12 Ups & 2 Downs From Last Night's WWE SmackDown (Mar 12)
Downs...
2. Talk To Me
There were too many talking in-ring segments on last night's SmackDown. Four is a lot, and unless the writers can find ways to make each one feel substantially different from the other, the repetition will always work to the show's detriment. That was the case here, though the segs worked when considered in a bubble.
We got Shane McMahon's explanation, a Becky Lynch/Charlotte Flair confrontation, Randy Orton and AJ Styles spitting hot fire at each other, and the Vince McMahon/New Day face-to-face. The first was a textbook opener, and the second and third were very, very samey, with the on-mic back-and-forth petering out before it could get physical. Again, good segments; just repetitive.
A little variety in the way WWE chose to push their WrestleMania programmes forward would've been nice. Talking gets tedious after a while, and when the show is this chat-heavy, it can become a little stodgy to get through.