3 Ups & 5 Downs From Last Night's WWE SmackDown (Feb 27)

Downs...

5. A Great Insomnia Cure

Ruby Riott Naomi
WWE.com

SmackDown's women's division stinks.

While their Raw counterparts are shining at the moment (having starred in an extremely successful first Elimination Chamber match, and with Ronda Rousey's arrival set to thrust even more attention upon the group), SD's females have been drowning in a mulch of faceless, character-less multi-person "wars" for over a year. At the moment, it's The Riott Squad vs. Becky Lynch, Charlotte Flair, and Naomi. In a month or two, it'll be a different shade of the same s***. "Revolution?". "Land of Opportunity?". Nonsense.

Naomi vs. Ruby was this week's throwaway bout. As always, the action was technically sound, but it was a lifeless back-and-forth affair that struggled for even a semblance of crowd heat. Riott won, pinning the former Women's Champion with the creatively named "Riott Kick," and everybody went on their merry way.

Here's hoping the mooted Fastlane singles bout between Ruby and Charlotte offers something a little more substantial, but wouldn't it be typical of Road Dogg's team to turn it into a wacky six-way, or a lumberjack match?

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Andy has been with WhatCulture for six years and is currently WhatCulture's Senior Wrestling Reporter. 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.