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The go-home Smackdown before the Royal Rumble came and went without much fanfare. Considering it was leading into one of the Big Four PLEs, it was an okay episode, if a bit on the formulaic side for my tastes.
Like last week, Smackdown felt sluggish in parts, with the three-hour format being stretched to the breaking point. Again, the contrast with Raw shows in both format and censorship, with USA still opting to silence PG-13 language.
However, some moments ultimately led to developing angles and feuds out the Royal Rumble. All in all, it was a passably fun show, better than last week, but still in need of fine-tuning. As always, I’m Chris Adams, and you can reach me at cadamsowj@gmail.com if you think I’ve Missed.
HITS
KO and The Straight-Edge Ghost of the Past: Like a vacuum that sucks all the air out of the room, when these two titans squared off, you could feel the atmosphere change. Reaching all the way back into the glory days of Ring of Honor, these two have waged an unholy war of words and fists for decades. WWE is smart to tease this feud, and they would be smarter to give it to us. If C.M. Punk and Drew McIntyre could tear the house down in a Hell in a Cell match, imagine what greater heights Kevin Owens and Punk could reach. The promise of this opening segment was not followed throughout the rest of the show, but it nevertheless started the show with a bang, creating even more possibilities for storytelling after the Royal Rumble. But, honestly, give me KO vs. Punk over Punk vs. Roman Reigns any day of the week, and twice on Sunday!
Michin and B-Fab Squad Up: Michin is, without exaggeration, one of my favorite performers to watch. There’s a joy in her face that comes across, and it makes it a joy to watch! There’s something endearing about her presentation. She’s just cool as hell! The same could be said for B-Fab, whose jumping boot is ferocious and makes my face hurt every time she lands it. The match was better than what happened last week, as it appears no teeth were damaged during the making of this match. Chelsea Green’s connection with the fans will eventually demand a face turn. Yet, for now, we get to enjoy the chicken-shit heel antics of Green, whose Wonder Woman-like presentation is a stark contrast to her cowardice. This feud continues to produce fun matches and a vibrant energy. Keep ‘em coming!
Jacob Fatu Spits Fire: While the main event was fun to watch, it’s the mic work by Jacob Fatu that I really want to highlight. The war of words he engaged in with Damian Priest earlier in the night showed why Fatu deserves to have the mic in his hand at all times. He spits fire, like a dragon who’s come to consume everything in his path. Smoke comes from his nostrils, because within him is a fury that never rests. He speaks with the cadence of a hip-hop artist, and has the background to back it up. Week after week, Fatu shows us just who he is: not just the next big thing, but the Right Now and the Future. To feature him more and more each week could be one of the most excellent creative decisions of 2025. Let’s see if Triple H can follow through.
ARTICLE CONTINUED BELOW…
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MISSES
Carmelo Hayes Sinks Deeper: So far, I consider the booking of Carmelo Hayes to be one of Triple H’s most egregious misses. It seems the story they’re telling is the time-tested tale of a cocky upstart learning humility, but I’m not sure Carmelo Hayes needs to be humbled yet. His bravado and his self-assuredness ooze off the screen, so having him continually lose strips that aura away. Give him some significant wins and let him be HIM!
Tag Team Madness: While I’ve been a huge fan of the tag division of Smackdown in recent months, this match felt overstuffed and overbooked. I appreciate an effort to get everybody on camera, but the match itself felt like a strange coming together of people who would not agree to partner up were it not for the demands of a script. Likewise, I don’t think having Los Garza walk from the match did favors to their growing connection and popularity. The storytelling within the match was solid, and the angles that emerged from the match itself will continue to create opportunities for rich storytelling. With the three-hour format, overstuffing matches for TV time isn’t needed in the same way that it used to be.
Andrade and The Miz Deserve More: Andrade is one of the most athletic, charismatic, and hard-hitting wrestlers on Smackdown. Yet, he deserves so much more than what he’s recently been given. For God’s sake, he lost cleanly to Shinsuke Nakamura, a current ghost of his former self. The Miz, too, is underappreciated and has proven that he can go in the ring. We got echoes of the potential ferocity of a match between these two wrestlers, but that was not the part they were given to play. Andrade could pull an instant classic out of The Miz, but they weren’t able to do that on Friday. Andrade deserves to have gold around his waist sooner rather than later, and I hope he is not lost in all this transition.
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