Seru's Stance on Smackdown 6/27/17

Post Reply
User avatar
Serujuunin
Posts: 2441
Joined: Dec 17th, '10, 19:56

Seru's Stance on Smackdown 6/27/17

Post by Serujuunin » Jun 29th, '17, 00:06

Another show I would normally skip... But I'm ready to buckle in for a load of hot garbage. I actually watched this between shifts at work, at an A&W up the street, writing notes in my book by hand!

We open with an Money in the Bank recap... Why remind us of one of the worst PPVs we've seen in ages! Then they recap that we're having another MITB match tonight... My question becomes, why give this away on free TV, unless it's a response to the fan backlash to the last one. Anyway, on to the show.

Daniel Bryan opens the show- negative
We get more of the WWE's stupid "woman's evolution" branding garbage while he announces the MITB match we just saw a promo package for, and a Women's Title rematch. Carmella then interrupts and says exactly what we think she would say about an injustice and her being wronged and blah blah. She's obnoxious and childish, but her delivery is fine up until she starts whining about it not being fair. Again she mentions men who have won with outside help, which is fair, but Bryan also says that none of them actually had someone else grab the briefcase for them, which is also fair. I think after this fiasco, there should be a written change in the rules for the MITB match to prevent this mess from happening again. Again Carmella is childish. Ellsworth talks, and honestly, I skipped it. He's gone beyond working with Carmella's gimmick and just needs to disappear. I come back into Bryan saying he should fire Ellsworth, and he's not wrong. Instead, he breaks my heart and just removes him from the arena for the night. I'm pretty sure the manner of his removal would actually be illegal should it happen in reality. This segment is taking up WAY too much time with the focus on Bryan and Ellsworth... Two people who DON'T NEED IT. Everything about this segment stunk.

Hype Bros v The Usos- execution, positive, but concept, negative
I seem to be reviewing a fair few segments this way. The fans are still chanting for The Usos like they were faces. The spot with Rawley taunting one of the Usos with the chops was a fun little bit of his character, and the fans seemed into it too. However, The Usos quickly win, which makes me wonder what the whole point of this match was. Oh, there it is, it's to set up the post-match confrontation with New Day. Xavier was good, Big E was weird, and Kofi was... weirdly funny? I kind of liked his little wordplay stuff... Even though I feel like I shouldn't. Whichever of The Usos was on the right cuts a way better promo. He's more fluid, comfortable and natural than the other one. We get a rematch for the tag team titles, and I feel like there should be some kind of stipulation to keep The Usos from walking out on this one. I liked all the technical parts of this segment, but I don't like how the Hype Bros lost, and so quickly. There are so few decent tag teams that the failure to build them makes me insane- but I said that enough times in the RAW review, so I'll drop it now, and assume that it's my issue with everything!

Cena's return promotional video- negative
So Cena is a "free agent". I know I read on this website that it means he can do RAW and Smackdown, but hell, we don't need Cena on both shows if you write properly. I hate this whole thing because it makes all the other superstars seem like they mean nothing compared to Cena.

Fashion Vice- negative
I skipped most of this because I'd like to keep my lunch down. Apparently The Ascension didn't trash their "office". And The Ascension are now just as much a joke as Breezango. For my opinion here, see Hype Bros v The Usos...

Naomi v Lana for the Smackdown Women's Championship- negative
So, I get that they want Naomi to be a fighting champion, but Lana has done literally NOTHING to deserve a rematch. Also her music is terrible. Also, she loses in rather spectacular fashion compared to her MITB match... This should have never happened. It makes Lana look even worse and Naomi doesn't even look stronger coming out of it because Lana looks so bad.

Becky Lynch Interview- positive
Her interview was short and sweet, lacking all the corny catch phrases, and was purely emotional. She's determined, and pissed, which is totally understandable. She gets her point across quickly, and moves on to show people she means what she says.

