2 Ups & 6 Downs From WWE SmackDown (Apr 3)

Ups...

2. The Chemistry Between Bryan & Nakamura

SmackDown did feature some solid wrestling despite all the storyline fumbles.

Most notably, Daniel Bryan and Shinsuke Nakamura put on a decent exhibition of things to come if Dan becomes Intercontinental Champion. It didn't go too long, but that's fine for TV and they can always have a more protracted pay-per-view match if needs must later on. For what it was, this was good sh*t.

Maybe a Bryan clean win would've been preferable to the disqualification finish? That's, admittedly, a bit of nitpicking though. After Cesaro's interference, the heels kicked the living eco-friendliness out of Daniel and left he and partner Drew Gulak laying. Anyone who knows WWE's booking style should rejoice after seeing that.

The babyface struggle here dropped heavy hints that they'll rally at WrestleMania and Bryan will seize the IC belt from Sami Zayn. That's a good thing, and it means D-Bry is one step closer to reclaiming the glory he fancied back in 2015.

Follow-up matches against Shin and Cesaro sound delicious too.