5 Ups & 4 Downs From Last Night's WWE SmackDown (Jan 30)

Ups...

5. A Textbook Opener

Shinsuke Nakamura
WWE.com

If it were possible to introduce a middle category somewhere in the space between Ups and Downs, that's where Shinsuke Nakamura's show-opening promo would sit. Alas, such a thing doesn't exist, but as the segment didn't actively harm anyone involved, we'll throw it on the positive side of the occasion.

Prolonged talking segments do little to preserve 'The King Of Strong Style' and his waning superstar aura, but having him kick things off was the right thing to do following his Royal Rumble triumph. It didn't take long for Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn to arrive, with the duo bemoaning their pay-per-view loss to AJ Styles, thus summoning the WWE Champion. The group jabbered back and forth, leading to 'The Phenomenal One' challenging the heels to a tag match later than night. They said "nope," the babyfaces attacked, and that was that.

There was nothing groundbreaking here, but nothing objectively terrible either. Nakamura's promo was absolutely fine, as he wasn't forced to talk for too long before being interrupted, and Zayn and Owens are a great set of whiny heels. Let's hope that this angle eventually removes the duo from the WWE Title picture, though: the last thing we need is WWE ruining the long-awaited Styles/Nakamura dream match by turning it into a three/four-way.

Advertisement
Channel Manager
Channel Manager

Andy has been with WhatCulture for six years and is currently WhatCulture's Senior Wrestling Reporter. A writer, presenter, and editor with 10+ years of experience in online media, he has been a sponge for all wrestling knowledge since playing an old Royal Rumble 1992 VHS to ruin in his childhood. Having previously worked for Bleacher Report, Andy specialises in short and long-form writing, video presenting, voiceover acting, and editing, all characterised by expert wrestling knowledge and commentary. Andy is as much a fan of 1985 Jim Crockett Promotions as he is present-day AEW and WWE - just don't make him choose between the two.