SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
Smackdown brought a lot to the dance on Friday night, though not everything could catch the rhythm and truly shine. With the partnership between WWE and Netflix in full force, it made sense that the same energy would make its way to Friday. There’s a renewed sense of vitality, of character births and re-births. It is clear that Smackdown has not been lost in the transition, even if Raw is to take the spotlight for a while. After all, this is the show with the American Nightmare. You can’t get much better than Cody Rhodes.
HITS
Chelsea Green and Michin Stay in the Spotlight: These two have been on a slow but steady rise for the past two years. Perhaps Triple H knew that they were working towards a Women’s United States Championship. Now, here we are, with two amazing performers, making history in being the first two people to feud over this championship. Chelsea Green’s connection with the fans deserves even further exploitation, yet Michin herself also got a good Babyface reaction. I would like to see Michin given more time on the microphone as I think she has a flair and a flow to her promos. Her style is unique and authentic to her own story. The match was good. It wasn’t great, but it was a good television wrestling match. I know that both of these performers have so much more in the tank and I hope they get to let it out to transcend even their now-classic dumpster match.
Tag Team Wrestling On Full Display: The developing story between Motor City Machine Guns, Pretty Deadly, A-Town Down Under, and Los Garza is a great example of how to prominently feature amazing tag teams on tv while making the tag titles and the division itself seem important. This is a recurring pattern for Triple H, and we are lucky for it. Once again, being able to see Los Garza fly high, and to see Pretty Deadly in action as they balanced paradoxically the pretty boy models with the down and dirty British bruiserweights they can be in the ring. I do hope that the light stays shining on this division for some time, in the hopes that it stays hot for when the Street Profits return. Motor City Machine Guns and A-Town Down Under had a surprisingly fluid and fun match, and I hope to see more of their wrestling against one another in the future.
The Killer in Nia Jax: Losing the belt to Tiffany Stratton was the best thing that could have happened to Nia Jax. Her cold and calculated delivery of fatal threats pushed her further into the realm of being a true monster heel. Coming into the ring with the murderous threats on her breath was pitch perfect, as it stripped away the passive aggressive, biting, slightly humorous aspects of her character and mic work. I’d like to see this edge be sharpened even further and I wouldn’t mind her getting the belt again at some point in the future.
Check out the latest episode of the Wade Keller Pro Wrestling Post-show covering the latest episode of Smackdown: CLICK HERE to stream (or search “wade Keller” on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or any other iOS or Android app to subscribe free)
MISSES
Disqualification in the U.S. Championship: There have been too many recent examples of championship matches ending in disqualifications. We knew that LA knight was not going to get the belt of Shinsuke Nakamura simply because the match was placed strangely on the card that afforded it no fanfare or place of importance. To then have it end in a run-in DQ was like watching a movie that you knew was going to be bad but you hoped they would stick the landing but when their credits roll you realized it was a crash and burn after all. The match itself was not a crash and burn, and I’m honestly enjoying the work between these two. I did not think the inclusion of the Bloodline was necessary.
Cody Rhodes and His Role: While I can’t say I’m the world’s biggest Cody Rhodes fan, I can say I’m arguably the second. He stands for the kind of hopeful optimism we need in this world. He stands up for what is good and right, for the ideals of truth and justice much like the bastions of greatness like Superman and Captain America. These are chiseled straight from the rock of virtue itself. And yet, between what we saw and what we saw on Raw and Smackdown , it appears WWE is not treating their superhero with the kind of justice he deserves. On one of the biggest nights in the history of WWE, their champion set on the front row like a spectator. On Friday, he was summoned to the ring by the former champion’s mouthpiece and was made to look small. Of course, I cannot see where this is leading to. And I will stay along for the ride, enjoying myself all the way. But I’m perplexed with how they have handled Cody and I just don’t like it for him.
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