5 Ups And 3 Downs From WWE SmackDown (Oct 15)

Finally, there's a solution in sight for the Summer Rae saga...

This week's episode of Monday Night Raw felt lifeless and dull. Remarkably, the same cannot be said for SmackDown, which seemed full of life next to its flagship counterpart. The 'blue' show is only a 2-hour affair, and it still seems that the WWE creative team are more comfortable with booking that kind of program than the bumper, 3-hour editions of Raw. On Smackdown, stories such as Bray Wyatt vs. Roman Reigns, Kevin Owens vs. Ryback, The New Day vs. The Dudley Boyz and Dolph Ziggler vs. Rusev were furthered. In the case of the latter, things are finally starting to motor along to some sort of conclusion, which is long overdue. The angle has been sagging for too long now, and it's time to put it to bed. Below are the match results from this action-packed episode. Roman Reigns def. Bo Dallas by pinfall. 'King' Barrett and Sheamus def. Cesaro and Neville by pinfall. Kevin Owens def. Zack Ryder via pinfall. Dolph Ziggler def. Rusev (w/Summer Rae as 'Special Guest Referee') by pinfall. Braun Strowman and Luke Harper def. The Prime Time Players via submission. Charlotte def. Alicia Fox by submission. The Dudley Boyz and Dean Ambrose def. The New Day via disqualification. That's a lot of matches (7) for a 2-hour show, but Smackdown didn't feel rushed. This article looks at 5 distinct plus points, but also takes into account 3 overwhelming negatives from the show.
Contributor

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.