3 Ups & 5 Downs From WWE SmackDown (May 27)

1. So Much Stalling

Sheamus Butch Ridge Holland Brawling Brutes
WWE.com

SmackDown's writing team are apparently f*cked when Roman Reigns is off TV. They must need his 10-minute long entrance, those long-winded Paul Heyman promos and the Undisputed Champ's star power to fill two hours of telly on FOX every Friday.

It became obvious from the first minute that workers were told to go out there on Smackers and ramble on during promos. WWE didn't have a ton of content to work with here, and it showed. Why else would Sheamus even grab the mic before that main event six-man if not to stall?

Stall, stall, stall.

Friday night's show had two booking ideas. One, stall like your lives depend on it. Two, there will be plenty of throwaway tag-team matches that hopefully keep the action ticking along well-enough so fans don't realise we're stalling for time.

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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.