Just some general thoughts on the show, please share yours as well.
Opening segment was tense and dramatic. Liked that Jey showed up and that he's not taking a side (yet). Thought it was odd that the segment didn't end in a confrontation at first. After all, Solo told Jey he was either with him or against him, and Jey threatened to knock out Jacob Fatu. This can easily be explained by Solo waiting and not wanting to antagonize Jey though, as doing so could push him straight back to Roman. Another option is he's waiting to pick his spot and cost Jey the IC title so the beatdown will hurt even worse. Either way, I like that they aren't springing straight to Jey leaping back to Roman's and Jimmy's side. This is "cinema" as they say, and it's being played out in front of our eyes and they can get a lot of TV time out of this. Survivor series isn't until November 30 which is over a month away, so they need to draw this out at least a little bit before the OG Bloodline stands together.
The tag match was nothing special but entertaining. I liked the moment where Pretty Deadly were intimidated by Ciampa, he should be an imposing character. Montez Ford deserves more. I kind of want a single push for him but I like Dawkins too so it would suck for him to get left by the wayside if that happened. Makes me lament what could have been in a dominant faction featuring the Profits as tag champs and Lashley as world champ.
Reigns/Jimmy/Jey segment was good. Roman is still showing his pride and while he did tell Jey he's proud of him he's still never apologized for mistreating him, and he still hasn't acknowledged him like he did for Jimmy a week or two ago. It seems they're going for a slow transformation of Roman's character. Instead of viewing himself as a god ruling over the rest of his family who are pawns meant to do what they are told, I see him shifting to a Tribal Chief who not only provides but also looks out for the well being of his subjects/family.
Next up was Lash Legend vs Piper Niven. I'm not particularly sold on Legend/Jackson yet. I definitely don't think either should be pinning Piper Niven clean in a very quick match on Smackdown. But I always thought Piper should have been higher on the card anyways.
Cody segment was just a typical match promotion. I can't decide if I like the Crown Jewel title or not. I feel like the sideplates look more like main title plates. I hate the concept though. Either way a world champ is getting pinned, no titles will change hands, and it eliminates 2 PPV spots for title challengers. The match likely has to end via interference, most likely from Goldberg. Previous speculation was Bloodline interference, but they seem to be moving past the Cody-Bloodline conflict for the short term.
The Kevin Owens stuff was interesting and I wonder where the go. Presumably Orton will get his match with KO at Crown Jewel. With Owens looking despondent and rumors that he still hasn't re-signed with WWE, could his time with the company be winding down? Also, the money match down the road is Cody vs Orton for the title. Not sure how long they will wait to get to that. It's going to be tough for WWE to pull the trigger to turn Orton heel given how over he is. I suppose they could do the mutual respect face vs face thing for that match, but they could make it far more entertaining if Orton is heel. That's a potential Wrestlemania quality match, but Cody might be involved with the Rock for WM.
One option is Rock wins the title from Cody, then Roman takes the title off Rock. The Rock/Roman match HAS to happen at a WM. So if Rock/Cody is this year's WM, not sure they want the title on Rock for a year. They could put Rock/Cody on the Rumble, let Rock hold the title for a few months, then have Roman take it from him at WM. The other option would be to have Randy take the title from Cody at the Rumble. Then Rock/Cody is a non title match. Rock did say that title or no title he's still coming for Cody. Then for 2026 WM there are other ways to get the title on Rock closer to that show for Roman to take it from him if they want that, however that match doesn't really need a title.
The triple threat tag match seemed too short considering it was the first main roster match for Motor City Machine Guns. I've not seen them wrestle before, and while what I saw in the match was good, I would have liked a longer introduction to the broader WWE universe for them. They will presumably beat DIY, and then be fed to the Tongans.
Women's tag match was interesting. Not sure why Tiffy wasn't there, if it was purely storyline or if she actually couldn't be there, but they did good things with it. Candice and Indi got screen time, Candice got to pin Bayley, and Nia looked conflicted. This will undoubtedly boost the tension between Nia and Tiffy. The question is will Candice/Indi continue to be part of this storyline or is this just a one-off to further the Nia/Tiffy angle.
Final segment was what it should have been. Bringing out a beaten down Jimmy heightened Roman's rage. He fought back against the 4 on 1, although he comically wasted a lot of time staring at and putting on the ula fala YET AGAIN (you think he would have learned after the first time). Regardless, Roman getting beaten down was the right move. Given the story they are telling, Roman needs that in order to learn appreciation for his family and see them more than just underlings.
Bloodline content carried the show once again. Gotta appreciate what they are doing with that. At its peak, Roman and the Bloodline was the reason to watch Smackdown every week. When he started not showing up for weeks at a time during the last year or so of his title reign that kind of wore off. After losing all the gold and a period of cooling off and building Solo and new Bloodline, now Jimmy gets a huge pop when he returns or comes out to help, Roman of course gets great reactions everywhere, and Jey is probably the most over guy in the company right now.
