WWE Smackdown LIVE Highlights
It's Every Woman for Herself
This week's episode of Smackdown LIVE kick started with the focus firmly on the women's division. General manager Daniel Bryan stood in the ring with the brand new Smackdown LIVE Women's championship as he gave that women's six pack challenge match one last push ahead of this Sunday's Backlash pay per view. Bryan also announced that later on in the show all six women would compete in a tag team match in one final hunt for momentum. In the opening segment, each woman got some time on the mic with Becky Lynch without a doubt coming out the star as she spoke about how much winning the title this Sunday would mean to her and just wy it's so important to her. There's no denying the fact that Lynch is the fan favourite heading into this six-pack challenge. Now, I do feel as though last night's opening could have been a lot stronger. I liked that each woman got some time in the spotlight and I liked that as they entered the ring there was no music just because it gave it that touch of realism. I also loved that the show actually started with the women and the focus on the women's division. I've mentioned it a thew times over the past four weeks or so that the one thing Smackdown LIVE really is doing better than Monday night RAW is showcasing all its female talent. Heading into Backlash this match really is one of the most unpredictable and I honestly cannot wait to see what goes down. Hopefully, they get a decent amount of time. Later on in the show last night we got to see Carmella pick up the win for her team in a six women tag team match. I wasn't expecting the match to end the way it did but I really really liked it!
Will The Miz Face the Fight at BackLash?
If there is one thing that has been keeping me extremely entertained over the past thew weeks it has been the work from the Miz. As a long time fan of his, it's been great seeing after all this time get back on top and work a story that's both entertaining and gripping not to mention exactly what he deserves. And to think it all started with a brilliant promo over on Talking Smack. Following the segment from last week's episode of Smackdown LIVE between Dolph Ziggler and The Miz, it was announced that the show off will challenge the Miz this up and coming Sunday at the Backlash pay per view for the Intercontinental Championship. Now, I understand that the Miz needs to defend his title at Backlash this weekend but I wasn't a fan of Ziggler being given a title match without really earning it. Last night Ziggler did take a seat at ringside while the Miz went one on one with his SummerSlam opponent Apollo Crews in what was actually a decent match. I know the Miz isn't the world's greatest wrestler but he's always been solid in the ring and sure knows how to entertain and that is exactly what we saw last night. It was a fun match with every reason to keep watching. After the bout, we got to see some great story development between the Miz and Dolph Ziggler. With the champ once again running away from a fight with the show off he left it to his wife Maryse to go back into the ring to get his IC Championship. I know it was such a small, simple moment but this really was something I liked a lot during last nights show. It fitted perfectly with the story they are creating with the Miz and it gave their up and coming match just something to go off of.
The Usos Have a Change in Attitude
Last night we saw the semi-final matches in the tag team championship tournament. As we know the finals will take place this up and coming weekend at the Backlash pay per view and again, this is something I'm really looking forward too. The tag division has been used so well on Smackdown LIVE since the brand split and I'm very interested in seeing how this tournament comes to an end. The first semi-finals match to take place last night saw two of the favourites in the tournament go head to head as former tag team champions The Usos took on NXT favourites American Alpha. Before the bell had even rang both teams showed a sign of respect and sportsmanship shaking each other's hands and it looked as though we were going to have a nice, clean, heartfelt fight but that's far from what we got. Instead out of nowhere the Usos jumped both Jordan and Gable giving them a slight upper hand but it didn't last all too long and within seconds later the former NXT Tag Team Champions were able to turn it around and after taking out one Usos they focused on the other and were very quickly able to pick up the pinfall victory allowing them to advance to the finals. However, the Usos were far from finished with the Smackdown LIVE newbies and went straight back on the attack focusing on Gable and his right leg. After a brutal attack on Gable, the brothers left the ring and the arena leaving the entire WWE universe wondering whether or not Chad Gable would be a hundred percent heading into Backlash on Sunday. Now, a heel turn was teased for the Usos back at the SummerSlam pay per view during a kick off show match and a feud between American Aloha and the Usos was pretty much inevitable. While you guys know I'm strong Usos hater I did really like how the heel turn was done last night and I'm very interested in not only seeing what happens with the tournament on Sunday but with this growing story.
Kane Continues to Make His point
During last week's episode of Smackdown LIVE, we saw a rather odd four minutes of action. As we all sat back and watched a man strip down to his underwear and demand a one on one match up the milkman, yes the milkman, took the beating of his life at the hands of Kane and we all began to wonder what on earth we were actually doing with our lives. On the show this week we got to see more from the devils favourite demon as he interrupted Fandango nearer to the end of the show. We all saw it coming but it really was pretty great seeing Kane just annihilate someone once again. Taking out Fandango with one simple chokeslam he continued to send a message and prove a point. Now, I also mentioned in my Best and Worse moments post last week that I'm hoping the WWE are slowly building up a feud between Kane and Baron Corbin. I have a blog post coming up where I talk about why I want to see this feud and what I would hope to see come out of it so make sure to keep an eye out for that over the next thew days!
AJ Styles and Dean Ambrose Come Face to Face
This up and coming Sunday at the Backlash pay per view Dean Ambrose will defend his WWE World Championship against the new face that runs the place, AJ Styles. This is without a doubt one of the matches I'm most looking forward too. We've had a pretty strong build up over the past couple of weeks. There isn't this huge story but they both have been keeping us all entertained so much since the brand split and I cannot wait to see what they have to bring to the table this weekend. Now, to close last nights show we got to see these two superstars come face to face one last time ahead of this Sunday's Backlash pay per view. All night long we had seen both men take part in little backstage scenes that showcased their characters greatly. One thing I did notice was how far AJ Styles has come as a heel in the WWE. He just keeps getting better and better and while I personally will be backing Dean Ambrose this Sunday the fact that Styles has been so entertaining as a heel and becaus there is
just so much storyline opportnity for him I wouldn't be annoyed if he did walk out of the Backlash pay per view as the new WWE World Champion. In their segment last night Ambrose presented Styles with a contribution trophy he had won as a kid and fitted in just perfect as the champ declared that that would be the only trophy Styles would be getting from him. I really did love Ambrose's mic work last night. he has always been known as one of the stronger speakers in the WWE today and last night he really did show a lot of character and brilliant mic work. Styles also held his own very well. He's never been the strongest of talkers but he did brilliantly in last night's segment. He came across like a true, strong heel and he made me believe every word he said and by the end of the night, I believed that he really could walk of Backlash as champion. I liked that it was Styles who close the night on a high and the whole segment fitted into the show perfectly especially thanks to mini backstage segments throughout the show.
EXTRA'S
We also go to see Heath Slater and Rhyno advance to the finals in the Tag team tournament and I have to say that despite wanting Gable and Jordan to be champs so badly I really do want to see Slater get his Smackdown LIVE contract and it would be pretty great seeing him win on Sunday. We also heard from both Randy Orton and Bray Wyatt who made their up and coming match sound like a real must see.
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