WWE: Smackdown LIVE part 6 -- This is War

[ColePens]

I will spend the rest of my days taking down this New Canadian World Order. Not on my dime.

 

[The Gongshow]

I will spend the rest of my days taking down this New Canadian World Order. Not on my dime.

Oh snap

 

[KaseMeOutside]

You can't have Slater be a free agent forever. You put him and Rhyno over and eventually they drop the titles to Harper and Rowan.



I'm going to do what CM Punk did when he left WWE and say right now that while I'm school there is literally no chance the HFWF ever comes back. The only thing that I'm willing to do is a podcast.



But if I agree with you I'll be wrong anyways.

No but if the heels cheat to win that gives you another opening to continue the angle, I don't believe that smackdown is going to have their first champion be a team that was just thrown together a few weeks ago

 

[M.C.G. 31]

No but if the heels cheat to win that gives you another opening to continue the angle, I don't believe that smackdown is going to have their first champion be a team that was just thrown together a few weeks ago

They will.

 

[Cor]

When was HFWF a thing?

 

[M.C.G. 31]

When was HFWF a thing?

For a long time a couple of years ago until I went back to school.

 

[Cor]

For a long time a couple of years ago until I went back to school.

Like, HF Wrestling Federation.

Like, some of you actual wrestled? Or?

 

[M.C.G. 31]

I wrote ****.

 

[These Are The Days]

I wrote ****.

From what I heard it was **** alright

 

[The Gongshow]

From what I heard it was **** alright

Dang, AlwaysSunny throwing mad shade

He also keeps making it personal with me too since we’re both Bolts fans and Bolts Brothers!

“I’m sorry, I love you..” *Superkick*

 

[Scandale du Jour]

Dang, AlwaysSunny throwing mad shade

He also keeps making it personal with me too since we’re both Bolts fans and Bolts Brothers!

“I’m sorry, I love you..†*Superkick*

So, basically, we all love AlwaysSunny, but we all want to kick him in the face? Poor chap.

 

[Big Poppa Puck]

SD is still sitting on my DVR. Is it worth watching?

 

[The Apologist]

So, basically, we all love AlwaysSunny, but we all want to kick him in the face? Poor chap.

Poor guy. Im not sure he has the army to take down the Canadian Club.

Tabernac...

 

[M.C.G. 31]

Smackdown: 2.454m viewers.

Pretty big drop... nearly 400k.

 

[Pinkfloyd]

Smackdown: 2.454m viewers.

Pretty big drop... nearly 400k.

Shouldn't surprise anyone with a three week build, no Cena fallout, and almost entirely new programs still developing. Styles-Ambrose is only just beginning with its build. Same with Orton-Wyatt and Miz-Ziggler. The tag title match, while amusing to some extent, is hardly going to draw anyone in. Now that they have AA out of the tournament, it's either killing the Slater free agent gimmick by having them win or have the Usos win and be chased down by AA after they were squashed by them. I don't like those options really. I'm not even going to acknowledge the Hype Bros. as a possible option. If anyone seriously suggests them doing anything, they should be removed from this board and/or fired from their job immediately. The women's title match is going to be a clunker but I just hope they're smart enough to have Bliss go over and have Becky chase her down with Nikki involved and eventually going heel for Becky-Nikki for Mania.

If nothing else, with only six matches on the card, they will either throw together a random match that nobody is going to care about or give these matches a substantial amount of time. I guess it's possible to do Kalisto-Corbin if Kalisto is cleared but you also have Crews off the card at this point as well so they will probably get those guys together for an unannounced match.

 

[Emperoreddy]

Smackdown: 2.454m viewers.

Pretty big drop... nearly 400k.

Kind of nukes the idea of SD somehow roaring past RAW in the ratings.

Still that is discouraging for your go home show into your first brand specific PPV

 

[Shoalzie]

SD is still sitting on my DVR. Is it worth watching?

I rarely say skip a show...just FF through the stuff that doesn't interest you.

 

[The Apologist]

Kind of nukes the idea of SD somehow roaring past RAW in the ratings.

Still that is discouraging for your go home show into your first brand specific PPV

Meh, ive preferred nearly every episode of SD to Raw but is does seem like more of the Smarky show.

That being said, im finding the AJ Ambrose stuff boring AF. I love Dean but as champion hes been rather meh.

 

[Pinkfloyd]

Kind of nukes the idea of SD somehow roaring past RAW in the ratings.

Still that is discouraging for your go home show into your first brand specific PPV

How? It was a three week build with entirely fresh programs and no Cena. It wasn't going to happen overnight and they have a lot of potential even with some depth issues that can be fixed as time goes on. SD will improve if Benjamin gets healthy, if Harper gets healthy to bring back the Harper/Rowan tag team, and if they bring up Joe/Nakamura/Asuka for them. They probably won't do all three but even if it's just one, it'll be a big help.

 

[Emperoreddy]

How? It was a three week build with entirely fresh programs and no Cena. It wasn't going to happen overnight and they have a lot of potential even with some depth issues that can be fixed as time goes on. SD will improve if Benjamin gets healthy, if Harper gets healthy to bring back the Harper/Rowan tag team, and if they bring up Joe/Nakamura/Asuka for them. They probably won't do all three but even if it's just one, it'll be a big help.

Two of those three most likely don't happen this year.

