7 Ups & 2 Downs From Last Night's WWE SmackDown (Apr 24)

Downs...

2. Stuck On Repeat

Randy Orton Shelton Benjamin Jeff Hardy
WWE.com

As strong as this show was, it wasn't without dashes of the booking team's trademark copy/paste style, with this week's SmackDown delivering a couple of matches that were only slight variations on the previous episode.

It started with Randy Orton vs. Shelton Benjamin, which was originally supposed to be a rematch between Jeff Hardy and the former 'Gold Standard.' 'The Viper' "stole" the bout from the United States Champion, though, which is precisely what Hardy did to Orton the previous week. The payback narrative peddled by the announcers felt like a convenient excuse for laziness.

Elsewhere, we got Jimmy Uso vs. Rowan one week after their respective partners had faced each other. This gets a slight pass, as the finish was entirely different, but it was still only a minor twist on the established blueprint.

Neither of these problems were big enough to severely detract from the show, but as noticeable flaws, they belong in the Downs column.

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Channel Manager

Andy has been with WhatCulture for eight years and is currently WhatCulture's Wrestling Channel Manager. 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.