5 Ups & 3 Downs From WWE SmackDown (23 Aug - Results & Review)

4. “Make It Quick!”

That's what GM Nick Aldis told Kevin Owens about joining Cody Rhodes in the ring to beat up Grayson Waller and Austin Theory. This was a passive appearance from Aldis, but a crowd-pleasing one. Honestly, sometimes that's perfectly fine and the best way to go. WWE gave Nick his place without having him hog screentime away from wrestlers.

There was a ton of story context packed into the opening segment too. WWE aired a fun video package that showed KO turning on all of his old pals/partners, including AEW's Chris Jericho. When he came out to address it, Owens said he only regretted turning on Kofi Kingston, because "everyone else deserved it".

His realistic brand of characterisation continues, which is great.

There was some tension between Bash In Berlin opponents when Kev accidentally (or "accidentally") bumped into Cody following the brawl with A-Town Down Under. Everything here serviced the story, and it actually managed to get the point across without going too long. That's a win.