Aiden English "segment" and Randy Orton- execution, positive, concept, negative
Thankfully Orton comes in to interview another guy who seems to me to be a perfectly competent guy, but by virtue of his booking, I literally don't care a whit. Aiden gets RKO'ed during the commercial break, and Orton cuts a promo I really liked about how he'll torture Jinder until he gets his title rematch. He even addresses that he really has no right to a rematch, but he'll be damned if he doesn't get one anyway. Shane comes in, to get his shtick off- so far the GM and the Commissioner have gotten louder pops than any of the superstars... Something seem wrong with this picture? Shane mentions that Randy has done all those same things to great effect in his own past, but gives him the match anyway because he "can empathise with how Randy feels". I wish that worked with my boss. Why in the world does he let Jinder pick the stipulation? That makes literally no sense. Give the man with cronies the chance to make them legal in the match, sure. And now we get Jobber-to-the-Stars, no wait, the WWE World Champion, come out to cut a bad promo in half-English and half-Punjabi. Jinder's character inspires two different questions. One, why in the world does a non-American have to play an anti-American heel? (Jinder isn't even born in India, BTW, he was born in MY CITY) Also, why, when you are using a superstar to attempt to appeal to a demographic, do you make him a cookie-cutter anti-American heel? And of course, to further my point, Jinder picks a Punjabi Prison match, made famous by his "idol', The Great Khali. I guess Jinder doesn't have a TV? Or the internet? Just being the same nationality as a person doesn't immediately make them your idol in most cases, I'm pretty sure. Natalya isn't my hero because she's Canadian. Neither is Bret Hart, Chris Jericho, Edge or Trish Stratus, and those are some pretty fantastic names.

AJ Styles, Daniel Bryan and Kevin Owens backstage- neutral
Another foreign guy who is an anti-American heel. I feel like management just has a list of gimmicks they pick randomly from. Bryan of course plugs Cena, who returns next week, and we get an "Independence Day Battle Royal". Hey Daniel, Canada Day is coming up soon too, can we get a match like that? No? Oh right, because it's for the Number One Contendership for the US Title. I suppose this makes sense, but- and maybe it's because I'm not American- the gimmick seems silly to me. Mind you, we're celebrating Canada's "150th Birthday" this year (which is a blatant lie used for merchandising, but that's another story), and I'm not really bothered by that either. Maybe I'm not patriotic? Anyway, but is AJ in the picture for the US Title when he should be in the main event? There are other guys whose image could be improved by a US Title win, but we know AJ is better than that.

This WWE 2K18 commercial is super lame... Why would any wrestling fan want to destroy all of that history, even if he is attempting to make his own way by doing his own thing? That does not seem to me to be a thing that a true wrestling fan- one who loves the sport enough to actually dedicate his life to performing it- would do.

Maria/Mike Kanellis promo/Sami Zayn v Baron Corbin- mixed
I'm going to be the Unpopular Opinion here, but probably because I don't know anything about Mike and Maria... I don't like this gimmick. I don't find it entertaining, and I can't see the potential payoff. And, I like Sami Zayn. His bit here about apologising for interrupting but he has a match next was funny to me- because apologising is our national identity as Canadians, dammit! However, the match itself was a borefest. Resident statistican, Red, please tell us how many times these guys have faced off on Smackdown or PPV... Zayn has a reason to be confident, apparently he's 3-0 against Corbin. Honestly, before the last month, I was just starting to like Corbin, and after closer inspection, I hate the guy. Unsurprisingly, there is nothing fun about this match because A) we've seen it a million times already and B) it's Baron Corbin. I've also noticed that that baseball slide out of the corner and back into the ring into a clothesline seems to be a staple of his offence. He did it only once here, but in his match with Orton however long ago, he did that same thing three times. We get a teaser of Nakamura watching backstage, who is honestly the only reason I continue to watch this show at this point.

Side Rant- I love AJ Styles and Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens and Dolph Ziggler, but I dislike the direction most of these guys are being taken in that Nakamura is the only one who actually seems to be where he belongs, which is why I find him to be the only one worth watching currently.

Anyway, Corbin continues to look uncomfortable and clumsy, but he wins anyway.

Nakamura Interview- positive
Another interview that benefits from its brevity. Nakamura makes his point, but with some standard Nakamura weirdness. I get the impression that we're going into a Corbin v Nakamura program, which will make Corbin look even more clumsy by comparison.

A repeat of the dumb Cena video.

And we get a rap off between New Day and the Usos next week. I won't even begin to talk about all the things I hate about this.

