3 Ups & 5 Downs From WWE SmackDown (April 9)

Two "WrestleMania matches" and three heavyweight promos couldn't save WWE SmackDown.

by Jamie Kennedy
Jey Uso Andre The Giant Battle Royal
WWE.com

Middle of the road.

That phrase perfectly sums up this week's episode of SmackDown. This was WWE's last pitch for WrestleMania 37, but the company also wanted to pretend that Friday's show was some 'Mania-infused edition - they did that to placate those who had been shunted from the cards on Saturday and Sunday.

Did it work out? Hmm, not really. Both the Fatal-4-Way tag and André The Giant Memorial Battle Royal struggled to keep SmackDown afloat. They should be grateful that WWE programmed three distinctly-different promos for the night too then. That three-headed attack from the Universal Title combatants gave the broadcast some relevance, and almost saved it from being 'SmackDown: The WrestleMania Kickoff Show' for two full hours.

This was as milk toast a go home episode as you're likely to get. However, it is worth seeking out those promos (from Daniel Bryan and Edge in particular), and you should go out of your way to see more delusional brilliance from Sami Zayn.

Everything else? Meh, it was just sorta' there and didn't do much to get one pumped for 'Mania.

Advertisement
Contributor

Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.