Welcome to the Smackdown Review for August 1, 2017. For both this and Raw, I will go over what the big talking points were, pick the match of the night, and look ahead to the next show.
Talking Points
Owens Loses It
Kevin Owens is exploring new parts of his character that will make him an interesting addition to Smackdown. As a man who believes the world is against him, Owens plays the psychotic heel perfectly. What makes it even more appealing is that Owens was right, he was not pinned in his match against AJ Styles. The final match between Styles and Owens will happen at Summerslam, but with the addition of Shane McMahon as the special referee. If Owens loses again, will he turn on Shano-Mac?
The Bulgarian and the Viper
Rusev wants to fight someone at Summerslam. Randy Orton has no opponent. While some may argue that this is just putting two guys together for no reason, there is serious potential here. Sometimes, a classic match can come about when you put together the right elements. Rusev is looking better then ever and the crowd was hot for Orton. You sometimes don’t need a complicated story. You can just have two wrestlers who don’t like each other and want to see who the better man is.
Fashion Peaks
I keep expecting Fashion Files to let me down. No one, I think, could keep this level of quality week after week. The adventures of Tyler Breeze and Fandango keep hitting it out of the park. Tonight, there was a perfect send up of Twin Peaks. What I admired the most was the person who wrote it must be a fan of Twin Peaks. Highlights included: Breeze talking to Diane in a tape recorder (“Why didn’t I just call you?), a backwards talking Fandango, a log, and a damn good cup of coffee. The end of this skits will eventually come, and the WWE Universe will be lesser when it does.
Match of the Night
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. John Cena (Nakamura wins by pin fall)
This match actually happened. With the prize being a shot at the WWE Championship, both Shinsuke Nakamura and John Cena gave it their all. Cena looked unsure of what to do against the King of Strong Style. Nakamura played mind games, but never took Cena for granted. At the end, Nakamura looked like a superhero as he survived two AA’s to pin Cena clean. There was a scary bump when Cena landed on his neck, but he continued. This match shows the faith in Nakamura, and Cena doing the right thing.
Conclusion
This show was fast paced, setting up two matches for Summerslam. The tag match concerning the women was great, but didn’t make my list because of too many great moments. I would think this show perfect as soon as I hear that Cena is ok. Next week, Naomi challenges Carmella one on one and we will see how Jinder Mahl reacts to his new challenger. Less then three weeks to go to Summerslam, and the blue brand looks strong.