4 Ups & 3 Downs From WWE SmackDown (Jan 28)
Big E gets drafted again; Sasha Banks returns to SmackDown; WWE puts holes in Roman Reigns.
WWE ran a newsworthy, if unspectacular, show on Friday night.
Longtime fans know what to expect from the Royal Rumble's 'go home' episode by now. The company routinely produces "By The Numbers" vignettes on each 30-person match and books some sort of multi-wrestler brawl as a mini-preview of sorts for the traditional favourite.
This week, they also penned Sasha Banks' grand return, Big E's "permanent" move from Raw to SmackDown and some heel comeuppance for Sonya Deville. Everything felt workmanlike, but there are still question marks over the cross-brand influence Raw has on Friday nights. That's not really something that should be happening in January - it's a Survivor Series thing, surely, and feels out of place.
On the plus side, there was a late push to make Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins something special. This is also one of the first times somebody not-named Brock Lesnar has penetrated the 'Tribal Chief's' armour and forced him to show weakness. It's not the first time, but vulnerability has been rare for Reigns since his heel turn.
Here are all the 'Ups' and the 'Downs' from WWE's last bit of build before Saturday's Rumble.