Harper is a great worker but a Rowan/Harper tag team won't be moving the ratings needle

Tag scene isn't the issue. That is entertaining right now. It is great, especially when you see how limited the roster is.

Really starts at the top with a title feud that really isn't a feud. Just feels like a formality to get the belt on AJ who is still feuding with Cena.

Rest of the card is ok but nothing mind blowing. Bray/Orton is whatever. Women are nothing right now. Hopefully having a champ will give them more direction.

Miz/Dolph is fine but there is only so much left to do with a face Dolph.

 

[These Are The Days]

Smackdown! has done itself almost no favors at all in building for Backlash. I have zero interest in watching any of it.

Styles goes into Smackdown! spitting fire and we have him face Ziggler in a great fight. But after that we just get him talking **** and then getting hung up on the ropes after an Ambrose match. Then last week they just have a hurried segment because we needed to make sure we could watch a pot bellied Kane choke slam Fandango.

Dolph called Miz a coward after his fight with Styles and being bumped from the main event. After an exchange of words an IC match is immediately booked that night. They have more unmemorable exchanges where Miz is supposed to look like a coward and the fire that was Ziggler for the past month is just completely sputtered out due to my lack of expectations for him.

The SD! Women's title continues to be a fuster cluck because creative doesn't know how to book Becky Lynch as nothing more than that awkward chick you knew in high school that you would've had a one night stand with because she was decent looking but too stupid to notice if you made a move on her.

Turning the Uso's heel was a much needed breath of fresh air for them. I just hope we can get actual heels and not some watered down PG bad guys in face paint that I'm just supposed to dislike.

My last concern is what will happen to Heath Slater if he actually wins the tag team championship. His whole gimmick is predicated on falling short. I can only hope the guy doesn't fizzle out

Oh and Bray and Orton has been boring as hell. I was excited at first but all I've had for weeks is talk and more talk. No interference in matches. No head games. The best I got was an RKO in the dark that never happened.

 

[Pinkfloyd]

Two of those three most likely don't happen this year.

Harper is a great worker but a Rowan/Harper tag team won't be moving the ratings needle.

The main event picture will always be the thing that moves the needle the most and that's still in its infancy while not having Cena around for a second main event level type of program. The Harper thing won't directly move the needle but if he and Wyatt are booked properly, that can move the needle. It probably won't at the end of the day because they don't know how to book Wyatt until proven otherwise. I'd be surprised if Joe didn't get called up before the year is over but whether that's Raw or Smackdown is anyone's guess.

The tag scene isn't an issue from the ratings perspective but it is an issue because who they have is extremely limited in terms of helping the product overall.

And if they treat the title on Ambrose as a formality and just give it to Styles on Sunday, they're dumb and only hurting Styles in the long run. Ambrose treated him like a joke and if they want to get that program to be a draw, they need to have Styles show a very distinct mean streak on Ambrose w/o having Ambrose lose the title.

 

[Emperoreddy]

Meh, ive preferred nearly every episode of SD to Raw but is does seem like more of the Smarky show.

That being said, im finding the AJ Ambrose stuff boring AF. I love Dean but as champion hes been rather meh.

Not sure I would call SD smarky at all. Talking Smack is smarky, but that is a seperate thing.

SD is just simpler then RAW. Bit more like NXT in that respect.

Problem is all the storylines going into Backlash feel kind of meh or directionless.

RAW makes baffling decisions, while SD is kind of just there. Makes SD the much easier watch.

 

[Emperoreddy]

The main event picture will always be the thing that moves the needle the most and that's still in its infancy while not having Cena around for a second main event level type of program. The Harper thing won't directly move the needle but if he and Wyatt are booked properly, that can move the needle. It probably won't at the end of the day because they don't know how to book Wyatt until proven otherwise. I'd be surprised if Joe didn't get called up before the year is over but whether that's Raw or Smackdown is anyone's guess.

The tag scene isn't an issue from the ratings perspective but it is an issue because who they have is extremely limited in terms of helping the product overall.

And if they treat the title on Ambrose as a formality and just give it to Styles on Sunday, they're dumb and only hurting Styles in the long run. Ambrose treated him like a joke and if they want to get that program to be a draw, they need to have Styles show a very distinct mean streak on Ambrose w/o having Ambrose lose the title.

Well continuing the AJ/Cena feud will be money but we shouldn't expect it to continue anytime soon.

I got the impression that Joe wasn't going to get his rematch at the November Takeover and that is why i don't expect up him up until the new year.

I have zero faith in them booking Bray correctly at this point.

 

[These Are The Days]

Want to move the needle? Get Ambrose and AJ actually beating the hell out of each other and not just being involved in a match by getting hung on the ropes. As for Ambrose... for a guy whose supposed to be a lunatic, he seldom fights and he is so unbelievably boring. You present a guy like a loose cannon like Stone Cold and all he's done post Summer Slam is cut weird ass promos like he just went through a bad stash of weed. He's the kid in your boy scout troupe who enjoys lighting things on fire and catching insects because he doesn't know how to talk to people and therefore doesn't have any friends

Regardless of the outcome at Blacklash Smackdown needs to keep Styles vs Ambrose alive and put some actual energy and fire into it. Book something no DQ involving either man as a Smackdown! main event and have things break down Attitude Era when they can't stay out of each others business. I know the PG era is never gonna die but you're not gonna maintain viewership by re-presenting the same formula used in the 1980's.