5 Ups & 4 Downs From WWE SmackDown (22 May - Results & Review)

1. This Was Blake Monroe’s Debut?!

Chelsea Green Blake Monroe WWE SmackDown Debut
WWE

Oh no. Oh no!

Blake Monroe has been teased as a big deal for weeks via carefully-constructed vignettes. Those who don't watch AEW or NXT but exclusively Raw and SmackDown knew right away what to expect from the Brit after watching those. She's an elitist bitch, but a damn talented one; and she knows it. Someone with that snobbery would demand a grand debut then, right? Right?!

Nah, Monroe walked in on Chelsea Green strolling backstage and said she wished she hadn’t bothered watching Chelsea out there with Tiffany Stratton. That’s it?! Good lord, could Triple H have come up with a less impactful way to introduce Blake to a bigger audience? Taking creative baby steps is one thing, but this was surely the least impressive way WWE could've debuted Monroe beyond having her stare at the lights for Giulia in 90 seconds or something like that.

It's like everyone kinda forgot that Blake was meant to debut this week, scrambled and came up with something last minute. Was she just sitting around in catering waiting to find out what she was going to be doing, then someone sprinted up breathless and said: 'Catch Chelsea, mumble some nonsense, then disappear'?

Nothing about this skit sold Monroe as a must see star who's ready to leave her mark on the women's division. Spare us all the trouble if she's gonna become a female version of early Dolph Ziggler by going around introducing herself to everyone. Surely the writing team have more for her than this tripe?!

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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.