The question is who do they get as their 4th for Survivor Series? There are 3 options here IMO. The most likely is Sami Zayn. He's done with his programs with Bron and Gunther and has been off TV for a week or two now. I don't really want to see that; Sami is talented but he was way overpushed IMO. He never should have been the one to dethrone Gunther for IC title, that should have been Gable. That would have been forgivable if Sami eventually put over Gable for that title, but that didn't happen. Not only that but he got a clean win over Bron after that as well, which shouldn't have happened. I'm just sick of the guy at this point.
Second option is least likely, but there is another guy on the roster who isn't related but who was a brother to Roman. Imagine a faceoff between Solo's Bloodline and Roman's Bloodline right before the War Games match starts. Solo can mouth off and tell him he still couldn't find another member and that they're going to get beat down. Or maybe even ask the ref for a forfeit ruling. Then Roman says "yeah the first people I asked wouldn't even take my calls. Luckily there is a man who has said that he'll always be a brother to me, and right now in my time of need, he's my plan B."
Third option is also unlikely, but possible given the recent rumors and the Heyman connection. Heyman has said he will only come back when he can contribute to the storyline. Have Heyman come back as the Wiseman. Have Solo run him down, and maybe drop a line on how all Heyman does is latch onto other guys for success, but even all those guys are washed up now. Show a backstage segment where Roman doesn't want to do it but Heyman runs down the options for him. Look, we're outnumbered and they're just going to beat us down. Roman finally says "make the call." Survivor Series comes, and Roman's team comes out. Heyman comes out last with his grand introduction, and says "tonight I have the duty and the pleasure of serving as the Wise Man to your Tribal Chief! But also, for a limited, one time special, tonight I am also serving as an advocate!"
Regardless of what happens there, I think there's a good shot that we get Rock interference in the match that helps Solo's team win. Rock can already be pissed at Roman for failing at WM. Now he's got the excuse of being pissed at Roman for teaming with Cody Rhodes. I suspect that they might reveal him as the one pulling the strings behind Solo all along as well. Solo is the Tribal Chief, but Rock is his High Chief. Only reason they may not do that at Survivor Series is because that would trigger a conflict between Rock and Roman immediately, and Rock said that he is coming for Cody first when he comes back.
Opening segment was tense and dramatic. Liked that Jey showed up and that he's not taking a side (yet). Thought it was odd that the segment didn't end in a confrontation at first. After all, Solo told Jey he was either with him or against him, and Jey threatened to knock out Jacob Fatu. This can easily be explained by Solo waiting and not wanting to antagonize Jey though, as doing so could push him straight back to Roman. Another option is he's waiting to pick his spot and cost Jey the IC title so the beatdown will hurt even worse. Either way, I like that they aren't springing straight to Jey leaping back to Roman's and Jimmy's side. This is "cinema" as they say, and it's being played out in front of our eyes and they can get a lot of TV time out of this. Survivor series isn't until November 30 which is over a month away, so they need to draw this out at least a little bit before the OG Bloodline stands together.
The tag match was nothing special but entertaining. I liked the moment where Pretty Deadly were intimidated by Ciampa, he should be an imposing character. Montez Ford deserves more. I kind of want a single push for him but I like Dawkins too so it would suck for him to get left by the wayside if that happened. Makes me lament what could have been in a dominant faction featuring the Profits as tag champs and Lashley as world champ.
Reigns/Jimmy/Jey segment was good. Roman is still showing his pride and while he did tell Jey he's proud of him he's still never apologized for mistreating him, and he still hasn't acknowledged him like he did for Jimmy a week or two ago. It seems they're going for a slow transformation of Roman's character. Instead of viewing himself as a god ruling over the rest of his family who are pawns meant to do what they are told, I see him shifting to a Tribal Chief who not only provides but also looks out for the well being of his subjects/family.
Next up was Lash Legend vs Piper Niven. I'm not particularly sold on Legend/Jackson yet. I definitely don't think either should be pinning Piper Niven clean in a very quick match on Smackdown. But I always thought Piper should have been higher on the card anyways.
Cody segment was just a typical match promotion. I can't decide if I like the Crown Jewel title or not. I feel like the sideplates look more like main title plates. I hate the concept though. Either way a world champ is getting pinned, no titles will change hands, and it eliminates 2 PPV spots for title challengers. The match likely has to end via interference, most likely from Goldberg. Previous speculation was Bloodline interference, but they seem to be moving past the Cody-Bloodline conflict for the short term.
