3 Ups & 4 Downs From WWE SmackDown (21 Nov - Results & Review)
Downs...
4. This Still Doesn’t Make Sense
WWE bust out some old-school graphics for a "Traditional Survivor Series Elimination Match" that'll actually take place on next week's edition of SmackDown instead of on the PLE named after such bouts. Make it make sense. Team Sami vs. Team MFT will likely be the featured match on Friday's TV, and it could eat up a fair chunk of time across the 2 hour show.
Sami Zayn, Motor City Machine Guns, Rey Fenix and Shinsuke Nakamura were only trying their best when they appeared in a backstage promo to hype all of this, but the scenario feels so hollow. If Triple H doesn't think these elimination matches are worth much, then just don't do them at all. Running them at half speed on TV rather than at Survivor Series is a weird choice.
Straight away, it makes Sami's squad and Solo Sikoa's side feel less than.
No, not everybody can make it onto PLE cards, but this is a literal Survivor Series match that's been shunted from the lineup that only has 4 matches (both WarGames, John Cena vs. Dominik Mysterio and Stephanie Vaquer vs. Nikki Bella) to shout about thus far. Another will be added, but...why not the elimination one?!
Nobody would be complaining as much if the WarGames matches ruled, but build for both has been tepid at best and they're just sort of chucked together for the sake of it. It's mad that Hunter refuses to 'book around a calendar' with the elimination stuff but is willing to do it for WarGames.
Good luck to Sami, Solo and peers. They're gonna need it.