5 Ups & 3 Downs From WWE SmackDown (May 5)
Bad Bunny = WWE main eventer; Bianca Belair needs help; Puerto Rico is hot.
This week's SmackDown was a 'get in and get the f*ck out' kind of broadcast.
WWE were tactical with the show though. It beamed live from the same José Miguel Agrelot Coliseum that'll host Saturday's Backlash pay-per-view, and it told those in charge one thing: Puerto Rico is hot for company action. Those people were loud all night, and they'll be on fire come the PLE 24 hours after this functional episode.
"Functional" suggests it was bland, but that's not true. Triple H's creative team worked hard to make SmackDown look good post-Draft (with one baffling exception), and the LWO seems to have a real chance of becoming something more than just a vehicle for Rey Mysterio's WCW nostalgia coming out of this.
Cody Rhodes was here, fan service was a general rule of thumb, and Bad Bunny even teased what's to come at Backlash. It wasn't all good stuff though. Bianca Belair still feels like she's killing time despite moving brands, and that aforementioned baffling decision neutered someone Hunter reportedly plans on pushing.
Here's all the good and bad from WWE's final pit stop before Backlash.