5 Ups & 3 Downs From WWE SmackDown (18 Sept - Results & Review)
Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens work another scorcher; Cody Rhodes continues teasing Paul Heyman alliance.
SmackDown's main event scene can seemingly do no wrong. This stuff is gripping even when the finishes are all out of whack and referees are having brain farts! Seriously though, not even a colossal dropped ball from the official during Friday's main event could stop Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens from tearing the house down in Corpus Christi.
It's Money In The Bank qualifying season, and you know what that means. A boatload of Triple Threat matches started in earnest on Raw recently, and that continued on the blue side of things. SmackDown's shorter runtime meant that WWE could only squeeze 2 such bouts onto the format sheets, but they showcased everything that's right and wrong with this formulaic approach.
The tag-team division is also in dire straits too, and the same can be said of most midcard work on Smackers. Thankfully, that headline scene is pulling the nose up in a big, big way. Speaking of which, one Cody Rhodes continued his slow descent into madness via a pre-taped sit-down interview with Michael Cole on this week's show.
WWE kept the cameras rolling afterwards so Triple H could share some juicy footage on social media. It shows a darker side of Cody emerging from the shadows of a psyche ruined by the actions of others. There was also room for yet another Paul Heyman tease in the mix too. Just really cool work all round from the 'American Nightmare' as we march towards the final few months of the year.
Here's all the good and bad from SmackDown's latest round.