4 Ups & 5 Downs From WWE SmackDown (Nov 10 - Results & Review)

1. SmackDown’s A Bit…Secondary?

Kevin Owens Nick Aldis
WWE

Overall, SmackDown is coming across as background noise to WWE creative.

Both top male champions on the brand are part-timers who flit in and out of programming. Roman Reigns is absent just a little too often for some folks, but that'd be fine if the midcard stories carried things. Unfortunately, Logan Paul becoming United States Champ (whilst fab from a PR standpoint) means another title will be off TV regularly too.

Then, there's John Cena. The Hollywood strike lifting means 'Big Match John' putting over Solo Sikoa at Crown Jewel might be the last wrestling fans see of him for a while. The timing here sucks, because WWE could really use Cena to plug some holes for Roman and Paul.

How about the others? Jimmy Uso isn't strong enough to carry Bloodline business on his own, the women's scene is messier than it should be, and brand newbies like Kevin Owens are simply doing nothing of note. SmackDown is a bit too mediocre right now, and that's concerning.

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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.