5 Ups & 5 Downs From WWE SmackDown (Jan 1)

Ups...

5. The Opening Exchange

Now for some sweet positivity.

Most who have read recent SmackDown articles will know that Roman Reigns and Kevin Owens have been smashing it. They've got chemistry together, and they're clearly enjoying the chance to work a serious program that's head and shoulders above anything else on Friday nights.

Here, they produced another belter of a verbal exchange. KO targeting Jey Uso for his constant interference at TLC and in last week's Steel Cage effort made sense, as did watching Roman paint himself as some standalone legend who should attend shareholder meetings in Vince McMahon's stead.

As usual, everybody played their roles to perfection at the top of the show. Even better, Reigns' malevolent glare hinted at the violence that would come a bit later on. Bonus points for Jey constantly looking over at his cousin so he could react accordingly too.