SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
REMATCH FOR MIZ & SHANE…
Recap: The show opened with Shane McMahon in the ring. While Shane announced repeat appearances from the four NXT wrestlers that were on Raw last night, he was interrupted by the Miz.
Miz said he hadn’t slept in two days, unable to shake the guilt of Sunday’s loss of the tag titles. He confessed that he initally had used Shane when asking to be his tag partner, exploiting his similar relationship with his dad. Miz recounted all Shane had done for him, and said that their title victory was the only time his father had told him he was proud of him and loved him. Miz asked Shane to book a rematch.
The Usos then interrupted. They told Shane that they would accept a rematch, but suggested that Shane find a new partner. They called Miz a joke. This angered Shane, who set a rematch for Miz’s home town of Cleveland at Fastlane. Miz was thrilled.
Later backstage, Miz told Shane his dad would be at ringside at Fastlane.
Evaluation: Miz’s comments that his dad had never expressed that he loved him or was proud of him until he won the tag titles made me angry at Miz’s dad and made me pity Miz. I don’t think portraying Miz’s dad poorly was the goal, so WWE should really lay off that talk.
Forecast: Miz is really hamming it up, so the end result here must be Miz turning on Shane. That bums me out as I had been enjoying a nice portrayal of male friendship, which is exceedingly rare on modern TV.
MORE NXT APPEARANCES…
Recap: At the top of the show, Shane announced that he was impressed by the performances of Johnny Gargano, Tommaso Ciampa, Aleister Black, and Ricochet last night, and as a result had invited them to SmackDown.
In the first appearance, Black defeated Andrade in a rematch from their NXT Title feud. It was a solid match with good action.
Gargano and Ciampa watched backstage, and after the match were approached by the Bar. Cesaro referred to it as “bring your NXT Superstar to work day.” Ciampa told them they were there to take over. Gargano said they weren’t there to set the bar, they were there to break the bar. The Bar laughed and walked away.
The match itself ended with Ciampa making a blind tag and rolling up Cesaro for the win.
Later Ricochet defeated Eric Young.
Evaluation: Tonight’s crowd in New Orleans seemsed more familiar with the NXT wrestlers than last night’s crowd in Lafayette. This led to better reactions.
These NXT appearances really highlight how much better NXT music is as compared to WWE.
Forecast: It looks like I was right last night and these NXT appearances will become a thing. While WWE still hasn’t cleared up whether these are callups or simply appearances, I still lean toward them being occasional appearances. NXT chyrons were shown during the entrances, bolstering my belief.
BRYAN VS. KOFI AT FASTLANE…
Recap: In a backstage segment, Kofi Kingston made up with AJ Styles by extending him a pancake branch (a play on an olive branch). AJ accepted. AJ, Kofi, and Jeff Hardy were set to face Daniel Bryan, Samoa Joe, and Randy Orton in a Six Man Tag main event.
Before the match, Bryan lectured the crowd and stated that no one in tonight’s tag would be his opponent at Fastlane.
The match ended with Kofi pinning Bryan with the Trouble in Paradise.
After the match, Shane came out to announce Bryan’s opponent for the title at Fastlane. He hesitated for a second as the fans cheered for Kofi, and then did ultimately announce that Bryan’s opponent would be Kofi Kingston.
Evaluation: This was played well. WWE went with the flow of the fans, stoking their desires to see Kofi get a one on one title shot. Things were heated up even further by giving Kofi the pin on Bryan during the tag match. And when the time came for the announcement, Shane teased things out for a second but ultimately gave the fans what they wanted. It was satisfying.
Forecast: I don’t expect Kofi to be WWE Champion at WrestleMania, but this feud has been played well so far.
NOW CHECK OUT LAST WEEK’S COLUMN: TOP 3 DEVELOPMENTS – SMACKDOWN 2/12: Denying the Fans, IIconics Figure out the Rules, Kofi Shines
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