13 Ups & 0 Downs From Last Night's WWE SmackDown

11. You're A Weird Guy, Erick

Erick Rowan Michael Cole
WWE

Erick Rowan's sitdown interview with Michael Cole was both clumsy and inelegant, but that's fine. That's who Rowan is. He's a different kind of monster: a big, beefy boy who has only recently been empowered by his own strength and (apparent) intelligence, having been stifled as a follower for so long, so there should be growing pains as he comes out of his shell.

This was a solid character-enhancing segment to continue Rowan's recent focus. He claimed that rather than trying to kill Roman Reigns, his was only out to scare him, and suggested Cole lower his tone when he piped up in response. From there, Erick talked about being overlooked, disrespected, and underappreciated, calling himself a leader, not a follower, before claiming himself Daniel Bryan's mental and physical superior. Finally, Rowan said that nobody would ever disrespect him again.

Rowan's weirdo delivery helped put his personality over here, and hey, it's a whole lot better than the last time WWE tried to present him as a singles act.

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Channel Manager

Andy has been with WhatCulture for eight years and is currently WhatCulture's Wrestling Channel Manager. A writer, presenter, and editor with 10+ years of experience in online media, he has been a sponge for all wrestling knowledge since playing an old Royal Rumble 1992 VHS to ruin in his childhood. Having previously worked for Bleacher Report, Andy specialises in short and long-form writing, video presenting, voiceover acting, and editing, all characterised by expert wrestling knowledge and commentary. Andy is as much a fan of 1985 Jim Crockett Promotions as he is present-day AEW and WWE - just don't make him choose between the two.