BRM Reviews the 6/23/2016 Smackdown (good action)

[Big Red Machine]

SETH ROLLINS PROMO- nothing he said in this promo about having the world title stolen from him was a lie. He also makes an open challenge looking for someone to face him in the main event (he claims Dean isn’t man enough to do this). It’s answered by Sami Zayn. This should be great!
Then Douchebag Dean showed up and turned this into his stupid talk show. Then he had the audacity to claim that Seth Rollins was the one being a “jackass.”
Sami asks why they’re waiting until the main event to have their match instead of doing it right now. Dean is a jerk to Sami as well, then asks Seth the same question. Presumably the answer is that whoever is running Smackdown authorized Seth to come out here and make an open challenge for the main event, not for the opener, so that’s what Seth has done. Seth has no good answer, though, and just storms to the back. Dean laughs at Seth getting annoyed like a f*cking troll.
This was a good segment that was completely ruined by WWE’s ridiculous requirements to have both “comedy” in their segments and also to ensure that the guys in a match they are building to must interact every single week, no matter how sick and tired of it people get by the time the match rolls around. It also wasted a good five minutes or so that could have gone to a match.

David Otunga has replaced Jerry Lawler on commentary. He didn’t have much to say all night, but I think that was more a consequence of being the rookie in a three-man booth.

ALBERTO DEL RIO vs. CESARO- 7/10
Money in the Bank has already passed but we’ve still got to see this same group of guys facing each other in meaningless matches every week. And if you want to know how great Mauro is, when Cesaro won, he immediately said that this win keeps Cesaro’s name in the title picture. If all of the announcers were like Mauro, most of these matches wouldn’t feel pointless.

APOLLO CREWS vs. SHEAMUS- 6.5/10
I don’t know if they even mentioned the result of this match on Raw, but now they’re already doing a rematch. I’m not complaining about the idea of a rematch. The finish certainly builds to one. It’s just that the rematch doesn’t mean anything if you don’t talk it upon Raw and make it seem important to both the announcers and the wrestlers themselves.
Anyway… WOW! THIS was the match they should have had at the PPV. They just beat the sh*t out of each other. We also got a cool and creative finish to somewhat protect Crews: Sheamus had the ring steps set up on end and Brogue Kicked Apollo from behind into the steps for the count-out (Mauro sold that Apollo’s should was hurt, too, because I think the steps fell on it).

We got our first commercial for the big move to Tuesday and draft. It looked pretty great.

THE USOS & THE CLUB BACKSTAGE- good
I actually did laugh at whichever Uso referred to Gallows & Anderson as “head & shoulders.” We wind up with AJ vs. Jimmy Uso. They wanted to shake on it the Usos snubbed them. I don’t know if this means that the “no friends at ringside” stip will still be adhered to, or that was the Usos’ way of saying that they know that AJ’s word isn’t worth sh*t.

AJ STYLES vs. JIMMY USO (w/Jey Uso)- 6.75/10
Being great, Mauro made sure to tell us that he had “just received word that this match is official” because Mauro knows that it makes a lot more sense for there to be someone actually running the show.
Props to them for making sure to get the shot of Jey Uso looking over his should to make sure Gallows & Anderson aren’t coming. They did, eventually, coming through the crowd. I thought that they made AJ look way too weak here, with Jimmy Uso getting too much of the offense and almost being about to win before Bullet Club showed up.

VAUDEVILLAINS vs. THE NEW DAY (w/Xavier Woods)- 3.5/10
Is there some reason why we can’t get New Day vs. Dudleys or New Day vs. Lucha Dragons anymore, just for the sake of variety? Or maybe give us a new team by putting together two guys that aren’t doing anything right now like Swagger and Kane? Hell, I’ll even take New Day vs. Breeze & Fandango.
Anyway, this was a match I feel like I’ve seen a million times in the past two months and not once has the conclusion ever been in doubt.

WYATT FAMILY PROMO- it’s a Bray Wyatt promo. You’ve heard it already.

DARREN YOUNG & BOB BACKLUND SEGMENT- skipped it on principle.

AN INTERVIEWER INTERVIEWS SAMI ZAYN- Zayn cut a great promo

RENEE YOUNG INTERVIEWS CHARLOTTE & DANA- Charlotte was good. Dana did a decent job with the bad script she was given.

BECKY LYNCH vs. DANA BROOKE (w/Charlotte)- 1/10
The match was short. Becky’s ribs got worked over and she got pinned off of a distraction. Dana attacked her after the match but she made her own comeback and laid Dana out. Then she got laid out by Charlotte. Then Sasha came out to have a confrontation with Charlotte. Charlotte teased fighting with Sasha but then ran away. Dana tried to jump Sasha from behind but got laid out with a finisher for the second time this segment and then forced to tap to the Banks Statement. Did they really have to make Dana look like such a chump? Why not just have Sasha come out to make the save and have the heels bail with their heat intact.

SETH & DEAN BACKSTAGE- Dean says he will watch the main event from ringside. The last thing I want to see in this match is more Dean Ambrose.

SAMI ZAYN vs. SETH ROLLINS- 7.25/10
Ambrose was on commentary. Thankfully he didn’t interfere. Ambrose and Rollins got into a thing after the match (for once not instigated by Dean). Rollins then jumped Rollins but Dean made a comeback. Seth managed to slip away from Dirty Deeds and bailed.


A very good episode of Smackdown. There were no comments about Roman's suspension.

[KILLdozer]

I was really sure that I thought you'd already reviewed the latest SD from this week. Hm. Though I'm watching it now on Hulu and I've gotta say...E and Kingston are pretty much turning into the Rock.

These guys do nothing but dang ol', talk about "booty-o's and power of positivity."

Foolish jokes and insults...and everyone hates The Rock.

[Big Red Machine]

I was really sure that I thought you'd already reviewed the latest SD from this week. Hm. Though I'm watching it now on Hulu and I've gotta say...E and Kingston are pretty much turning into the Rock.

These guys do nothing but dang ol', talk about "booty-o's and power of positivity."

Foolish jokes and insults...and everyone hates The Rock.

I'm currently watching it (by which I mean the 7/7 show).

[KILLdozer]

Yeah... I figured it was a good time to get things done when they said Amore and all of his certified G nonsense was coming next. He's like a hipster rapper John Cena .

Maybe not hipster...but what is the word I'm looking for to describe his style?

[KILLdozer]

Yeah these two. .. he's just way too much for me to take seriously . Amore -he just said AJ "isn't original nor a good remix"

Coming from a guy who's half gangster Long Island cliché.

[Big Red Machine]

Yeah these two. .. he's just way too much for me to take seriously . Amore -he just said AJ "isn't original nor a good remix"

Coming from a guy who's half gangster Long Island cliché.

He was taking a shot at Bullet Club for their "2 sweet"s and "suck it"s and various other nWo rip-off schtick

[KILLdozer]

That doesn't literally change anything to me because my point still stands.

He's latest on my list of can't stand them.

I wish we both didn't have Cross tattoos.

Yeah-that bad lol.

[Big Red Machine]

That doesn't literally change anything to me because my point still stands.

He's latest on my list of can't stand them.

I wish we both didn't have Cross tattoos.

Yeah-that bad lol.

Cross tattoos are pretty common. There are probably a lot of other individuals with them that you'll find objectionable.

[KILLdozer]

It'll be a while before that happens.