9 Ups & 7 Downs From Last Night's WWE SmackDown (Apr 30)

6. Awful Catchphrase, BUT...

Shoot this "fade to Black" nonsense into the sun, please. This dated, hokey catchphrase only makes Aleister Black's three-dimensional character look cartoonish, and signing off with it undermines everything that comes before. It stinks.

Aside from that, the former Tommy End's latest dark room diatribe worked. He got all spooky again, talking about humanity's natural fear of what they don't understand, adding that while his opponents try to figure him out, it's too late, as the referee is already counting the pain. "Any hope of conquering that fear is then gone," he said, as his foes "don't like the abyss staring back at them, because it unveils a truth about themselves."

Black is in his element in this pre-taped environment, and the clips are getting his character over nicely. Let's hope that the derpy catchphrase isn't a sign of the dilution to come.

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Channel Manager
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.