3 Ups And 4 Downs From Last Night's WWE SmackDown (Oct 4)
That's the spirit!
Tuesday's Smackdown was the go-home show for the No Mercy Pay-Per-View, and if last month's Backlash show was a seed compared to SummerSlam's mighty oak tree, No Mercy is an acorn or a walnut. The return of John Cena and the Miz versus Dolph retirement match have added some interest for this Pay-Per-View, but it's still not at the level of the PPVs from before the split.
It didn't help that Smackdown was a tepid program. Though there were some good segments (mostly those hyping up Miz-Dolph and the John Cena versus AJ Styles versus Dean Ambrose main event), the wrestling was really weak. It didn't help that the five most consistent performers on the brand weren't in action, or that Jason Jordan and Becky Lynch had a combined four minutes of ring time. When Smackdown really delivers, it's due to a more judicious use of talent.
Coming off a Monday when Raw, for all its faults, delivered a really strong and important-feeling main event, it looks like this week goes to the red brand. Hopefully Smackdown can ride a wave of momentum from No Mercy into a strong showing next week.
Here are three ups and four downs from October 4's Smackdown: