The final push for Survivor Series took a lot of twists and turns this week. And the card took a lot of changes by the end of SmackDown Live to the point where many matches were affected for better and for worse. Plus, a legendary moment ended Raw while another huge development ended SmackDown Live.
Let's Do This:
Raw 11/12/18
- Raw opened with a tag team battle royal to determ.... why even bother finishing that sentence? Braun Strowman destroyed everyone and demanded Baron Corbin. Stephanie McMahon came out and gave concessions to Braun (including a Universal Championship match and Baron Corbin in any kind of match Braun wants with no legal consequences) if he helps Team Raw win over Team SmackDown. Braun agrees. Stephanie says she is going to be a great motivator. Enter Ronda Rousey who tells Stephanie that she doesn't need motivation or a pep talk for her match against Becky Lynch Sunday. Corbin came out and put his hand on the shoulder of Ronda Rousey in an awkward moment. Ronda Judo Flips Baron Corbin, and Braun tells Corbin that he's going to be neutered after Braun gets a hold of him. Well, that was specific.
That opening segment had some entertainment value, but the tag team division was just destroyed by one man. That doesn't make me think any better of them for sure. Meanwhile, things were just too convenient and rushed here. Again, this whole idea of Brand Supremacy really makes no sense once you stop and think for a quick second.
- Next we get Tamina vs. Ember Moon in a match for "REVENGE!" OOOOOOH! Big shock: Tamina wins. I would be shaking my head if Tamina had lost just right after this whole alliance was formed.
- I loved it when Corey Graves told Seth Rollins during the interview that he watches Shinsuke Nakamura every week on SmackDown Live. You're a funny guy, Corey Graves. Go find a live mic. Nakamura is lucky to get a match once a month on TV. I did like Dean's promo in the parking lot though. It made a lot of sense for his character to be basically just done with The Shield at this point and wanting to be stronger by going solo.
My one idea for this segment: Do it exactly as it was done. But I would have had Nakamura run in through the crowd and low blow Rollins to remind the audience that if Rollins doesn't keep his eye on Nakamura, he will lose. But what do I know?
- Finn Balor faced off against Dolph Ziggler and won a pretty decent TV match. Balor wanted McIntyre, but McIntyre wanted Balor to go through Ziggler first before he lowered himself to face the Lil' Irishman. After the match, Stephanie stopped the three men from fighting by making Balor the 4th member of Team Raw and telling them to get along until after Survivor Series. THEN, they have her permission to tear each other apart. :) Both teams are being set up to be ticking time bombs. The only question is not whether both will go off but which explosion will be more deadly to their brand.
- Congratulations to Bobby Roode and Chad Gable for headlining the worst assembly of tag teams ever for a Survivor Series match ever. Watch Vince book Raw to win this match.
- Paul Heyman doing that jab at the youth of America for not knowing the Hotel California reference was the highlight of the night for me. Then Brock Lesnar beat up Jinder Mahal and the Singh Brothers for 3 minutes. Life was good for a couple minutes. Congratulations to Brock Lesnar for winning that championship on the WWE Network a couple Fridays ago. What was the event called? I don't remember. Where was it? I want to say "Casper, Wyoming?"
- I'm getting tired of looking (more like trying NOT to look) at Bobby Lashley's pose. Seriously, let's just move on WWE. I knew Bobby Lashley would be the last member of the Men's Team Raw for Survivor Series. No way Elias was getting that victory. That being said, having Lio Rush hold Elias's leg to cause the countout was a smart move to protect Elias.
- The main event was Sasha Banks vs. Bayley to determine who would be the fifth member of the Raw Women's Team. The match proved to be pointless as Nia, Tamina, and Mickie beat up on the two women after the commercial break. Then, it was announced that Ruby Riott would join the three and Natalya (you know, the women whose dead father's glasses she broke and hit a classic Hart Foundation move on earlier) on the team. BUT...
The real main event was Becky Lynch. She jumped Rousey in the locker room with an armbar. Then she walked down the ramp to a LOUD ovation from the crowd. The SmackDown Live Women's Division invaded and attacked the Raw Women's Division. Somewhere in this, Lynch got busted open with a broken nose. And she didn't give an inch on this. Instead, she embraced the bloody nose, and even when Rousey came in and she started attacking Ronda with the chair, Lynch did not hide the blood. In fact, she showed that she is "THE MAN" in this moment. The image at the end (of her looking back at Rousey from the audience after SmackDown Live did their damage with the blood on her face dried up and still coming out) needs to be a T-Shirt, black and white, with the phrase #TheMan underneath it. That'd get my $25.
Again, as I wrote on Twitter, it's one of those things where you HATE seeing that happen to a talent. But what the talent does with the incident makes you appreciate just how great they are. Becky Lynch NEEDS to be in the main event of WrestleMania. She is on fire with the fans and as a performer at the moment.
SmackDown Live 11/13/18
- After a recap of the previous night, the SmackDown Live commentary team announces that Becky Lynch suffered a broken face and a severe concussion. Thus, she will not compete this Sunday. :( . I hate hearing that, and I hope Becky will get better. Even while they announced this, the crowd was cheering for her heavily. Becky is over. And perhaps not wrestling Ronda at this show may be a blessing in disguise for down the road.
- AJ Styles talks about his match with Brock Lesnar. And Paul Heyman comes out and gets on the mic. He brings up that Daniel Bryan is really the best wrestler in the world and AJ is #2. AJ tells Heyman that he tapped out Bryan, and he can tap out Lesnar. Bryan comes out and tells AJ never to say his name again. Or he'll punch him in the face. AJ says "I can't say Daniel Bryan." Punches start flying. And then, the big announcement after the break was that AJ Styles will defend the WWE Championship against Daniel Bryan later on the show.
This seemed like a rather weird way to start off the show as I think most of us assumed that the issues between Daniel Bryan and AJ Styles had come to an end. Also, I should add that Paul Heyman should be on SmackDown more often. Just saying.
- Next we get Andrade 'Cien' Almas vs. Jeff Hardy. Almas jumps Hardy as soon as the bell rings. Jeff Hardy gets another big
- It is announced that Daniel Bryan is no longer a co-captain of Team SmackDown (or a part of the team period). The Miz is sole captain now. He adds Jeff Hardy to the team in Daniel Bryan's place and tries to drop Rey Mysterio. But Paige tells him that he needs to beat Mysterio if he wants him off the team. Well, that didn't happen as Rey defeated The Miz in a good TV match, albeit not as good as their more recent matches since Rey's return. After the match, Randy Orton RKOs The Miz after not getting Rey like he wanted.
- Becky Lynch came out to pick her replacement to face Ronda Rousey. After cutting another great promo, The Man chose Charlotte Flair to "make her tap out like I was going to make her tap out." And then, Becky gave Charlotte a one-armed hug before heading to the back.
THIS IS HUGE. WrestleMania 35 was supposed to be Charlotte vs. Ronda Rousey. Something tells me that match may now have been changed by circumstance to Rousey vs. Lynch. We'll see what happens in the next few months, but I'd love to see that match personally.
- The Bar and The Big Show beat The New Day in another good, if forgettable, match on this show. I really don't have too much to add about this match. It was just typical.
- Speaking of typical, SmackDown's Tag Team Division came out of hiding for one night to declare their loyalty to the brand. I love it whenever these thrown together matches give some teams more time in one match than they've had all year.
- The main event of SmackDown Live was shocking. The match itself was good, not great, between AJ Styles and Daniel Bryan. But the end, with Daniel Bryan kicking AJ Styles low and ending his year long reign as WWE Champion, was something I honestly didn't see coming. SmackDown is very light on faces anyways. But by turning Bryan heel and giving him the WWE Championship, they've effectively made him the #1 heel on the brand. So, where does this leave the rest of the roster? SmackDown is REALLY light on faces at the moment, especially after this development. So, WWE is going to need do some realignment of their current roster to make this work either through switching someone from heel to face or by trading a heel to Raw to get a face for SmackDown Live.
Obviously, this was a HUGE night of SmackDown Live as some big newsworthy things happened. The end of the WWE Championship of AJ Styles is a huge deal as so many others have failed to end the title reign. Now, Daniel Bryan was the one to end the reign by turning heel.
The best show of the two WWE main roster shows was definitely SmackDown Live, but the biggest moment will likely be the end of Raw going forward. It was one of those visceral moments that I think will continue to gain notoriety as time continues.
Until next time, take care of yourselves. Spread some awesomeness.
Let's Do This:
Raw 11/12/18
- Raw opened with a tag team battle royal to determ.... why even bother finishing that sentence? Braun Strowman destroyed everyone and demanded Baron Corbin. Stephanie McMahon came out and gave concessions to Braun (including a Universal Championship match and Baron Corbin in any kind of match Braun wants with no legal consequences) if he helps Team Raw win over Team SmackDown. Braun agrees. Stephanie says she is going to be a great motivator. Enter Ronda Rousey who tells Stephanie that she doesn't need motivation or a pep talk for her match against Becky Lynch Sunday. Corbin came out and put his hand on the shoulder of Ronda Rousey in an awkward moment. Ronda Judo Flips Baron Corbin, and Braun tells Corbin that he's going to be neutered after Braun gets a hold of him. Well, that was specific.
That opening segment had some entertainment value, but the tag team division was just destroyed by one man. That doesn't make me think any better of them for sure. Meanwhile, things were just too convenient and rushed here. Again, this whole idea of Brand Supremacy really makes no sense once you stop and think for a quick second.
- Next we get Tamina vs. Ember Moon in a match for "REVENGE!" OOOOOOH! Big shock: Tamina wins. I would be shaking my head if Tamina had lost just right after this whole alliance was formed.
- I loved it when Corey Graves told Seth Rollins during the interview that he watches Shinsuke Nakamura every week on SmackDown Live. You're a funny guy, Corey Graves. Go find a live mic. Nakamura is lucky to get a match once a month on TV. I did like Dean's promo in the parking lot though. It made a lot of sense for his character to be basically just done with The Shield at this point and wanting to be stronger by going solo.
My one idea for this segment: Do it exactly as it was done. But I would have had Nakamura run in through the crowd and low blow Rollins to remind the audience that if Rollins doesn't keep his eye on Nakamura, he will lose. But what do I know?
- Finn Balor faced off against Dolph Ziggler and won a pretty decent TV match. Balor wanted McIntyre, but McIntyre wanted Balor to go through Ziggler first before he lowered himself to face the Lil' Irishman. After the match, Stephanie stopped the three men from fighting by making Balor the 4th member of Team Raw and telling them to get along until after Survivor Series. THEN, they have her permission to tear each other apart. :) Both teams are being set up to be ticking time bombs. The only question is not whether both will go off but which explosion will be more deadly to their brand.
- Congratulations to Bobby Roode and Chad Gable for headlining the worst assembly of tag teams ever for a Survivor Series match ever. Watch Vince book Raw to win this match.
- Paul Heyman doing that jab at the youth of America for not knowing the Hotel California reference was the highlight of the night for me. Then Brock Lesnar beat up Jinder Mahal and the Singh Brothers for 3 minutes. Life was good for a couple minutes. Congratulations to Brock Lesnar for winning that championship on the WWE Network a couple Fridays ago. What was the event called? I don't remember. Where was it? I want to say "Casper, Wyoming?"
- I'm getting tired of looking (more like trying NOT to look) at Bobby Lashley's pose. Seriously, let's just move on WWE. I knew Bobby Lashley would be the last member of the Men's Team Raw for Survivor Series. No way Elias was getting that victory. That being said, having Lio Rush hold Elias's leg to cause the countout was a smart move to protect Elias.
- The main event was Sasha Banks vs. Bayley to determine who would be the fifth member of the Raw Women's Team. The match proved to be pointless as Nia, Tamina, and Mickie beat up on the two women after the commercial break. Then, it was announced that Ruby Riott would join the three and Natalya (you know, the women whose dead father's glasses she broke and hit a classic Hart Foundation move on earlier) on the team. BUT...
The real main event was Becky Lynch. She jumped Rousey in the locker room with an armbar. Then she walked down the ramp to a LOUD ovation from the crowd. The SmackDown Live Women's Division invaded and attacked the Raw Women's Division. Somewhere in this, Lynch got busted open with a broken nose. And she didn't give an inch on this. Instead, she embraced the bloody nose, and even when Rousey came in and she started attacking Ronda with the chair, Lynch did not hide the blood. In fact, she showed that she is "THE MAN" in this moment. The image at the end (of her looking back at Rousey from the audience after SmackDown Live did their damage with the blood on her face dried up and still coming out) needs to be a T-Shirt, black and white, with the phrase #TheMan underneath it. That'd get my $25.
Again, as I wrote on Twitter, it's one of those things where you HATE seeing that happen to a talent. But what the talent does with the incident makes you appreciate just how great they are. Becky Lynch NEEDS to be in the main event of WrestleMania. She is on fire with the fans and as a performer at the moment.
SmackDown Live 11/13/18
- After a recap of the previous night, the SmackDown Live commentary team announces that Becky Lynch suffered a broken face and a severe concussion. Thus, she will not compete this Sunday. :( . I hate hearing that, and I hope Becky will get better. Even while they announced this, the crowd was cheering for her heavily. Becky is over. And perhaps not wrestling Ronda at this show may be a blessing in disguise for down the road.
- AJ Styles talks about his match with Brock Lesnar. And Paul Heyman comes out and gets on the mic. He brings up that Daniel Bryan is really the best wrestler in the world and AJ is #2. AJ tells Heyman that he tapped out Bryan, and he can tap out Lesnar. Bryan comes out and tells AJ never to say his name again. Or he'll punch him in the face. AJ says "I can't say Daniel Bryan." Punches start flying. And then, the big announcement after the break was that AJ Styles will defend the WWE Championship against Daniel Bryan later on the show.
This seemed like a rather weird way to start off the show as I think most of us assumed that the issues between Daniel Bryan and AJ Styles had come to an end. Also, I should add that Paul Heyman should be on SmackDown more often. Just saying.
- Next we get Andrade 'Cien' Almas vs. Jeff Hardy. Almas jumps Hardy as soon as the bell rings. Jeff Hardy gets another big
- It is announced that Daniel Bryan is no longer a co-captain of Team SmackDown (or a part of the team period). The Miz is sole captain now. He adds Jeff Hardy to the team in Daniel Bryan's place and tries to drop Rey Mysterio. But Paige tells him that he needs to beat Mysterio if he wants him off the team. Well, that didn't happen as Rey defeated The Miz in a good TV match, albeit not as good as their more recent matches since Rey's return. After the match, Randy Orton RKOs The Miz after not getting Rey like he wanted.
- Becky Lynch came out to pick her replacement to face Ronda Rousey. After cutting another great promo, The Man chose Charlotte Flair to "make her tap out like I was going to make her tap out." And then, Becky gave Charlotte a one-armed hug before heading to the back.
THIS IS HUGE. WrestleMania 35 was supposed to be Charlotte vs. Ronda Rousey. Something tells me that match may now have been changed by circumstance to Rousey vs. Lynch. We'll see what happens in the next few months, but I'd love to see that match personally.
- The Bar and The Big Show beat The New Day in another good, if forgettable, match on this show. I really don't have too much to add about this match. It was just typical.
- Speaking of typical, SmackDown's Tag Team Division came out of hiding for one night to declare their loyalty to the brand. I love it whenever these thrown together matches give some teams more time in one match than they've had all year.
- The main event of SmackDown Live was shocking. The match itself was good, not great, between AJ Styles and Daniel Bryan. But the end, with Daniel Bryan kicking AJ Styles low and ending his year long reign as WWE Champion, was something I honestly didn't see coming. SmackDown is very light on faces anyways. But by turning Bryan heel and giving him the WWE Championship, they've effectively made him the #1 heel on the brand. So, where does this leave the rest of the roster? SmackDown is REALLY light on faces at the moment, especially after this development. So, WWE is going to need do some realignment of their current roster to make this work either through switching someone from heel to face or by trading a heel to Raw to get a face for SmackDown Live.
Obviously, this was a HUGE night of SmackDown Live as some big newsworthy things happened. The end of the WWE Championship of AJ Styles is a huge deal as so many others have failed to end the title reign. Now, Daniel Bryan was the one to end the reign by turning heel.
The best show of the two WWE main roster shows was definitely SmackDown Live, but the biggest moment will likely be the end of Raw going forward. It was one of those visceral moments that I think will continue to gain notoriety as time continues.
Until next time, take care of yourselves. Spread some awesomeness.
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