5 Ups & 3 Downs From WWE SmackDown (Jan 12 - Results & Review)

4. Tidy Work All Over

Joaquin Wilde Angel
WWE.com

Yours truly thought WWE achieved a ton during the actual in-ring opener on SmackDown.

Cruz del Toro and Joaquin Wilde have been background figures at best since day one, but they actually got to look more competitive than usual during this match vs. Angel and Humberto. Meanwhile, the heel duo's tag moves looked amazing, and creative even kept issues between Carlito and Santos Escobar ticking along.

The way they worked in that brawl between ex-LWO stablemates without throwing the match out with a bogus DQ/non-finish was appreciated. Cruz, Joaquin, Angel and Humberto deserved the floor to show what they're capable of, and Triple H will be proud of their efforts. This was really, really solid.

You've got to give it to the writers here. They've managed to keep Santos going despite Rey Mysterio's injury shelving plans for an LWO vs. ex-LWO explosion. Now, thanks to a reinvigorated Angel and Humberto, Escobar has some new backup that's arguably better than his last.

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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.