WWE SMACKDOWN HITS & MISSES 10/21: Logan Paul whiffs again, Wyatt misses with music, more

Solo vs. Sheamus – HIT

Solo is one of the best NXT call-ups WWE has had in quite some time. I appreciate the thought of pairing these two with their first interaction during the fatal four-way match last week and this week facing off against each other. It’s incredible that Sheamus, at age 44, is in the best form of his career with WWE. What a tremendous hard-hitting opener this was. Minor shenanigans from the bloodline, but happy Solo got the pin.

Bray Wyatt promo – MISS

From a production standpoint, this was so bad. Whoever thought turning up Bray’s music during the promo was an awful idea made it hard to concentrate on what Bray was saying. I’ll throw my hands up and say this act is not for me. I honestly don’t see much difference in Bray’s dialogue that he had before compared to now.

Bloodline backstage segment – HIT

Sami Zayn and Jey Uso do a phenomenal job with these weekly segments. Sami Zayn, the logical voice for this group, is a perfect touch. I’m going to be so bummed when the Bloodline turns on Sami.

Liv Morgan vs. Sonya Deville – MISS

Liv Morgan is up there as a top-tier miscast in WWE. I couldn’t enjoy the work in this match because the commentary team was beating me over the head about the change in Liv’s demeanor. A double-count-out finish is so freaking lazy. I don’t understand the logic of making Liv Morgan extreme when extreme rules has already come and gone.

Braun Strowman face-to-face with Omos – HIT

MVP, I thought, did very well in this segment. My expectations of a match between Braun and Omos are meager, but maybe at Crown Jewel, this could be big dumb, fun.

Drew McIntyre’s backstage promo – MISS

McIntyre and Kross at extreme rules went 10 minutes but felt like 20. I could only imagine how long a steel game match will be against these two at Crown Jewel.

Damage CTRL vs. Shotzi and Raquel Rodriguez – HIT

It took a while to get there, but once Raquel Rodriguez got the hot tag from Shotzi, the match picked up significantly. A title change was never in doubt for this one, as Damage CTRL retained the titles. At some point, we probably should address the women’s tag team title relaunch and what the division looks like moving forward.

Rey Mysterio vs. Ludwig Kaiser – HIT

Great chemistry between these two. It’s 2022. How the hell does Rey Mysterio move like he’s 22? Logical booking for Rey to go through Imperium before facing Gunther at Crown Jewel.

Logan Paul promo – MISS

This moment is entirely too big for Logan Paul’s britches. Logan’s Dialogue was complete nonsense. He’s not believable at all as a baby face. The nicest thing I can say is this feud between Logan and Roman is over in two weeks.

FINAL THOUGHTS: The majority of the action in this episode was right up my alley. I wish that would be more consistent for Friday Night Smackdown.

CATCH-UP: 10/21 WWE SMACKDOWN RESULTS: Keller’s report and analysis of Logan Paul segment, Sheamus vs. Solo Sikoa, Damage CTRL vs. Raquel & Shotzi for tag titles