled in the ring after the match, with Ryback hitting Shell Shock on Owens. They replayed the post-match occurrences.

– The main event is The Dudley Boyz & The Demon Kane vs. The New Day & Seth Rollins.

– Bray Wyatt will address Roman Reigns tonight.

– The announcers reflected on the Reigns vs. Wyatt match from Raw. Brennan asked Lawler if he had a Playstation or an Xbox. “Of course,” replied Lawler. This led to a plug for the WWE2K16 video game. A video aired previewing the game.

[Commercial Break]

– WWE’s YouTube channel has over 450,000,000 views. That was the DYK for the week.

– The announcers discussed the WWE Network from MSG Saturday night. A video package aired on Brock Lesnar vs. Big Show.

– Neville and The Lucha Dragons came out for a six-man tag match. Stardust and The Ascension followed as their opponents. They showed an inset interview with the heels. Stardust said they’re playing one-card cosmic stud tonight and unfortunately for them, he’s the dealer. Brennan called the interview “kooky.”

3 – NEVILLE & THE LUCHA DRAGONS vs. STARDUST & THE ASCENSION

Viktor tried a powerbomb on Sin Cara, but Cara avoided it. He couldn’t follow up, and Viktor was able to tag Stardust. Standing shooting star press by Neville on Stardust for two. Stardust surprised Neville with a boot in the corner. Stardust tried to wrap Neville’s leg around the ring post until the Dragons ran him off. They went to break at 2:04 of the match.

[Commercial Break]

Back at 5:05 with Neville in control. Viktor picked up Neville and, from the second rope, gave him a sit-out slam. Stardust then tagged in to continue the assault. Neville used his speed to create separation and attempt a tag. He finally managed to tag Kalisto. Brennan said Kalisto was flying through the air, and Booker didn’t even bite with his “with the greatest of ease!” catchphrase. A pin was broken up by Viktor. He was eventually knocked out of the ring, as was Neville. Neville pulled Stardust out of the ring and gave him a superkick. Konnor had made the tag, but Kalisto hit Salida del Sol for the win.

WINNERS: Neville and the Lucha Dragons, at 8:17. And round and round we continue to go…

– Back to the announcers, who voiced over clips of Wyatt vs. Reigns from Raw.

– Up next, Wyatt addresses Reigns.

[Commercial Break]

– The Wyatt Family came to the ring. Bray said he wanted to prove Monday that Roman Reigns is nothing more than a mortal man, and that he is forever. Wyatt said he and Reigns created complete and utter chaos together. He said “this whole thing” is one big circle that begins and ends with Roman and Bray. And that’s why he has to say “anyone but you.” As he repeated it a second time, Roman’s theme hit and the spotlight came on him advancing to the ring through the crowd. Still no house lights. The announcers made a big deal about Reigns coming to the ring alone.

Reigns reached ringside. He stayed there a while before getting up to the apron. Bray’s minions walked toward Roman. Reigns entered the ring and went right up to Wyatt. The two stared at each other. Bray blinked first and went to speak on the mic, but Roman took it from him, continuing to stare at Wyatt. Wyatt motioned for Luke Harper and Braun Strowman to stand down. Reigns finally spoke into the mic and simply said, “Hell in a Cell.” He tossed the mic into the chest of Wyatt as the two went face-to-face. Reigns slowly backed out of the ring. “I hope you’re willing to die!” shouted Wyatt and Reigns. Reigns then headed up the ramp and to the back as Wyatt continued to stew in the ring.

– The main event six-man tag is next.

[Commercial Break]

4 – SETH ROLLINS & KOFI KINGSTON & BIG E. vs. THE DUDLEY BOYZ & KANE

Kane was seated at ringside out of break. When Kane’s music hit, no one came out. Kane shrugged at ringside as Rollins stared at him. Kane instructed the timekeeper to ring the bell, so the match began as a handicap three-on-two match. Big E. tagged in quickly to face D-Von. D-Von fought out of the heel corner and shocker, we had a standoff as they went to break at 1:16.

[Commercial Break]

Back at 4:18 with Kingston delivered a boot to the side of the head of D-Von. The announcers were veering into not-so-PC territory in discussing Kane’s possible split-personality as a mental illness. D-Von was sent to ringside. Kane got out of his chair and walked in front of D-Von. It just so happened that Rollins was attempting a suicide dive at the same time. Rollins ended up taking out both Kane and D-Von. A medic came and helped Kane to the back. Rollins objected, saying Kane had to sit at ringside. Xavier Woods implored Rollins to focus on D-Von. Rollins put D-Von back into the ring but then he followed the doc and Kane up the ramp. Kane simply turned around and smiled at Rollins as he continued to the back. Rollins knew what that meant. Back in the ring, it was D-Von and Big E. Bubba Ray and Kofi tagged in, with Bubba cleaning house. Bubba clotheslined Rollins over the top and to the floor. Even Woods was taken out. D-Von dove onto Big E. and Woods at ringside. Fireworks shot off at the top of the ramp and the Demon Kane came out. He caught Rollins and tossed him into the barricade. He did so again. Rollins avoided a chokeslam and scurried away through the crowd. The Dudleyz hit 3D on Kofi for the pinfall.

WINNERS: The Dudleyz and Kane, at 10:10.

After the match, Kane grabbed the title that Rollins had left behind. Bubba raised Kane’s arm in victory, but Kane chokeslammed him. D-Von was given the same treatment, as was Kofi and Big E. simultaneously. Woods was kicked down for his troubles, then Tombstoned. Rollins was on the top of the ramp now, looking on as Kane posed with the WWE World Title.

Did you watch Thursday’s Smackdown episode? Send your 0-10 score & Reax to pwtorch@gmail.com for our TV Reax feature.

Greg Parks has been covering WWE Smackdown for PWTorch.com since January of 2007. He is the host of “Moonlighting with Greg Parks,” a PWTorch VIP-exclusive audio show posted each weekend. Follow him on Twitter @gregmparks for live Tweeting during Raw, Impact, and PPVs, as well as other bits of wisdom. Comments, questions and feedback are welcome, and can be sent to g_man9784@yahoo.com.