Main Event- Women's Money in the Bank Ladder Match, Charlotte v Natalya v Becky Lynch v Tamina v Carmella- negative
What is it with women failing to be properly expressive? Tamina is wearing a face like she's trying to keep herself from falling asleep. Eyes wide open like that is not scary or heely. A lot of dumb spots in this match, but I'll try to keep them chronological. The women just LET Carmella set up the ladder early on like idiots, while they all fight each other, and the same dumb spot of "Woman X on the ladder and the other four rush the ladder to keep her from winning" so often that it loses the feeling of suspense. Becky looked like she surprised herself landing on her feet from the double suplex. I don't know if this is supposed to be this way, but Tamina looks clumsy as hell with that splash. The ladder spot with the two women holding the ladder and Becky trying to climb it was kind of neat, and there was one cool spot with Nattie and Charlotte. I just love Becky! She's adorable, and she can throw women her size around like nothing!

Here's a video of Lynch deadlifting a stupid amount of weight.



Carrying on.

Carmella looked like she was slapping the hook, not trying to unclasp it, while she was waiting for the other women to come in and stop her. Near the end, Nattie chases Charlotte away from ringside like a fool, and the other women are incapacitated, so Ellsworth- naturally- defies the ban and comes in to attempt the same sh*t as MITB. But this time, Becky is ready for him. I liked Becky taunting Ellsworth on the ladder, even if it was, technically, a waste of time that she could have been using to climb the ladder. Ellsworth is incapacitated, but Carmella wins anyway. This whole match felt like a clumsy afterthought, and the wrong woman won anyway.

Overall, this whole show was garbage, with only a few strong talking points that were carried by the delivery, because the content was also, at worst, garbage, and at best, illogical. I watched this hot garbage in an A&W taking notes by hand for you guys!

User avatar
Big Red Machine
Posts: 27378
Joined: Dec 16th, '10, 15:12

Re: Seru's Stance on Smackdown 6/27/17

Post by Big Red Machine » Jun 29th, '17, 01:56

I think what we all need to start doing for as long as Jinder is champion is to pretend that the US Title is the top belt. They picked Jinder for their horribly stupid reasons and he is going to hold the WWE Title forever, so just assume that belt isn't available for non-Jinder wrestlers. If we can get a US Title picture of Owens, AJ, Zayn, Nakamura, Ziggler, and Rusev, I'll be thrilled with that.

Mike & Maria definitely aren't what they were in TNA or even in ROH, but once WWE finds something to actually do with them, you'll love Maria. She is one of the best non-wrestling heels in the world.
Hold #712: ARM BAR!

Upcoming Reviews:
FIP in 2005
ROH Validation
PWG All-Star Weekend V: Night 2
DGUSA Open the Ultimate Gate 2013
ROH/CMLL Global Wars Espectacular: Day 3

User avatar
KILLdozer
Posts: 5930
Joined: Dec 16th, '10, 22:54

Re: Seru's Stance on Smackdown 6/27/17

Post by KILLdozer » Jun 29th, '17, 09:55

I'm pretty sure Jinder Mahal didn't have such a strong accent before either lol....
When they come, they'll come at what you love.

User avatar
cero2k
Site Admin
Posts: 20950
Joined: Dec 16th, '10, 11:32

Re: Seru's Stance on Smackdown 6/27/17

Post by cero2k » Jun 29th, '17, 10:19

KILLdozer wrote: Jun 29th, '17, 09:55 I'm pretty sure Jinder Mahal didn't have such a strong accent before either lol....
well, i don't think he was ever allowed to talk before this
Image

User avatar
KILLdozer
Posts: 5930
Joined: Dec 16th, '10, 22:54

Re: Seru's Stance on Smackdown 6/27/17

Post by KILLdozer » Jun 29th, '17, 10:46

cero2k wrote: Jun 29th, '17, 10:19
KILLdozer wrote: Jun 29th, '17, 09:55 I'm pretty sure Jinder Mahal didn't have such a strong accent before either lol....
well, i don't think he was ever allowed to talk before this
He said he was the fun one with the three man band...he did the talking during that great Khali thing....

Which is also a whole other thing....

Of course-,it HAD TO BE A PUNJABI PRISON and you had to mention The Khali-he was only "Great" size wise... what's next?
When they come, they'll come at what you love.

