4 Ups & 5 Downs From WWE SmackDown (24 Jan - Results & Review)
2. As House Show As It Gets
...which could've taken place on a live event.
Aldis made a a six-woman tag pitting Rhea Ripley, Bianca Belair and Naomi vs. Nia Jax, Candice LeRae and Liv Morgan. Everyone worked hard, as you’d expect, but there wasn’t much to chew on here. Liv getting the pin on Belair probably means Morgan and Rodriguez are getting a Women’s Tag Title crack, yes, but there wasn’t much build for Rhea vs. Nia at SNME or really anything else.
Midway through, there was a dreary lull that made one wonder if these ladies thought they were on AEW Collision and there was a picture-in-picture ad break going on. The action just stopped as everyone took a breather, hit reset and then started up again. If that was planned backstage by agents, then you've got to wonder why. Matches that are already a struggle can't afford to slow down to a crawl, especially when there are so many moving parts out there.
House show-style tag matches are nothing new for WWE's weeklies. Sometimes, they work. Cody Rhodes wrestled a few of those last year, for example. This, from the moment all involved walked through the curtain to drone on about the Rumble to the moment Liv pinned Bianca, didn't click.
Friday wasn't a banner night for the women's division overall, being brutally honest. WWE's writers somehow thought giving this hastily-arranged match so much time compared to the Women's United States Title situation (which badly needs some attention) was the right call.
To be blunt about it, it wasn't.