The Kevin Owens stuff was interesting and I wonder where the go. Presumably Orton will get his match with KO at Crown Jewel. With Owens looking despondent and rumors that he still hasn't re-signed with WWE, could his time with the company be winding down? Also, the money match down the road is Cody vs Orton for the title. Not sure how long they will wait to get to that. It's going to be tough for WWE to pull the trigger to turn Orton heel given how over he is. I suppose they could do the mutual respect face vs face thing for that match, but they could make it far more entertaining if Orton is heel. That's a potential Wrestlemania quality match, but Cody might be involved with the Rock for WM.
One option is Rock wins the title from Cody, then Roman takes the title off Rock. The Rock/Roman match HAS to happen at a WM. So if Rock/Cody is this year's WM, not sure they want the title on Rock for a year. They could put Rock/Cody on the Rumble, let Rock hold the title for a few months, then have Roman take it from him at WM. The other option would be to have Randy take the title from Cody at the Rumble. Then Rock/Cody is a non title match. Rock did say that title or no title he's still coming for Cody. Then for 2026 WM there are other ways to get the title on Rock closer to that show for Roman to take it from him if they want that, however that match doesn't really need a title.
The triple threat tag match seemed too short considering it was the first main roster match for Motor City Machine Guns. I've not seen them wrestle before, and while what I saw in the match was good, I would have liked a longer introduction to the broader WWE universe for them. They will presumably beat DIY, and then be fed to the Tongans.
Women's tag match was interesting. Not sure why Tiffy wasn't there, if it was purely storyline or if she actually couldn't be there, but they did good things with it. Candice and Indi got screen time, Candice got to pin Bayley, and Nia looked conflicted. This will undoubtedly boost the tension between Nia and Tiffy. The question is will Candice/Indi continue to be part of this storyline or is this just a one-off to further the Nia/Tiffy angle.
Final segment was what it should have been. Bringing out a beaten down Jimmy heightened Roman's rage. He fought back against the 4 on 1, although he comically wasted a lot of time staring at and putting on the ula fala YET AGAIN (you think he would have learned after the first time). Regardless, Roman getting beaten down was the right move. Given the story they are telling, Roman needs that in order to learn appreciation for his family and see them more than just underlings.
Bloodline content carried the show once again. Gotta appreciate what they are doing with that. At its peak, Roman and the Bloodline was the reason to watch Smackdown every week. When he started not showing up for weeks at a time during the last year or so of his title reign that kind of wore off. After losing all the gold and a period of cooling off and building Solo and new Bloodline, now Jimmy gets a huge pop when he returns or comes out to help, Roman of course gets great reactions everywhere, and Jey is probably the most over guy in the company right now.
The question is who do they get as their 4th for Survivor Series? There are 3 options here IMO. The most likely is Sami Zayn. He's done with his programs with Bron and Gunther and has been off TV for a week or two now. I don't really want to see that; Sami is talented but he was way overpushed IMO. He never should have been the one to dethrone Gunther for IC title, that should have been Gable. That would have been forgivable if Sami eventually put over Gable for that title, but that didn't happen. Not only that but he got a clean win over Bron after that as well, which shouldn't have happened. I'm just sick of the guy at this point.
Second option is least likely, but there is another guy on the roster who isn't related but who was a brother to Roman. Imagine a faceoff between Solo's Bloodline and Roman's Bloodline right before the War Games match starts. Solo can mouth off and tell him he still couldn't find another member and that they're going to get beat down. Or maybe even ask the ref for a forfeit ruling. Then Roman says "yeah the first people I asked wouldn't even take my calls. Luckily there is a man who has said that he'll always be a brother to me, and right now in my time of need, he's my plan B."
Third option is also unlikely, but possible given the recent rumors and the Heyman connection. Heyman has said he will only come back when he can contribute to the storyline. Have Heyman come back as the Wiseman. Have Solo run him down, and maybe drop a line on how all Heyman does is latch onto other guys for success, but even all those guys are washed up now. Show a backstage segment where Roman doesn't want to do it but Heyman runs down the options for him. Look, we're outnumbered and they're just going to beat us down. Roman finally says "make the call." Survivor Series comes, and Roman's team comes out. Heyman comes out last with his grand introduction, and says "tonight I have the duty and the pleasure of serving as the Wise Man to your Tribal Chief! But also, for a limited, one time special, tonight I am also serving as an advocate!"
Regardless of what happens there, I think there's a good shot that we get Rock interference in the match that helps Solo's team win. Rock can already be pissed at Roman for failing at WM. Now he's got the excuse of being pissed at Roman for teaming with Cody Rhodes. I suspect that they might reveal him as the one pulling the strings behind Solo all along as well. Solo is the Tribal Chief, but Rock is his High Chief. Only reason they may not do that at Survivor Series is because that would trigger a conflict between Rock and Roman immediately, and Rock said that he is coming for Cody first when he comes back.
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