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My Thoughts on SmackDown (8/24/16): A Near Curt Hawkins Experience

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  • Before the show, AJ Styles walks into the locker room calling himself the new face that runs the place before putting on the bicep band as a headband. He then gets in Dolph Ziggler's face and mocks him for losing. Ziggler head butts him and a fight breaks out, which is quickly broken up by the other wrestlers and referees.
  • We kick off the show with all the women and tag teams in the ring with the new Tag Team Championships and the new Women's Championship before Shane McMahon & Daniel Bryan come out. The Women's belt is the exact same as the one on RAW except for the background on the center plate is blue and not red. The same goes for the Tag Team Championships, which are silver instead of bronze. At least they don't look like pennies, now. Sure they still look like coins, but more valuable coins, at least. Like quarters or something. They announce two things, a Six-Pack Challenge to crown the first ever SmackDown Women's Championship at Backlash, and a tournament to crown the first ever SmackDown Tag Team Champions.Outcomes Heath Slater, who complains about not getting a SmackDown contract two weeks in a row and asks for a title match. Bryan says he's "not equipped" to challenge for the Women's Championship and Shane brings up that he doesn't have a tag partner. Slater guarantees he'll find a partner, so Bryan & Shane offer him a spot in the tournament AND a SmackDown contract, but only if his team wins. Slater goes to find his partner, and then Styles comes out. Slater asks him to be his tag partner, but he says no. Styles is about to give out, but he's attacked from behind by Dolph Ziggler. The wrestlers break up the fight again.
  • Becky Lynch vs Alexa Bliss with Natalya and Naomi on commentary-Becky locks in a wrist lock to start and switches it to a hammerlock when Alexa tries to escape. Alexa escapes with a back elbow, but Becky keeps control and almost locks in the Dis-Arm-Her early, but Alexa gets to the ropes. Alexa takes control, stomping Becky's head into the mat for a near fall. Alexa works over Becky until Becky breaks free and runs wild, hitting a few clotheslines, but Alexa is able to reverse a charging Becky and hit a sunset flip powerbomb. Becky then locks in the Dis-Arm-Her for the submission win. Fine match, nothing special.
  • Backstage, Slater looks for a partner and comes across the Miz & Maryse. Slater asks him to be his partner and Miz appears to agree, but he takes off his hood to reveal he was talking on a bluetooth to Steven Spielberg.
  • Tag Team Tournament 1st Round: The Ascension vs The Usos-The Ascension rush the Usos to start, quickly hitting a flying knee/spinebuster combo and a diving clothesline on Jimmy Uso. The Ascension beat down while JBL & David Otunga argue on commentary about Otunga's wife Jennifer Hudson's success as an actress. The Ascension continue to get the heat until Jimmy hits an enziguri on Konnor and both men tag out. Jey runs wild on Viktor, hitting a Samoan Drop but getting his corner hip attack cut off by Konnor. A few superkicks later and the Usos win with the top rope splash. I'm guessing the finals of the tournament will be The Usos vs American Alpha
  •  Outcomes AJ Styles, now wearing Cena's bicep band on his bicep. He says that the Cena fans don't need to be Cena fans anymore, they can be his fans now. He calls himself the face that runs the place and says he should be the #1 Contender for the WWE World Championship Ziggler comes out yet again, but the referees stop him from getting to the ring. Daniel Bryan comes out and says Styles deserves to be the #1 Contender, but so does Ziggler, so he books them in a match where if Styles wins, he gets a WWE World Championship match at Backlash, and if Ziggler wins, he gets added to the match and it becomes a triple threat. Wait...so if AJ wins, he's in the match, but if he loses...he's still in the match? That makes no sense. Styles has literally nothing to lose and everything to gain. Stupid idiots...
  • We get a Curt Hawkins vignette that I missed last week. Basically, he's got the Matt Hardy "Matt Facts" gimmick. That's it. Also, they are taking these facts straight from the Chuck Norris facts that were popular when I was in like 7th grade.
