SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
A.J. is Taken Literally Again…
Recap: The show began with a Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens promo. Owens referred to he and Zayn as the future of WWE, as contrasted to the previous night’s “parade of retirees.” Sami punctuated each sentence with his trademark “yep.” AJ Styles then came down the ramp and refuted all of the heels’ prior assertions with a “nope.”
Owens and Zayn reminded AJ that he was the one who had actually requested the handicap match at Royal Rumble in the first place. They then showed footage from two weeks ago where AJ indicated he was willing to fight both Owens and Zayn separately on the same night. [The footage was out of context, as AJ was actually trying to make the point that wrestling the two of them consecutively would be less of a handicap than simultaneously.] Owens and Zayn called upon AJ to live up to his words by wrestling the two of them in consecutive matches before the night was out.
Before AJ could answer the challenge, Daniel Bryan appeared. Before Bryan could say much, however, AJ indicated that he was unsure whether Bryan was colluding with Owens and Zayn, and accepted the challenge of consecutive matches.
Backstage, Shane McMahon was displeased with the consecutive matches, indicating that he believed Bryan was about to sanction the consecutive match stipulation before AJ interrupted and accepted it on his own. Bryan denied that he would’ve sanctioned the match if he had been left uninterrupted. Shane accepted Bryan’s explanation on the surface, however he did express doubt as to Bryan’s GM abilities before the segment concluded.
Before the first of the two matches, Shane informed Owens and Zayn that if either of them became involved in the other’s match, the offending party would be fired on the spot.
In the first match, Owens quickly tapped to the calf crusher. AJ was slow in releasing the hold after the bell. Shortly after the bell rang, Sami Zayn jumped AJ Styles, leaving him at a disadvantage in the second match. Owens remained on the outside receiving medical attention to his leg.
Early in the second match, AJ disengaged from Sami for a moment to deliver kicks to Owens while he was receiving medical attention on the outside. Later in the match, AJ diverted his attention from Zayn to again attack Owens while he was on a gurney. This diversion gave Zayn an opening for a Blue Thunder Bomb for the win.
Evaluation: Tonight continued the trend of AJ’s words being used against him, getting him into ridiculous matches with Owens and Zayn.
AJ showed a lot of frustration tonight, as if he’s truly had it with Owens and Zayn. This was displayed in his slow release of the calf crusher to Owens, as well as the attacks while Owens received medical attention (the last of which led to AJ’s loss).
AJ’s references to Sami and Kevin as “Kami” continue to fall flat.
Forecast: WWE is clearly teasing here that AJ’s frustrations may cost him the match on Sunday, as they did tonight. While I’m sure that at some point a frustrated AJ will make a mistake on Sunday, in the end I would expect him to come out on top.
It’s still impossible to tell where they are going with the Shane-Bryan angle. Maybe we’ll finally get some answers on Sunday.
Rusev Day Remain Heels…
Recap: In an epic teaming of overexposed gimmicks, the New Day came down spreading pancakes, only to be joined by Bobby Roode for a four-man “Glorious!” yell in the ring. A six-man tag against Jinder Mahal and Rusev Day followed, which the faces won with a Roode spinebuster followed by a Woods elbow drop.
Evaluation: Seeing these two gimmicks in tandem really hammered home how overplayed they both are.
With the reactions Rusev Day had been getting recently, many thought they’d be playing faces in the upcoming Rumble. But by pairing them with Jinder Mahal tonight, WWE sent a clear message that they’ll continue to be portrayed as heels this Sunday.
Forecast: Regardless of WWE’s intended framing of Rusev Day, it’s still likely that they’ll be cheered on Sunday. This is especially true with the Philadelphia fans’ affinity for heels and well-known desire to reject WWE’s intended storytelling.
Survivor Series is More Pointless than Ever…
Recap: An extended video package was run recapping last night’s Raw 25. The Smackdown announcers gushed over the show.
Evaluation: “If there were no Monday Night Raw, there would be no Smackdown Live. We have so much love for what they have done….” Tom Phillips and Byron Saxton sure have changed their tunes since November.
This segment exposed the ridiculousness of WWE expecting fans to be emotionally invested in a Raw-Smackdown rivalry each November while the other 11 months are spent downplaying any difference between the brands.
This is endemic of the larger issue that WWE creative expects fans to be like goldfish, instantly forgetting all prior angles unless they’re reminded of them via video package. I understand the desire to promote what WWE saw as a significant event. For logical consistency, however, the extended package could’ve been portrayed as a “commercial,” for Raw which aired during at the beginning of an advertising break, leaving the Smackdown announcers’ comments out of it.
Random Thoughts…
-Tonight was probably the best main roster promo I’ve heard from Shinsuke Nakamura. He was more serious, less over the top “quirky,” and his English was improved….
-Tye Dillinger’s phone selfie promo actually came across as more sincere than most of the ones we’ve seen over the past couple of weeks….
-In the Liv Morgan vs. Naomi match, Naomi clearly didn’t kick out of one of Liv’s backslide covers mid-match. The referee didn’t make the three count, however, and the match continued…
NOW CHECK LAST WEEK’S COLUMN: TOP 3 DEVELOPMENTS – SMACKDOWN 1/16: U.S. Title tournament surprise, no KO and Sami Zayn,
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