User avatar
KILLdozer
Posts: 5930
Joined: Dec 16th, '10, 22:54

Re: Seru's Stance on Smackdown 6/27/17

Post by KILLdozer » Jun 29th, '17, 10:47

Oh I know, he grew up with Daivari!!!!
When they come, they'll come at what you love.

User avatar
cero2k
Site Admin
Posts: 20950
Joined: Dec 16th, '10, 11:32

Re: Seru's Stance on Smackdown 6/27/17

Post by cero2k » Jun 29th, '17, 10:50

KILLdozer wrote: Jun 29th, '17, 10:46
cero2k wrote: Jun 29th, '17, 10:19
well, i don't think he was ever allowed to talk before this
He said he was the fun one with the three man band...he did the talking during that great Khali thing....

Which is also a whole other thing....

Of course-,it HAD TO BE A PUNJABI PRISON and you had to mention The Khali-he was only "Great" size wise... what's next?
dude, you're asking me to remember Smackdown stuff from like 3-4 yrs ago
Image

User avatar
KILLdozer
Posts: 5930
Joined: Dec 16th, '10, 22:54

Re: Seru's Stance on Smackdown 6/27/17

Post by KILLdozer » Jun 29th, '17, 11:02

cero2k wrote: Jun 29th, '17, 10:50
KILLdozer wrote: Jun 29th, '17, 10:46
cero2k wrote: Jun 29th, '17, 10:19
well, i don't think he was ever allowed to talk before this
He said he was the fun one with the three man band...he did the talking during that great Khali thing....

Which is also a whole other thing....

Of course-,it HAD TO BE A PUNJABI PRISON and you had to mention The Khali-he was only "Great" size wise... what's next?
dude, you're asking me to remember Smackdown stuff from like 3-4 yrs ago
He's gonna say he's Ranjin Singh's brother.
When they come, they'll come at what you love.

User avatar
KILLdozer
Posts: 5930
Joined: Dec 16th, '10, 22:54

Re: Seru's Stance on Smackdown 6/27/17

Post by KILLdozer » Jun 29th, '17, 11:10

He's gonna exploit that whole "Throw Mohammed Hassan through the stage, Never to be seen again" thing.
When they come, they'll come at what you love.

User avatar
Serujuunin
Posts: 2441
Joined: Dec 17th, '10, 19:56

Re: Seru's Stance on Smackdown 6/27/17

Post by Serujuunin » Jun 29th, '17, 20:00

KILLdozer wrote: Jun 29th, '17, 09:55 I'm pretty sure Jinder Mahal didn't have such a strong accent before either lol....
He was born in Calgary, he doesn't have an accent lol

User avatar
Serujuunin
Posts: 2441
Joined: Dec 17th, '10, 19:56

Re: Seru's Stance on Smackdown 6/27/17

Post by Serujuunin » Jun 29th, '17, 20:05

Big Red Machine wrote: Jun 29th, '17, 01:56 I think what we all need to start doing for as long as Jinder is champion is to pretend that the US Title is the top belt. They picked Jinder for their horribly stupid reasons and he is going to hold the WWE Title forever, so just assume that belt isn't available for non-Jinder wrestlers. If we can get a US Title picture of Owens, AJ, Zayn, Nakamura, Ziggler, and Rusev, I'll be thrilled with that.
I hadn't really thought of it that way... I'm okay with this.
Big Red Machine wrote: Jun 29th, '17, 01:56Mike & Maria definitely aren't what they were in TNA or even in ROH, but once WWE finds something to actually do with them, you'll love Maria. She is one of the best non-wrestling heels in the world.
Fun fact, Maria follows me on Twitter. God only knows why.

User avatar
KILLdozer
Posts: 5930
Joined: Dec 16th, '10, 22:54

Re: Seru's Stance on Smackdown 6/27/17

Post by KILLdozer » Jun 29th, '17, 20:10

Serujuunin wrote: Jun 29th, '17, 20:00
KILLdozer wrote: Jun 29th, '17, 09:55 I'm pretty sure Jinder Mahal didn't have such a strong accent before either lol....
He was born in Calgary, he doesn't have an accent lol
Sure he does, it's just fake because everything Indian.
When they come, they'll come at what you love.

Post Reply

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 13 guests