  • Carmella vs Nikki Bella-Before the match, Renee Young interviews Nikki, but Carmella attacks her before the match, hitting an STO and a Bella Buster. I guess they needed someone to turn heel after Eva Marie got suspended and Nikki got a huge face pop at SummerSlam. Personally, I've never been too crazy about Carmella, so I'm curious to see how she does as a heel.
  • Outcomes Randy Orton. He says he was in a hell of a fight against Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam. He's disappointed in the way his match ended and says he and Lesnar will cross paths again before he is interrupted by Bray Wyatt. Wyatt says Orton is a great man, but still just a man. Wyatt says that he is a God and can never die, and Orton will find out about it in time. Orton tells him to get in the ring, but the Wyatt screen effect hits and Wyatt is gone.
  • Shane McMahon gets interviewed. Shane says Lesnar crossed the line hitting him with an F-5 and that Stephanie apparently only fined him only 500 dollars. He says this thing with him and Lesnar is far from over.
  • Backstage, Slater is still looking for a tag team partner, offering the role of the Arn Anderson to his Ric Flair...to Arn Anderson. Anderson obviously says no, so a depressed Slater sits down. Then Rhyno walks up and offers to be his partner.
  • Tag Team Tournament 1st Round: Breezango vs American Alpha-In a pre-match interview, Breeze says winning the titles will be a breeze. Fandango is about to add something, but he suddenly realizes the pun. In another pre-match interview, American Alpha run down their squad goals, which include buying cool singlets. Gable & Fandango start off and go back and forth before Gable out wrestles him. Breeze tags in, so Gable out wrestles him before tagging in Jordan. The two each it a dropkick before hitting simultaneous suplexes and tossing Breezango from the ring. The crowd chants "USA" for literally no reason. No one in this match is not American. Stupid idiots...American Alpha works over Breeze for a long time until the referee misses a blind tag from Gable to Jordan. This allows Breezango to take control before the commercial break. We come back to Fandango working over Gabl, but Gable quickly counters and makes the tag. IT'S JASON JORDAN HOT TAG TIME BITCHES! Jordan suplexes Breezango around before tagging Gable for Grand Amplitude. Fandango grabs Jordan and blocks the move, only for Breeze to take a German suplex from Gable for a near fall. American Alpha goes for a double team move, but Fandango pushes Gable off the top rope. Breeze hits the Supermodel Kick on Jordan, but Gable breaks up the pin. Gable takes out Fandango before Breezango can hit a double team move, and this allows Jordan to hit a belly-to-belly followed by a shoulder tackle in the corner before finishing Breeze off with Grand Amplitude for the win. Great match, fast paced and very exciting. Seriously thought Breezango had it at some points.
  • Dean Ambrose wearing a giant foam cowboy hat gets interviewed. He says he just found out about the #1 Contenders match because he was in the casino.
  • Dolph Ziggler vs AJ Styles with Dean Ambrose on commentary-The two mat wrestle each other to start with Ziggler getting the upper hand before Styles rolls out of the ring. Styles gets back in, only to quickly get dropkicked out by Ziggler before the commercial break. We come back to Styles working over Ziggler in the ring after a slingshot into the ring post. Styles delivers some stiff shots to Ziggler. Ziggler fires up and fights back, but Styles cuts off the comeback attempt with a neckbreaker through the ropes before the commercial break. We come back to Styles working over Ziggler. Ziggler is able to fight back and hits a surprise dropkick on Styles. Ziggler runs wild with jumping clotheslines and a neckbreaker followed by an elbow drop for a near fall. Ziggler hits a Famouser for another near fall before Styles takes control again. Ziggler dodges a springboard 450 splash and hits a jumping DDT for another near fall. Styles catches Ziggler's foot on a superkick and turns it into a Styles Clash, but Ziggler rolls out and hits a Zig Zag for another near fall. Ziggler goes for another superkick, but Styles dodges it and Ziggler's leg goes through the ropes. Styles kicks the rope and hits a Styles Clash for the win. Very good match, very exciting.
And that's about it. Overall, a very good episode of SmackDown. The matches were good, especially the main event and the American Alpha/Breezango match. I'd say that SmackDown was more enjoyable this week by a bit.
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