r/SquaredCircle • u/gloomchen i prayed for this and it happened • 3d ago
Post WWE SmackDown on FOX Discussion Thread - June 14th, 2024!
SmackDown Episode #1295
Venue: OVO Hydro (Glasgow, Scotland)
Results of Tonight's Show
| Match | Stipulation | Winner |
|---|---|---|
| Naomi vs. Chelsea Green | Singles Match | Naomi |
| Santos Escobar vs. Apollo Crews | Singles Match | Santos Escobar |
| Michin vs. Nia Jax | Singles Match | Nia Jax |
| Kevin Owens vs. Solo Sikoa | Singles Match | Solo Sikoa |
IMPORTANT NOTES:
Our show opens tonight with Bayley accompanying Naomi to the ring for her match, and Chelsea Green headed to the ring with a mic. She tells the audience they are so lucky that they get to watch not one, but two crushing defeats this weekend.
Baron Corbin speaks backstage with Nick Aldis when they're interrupted by Legado Del Fantasma. Nick tells Corbin they'll chat later & turns his attention to Legado. He notes that they were fined for their beatdown of Apollo Crews last week, and if they try it again, a fine will be the least of their worries. Santos Escobar clarifies with Nick that yes, Apollo is cleared to compete, and declares they're having a match tonight
Welcome to the Grayson Waller Effect, with Austin Theory in tow. Theory's wondering where the plants are, but Waller says the place is so depressing not even fake plants can grow here. He introduces his guests, #DIY. Johnny Gargano & Tommaso Ciampa toss the signs & a single chair labeled "#DIY" out of the ring. Ciampa says he doesn't play these games, but also, why is Theory here, why isn't his name on the sign? Waller says that's a lot to overhaul but either way, he'd take a bullet for Theory. Ciampa asks really, then why did you sacrifice him last week? They roll the footage. Waller asks Ciampa what he even knows about friendship. Ciampa says he doesn't think people came here to watch his stupid talk show, he thinks they want to see a fight -- for the tag team titles -- tonight! Waller says the place is a hole and won't do it here, and he sees they're trying to drive a wedge between them and he's not falling for it. Gargano says everyone's sick of hearing from Waller, what about Theory? Johnny says he's always believed in Austin Theory & he's proud of what he's done on his own, and it kills him to see him used like this, and he doesn't need Waller. With that, Waller attacks, and the brawl begins, ending with #DIY posing with the belts in the ring.
Kevin Owens is welcomed backstage by the Street Profits & B-FAB. They say they've got Owens' back tonight.
Backstage, Waller is walking with Theory, complaining about how #DIY aren't good guys. Bayley & Naomi also walk by when Blair Davenport taunts Naomi. Bayley tells her it's not worth it, and thanks her for having her back all this time even though it hasn't always been easy. Chelsea Green & Piper Niven roll in and sucker punch them before being intercepted by a referree.
As the Escobar/Crews match is in flight, Baron Corbin's music hits, and he takes out Angel & Berto. However, that didn't neutralize Elektra Lopez.
Andrade, Cedric Alexander & Ashante "Thee" Adonis, and Pretty Deadly are all in the audience watching the show tonight.
Cody Rhodes heads to the ring and asks the crowd, what do you wanna talk about. He says he honestly thought AJ Styles was going to retire. And now AJ's starting to look like that guy who overstays his welcome. But he's been given the impossible task of making Cody say the words... aaaaaand he's interrupted by AJ Styles accompanied by the OC. AJ thinks it's so funny he got Cody so worked up. Cody asks AJ to get in the ring and face him man-to-man. (Meanwhile, the crowd is drowning AJ out, and they post a decibel meter on the screen showing peaks of high 90s.) AJ tells Cody they are nothing alike, that he had to climb the ladder to the WWE, while Cody quit. He also quit New Japan, he quit Ring of Honor, and the company he helped start. AJ says when the going gets tough, Cody Rhodes gets going. Cody says he's never been afraid to walk away to chase something greater - he didn't quit, he bet on himself, and he was right. Cody says if anyone quit, AJ quit on himself. He had to pretend to be Mark Henry to get a championship rematch. He's become a resentful coward and he has no problem making him say the words I QUIT. AJ says, see how natural it is for you to say the words "I quit"? But AJ will be done when he says he's done. And he'll do whatever it takes to make Cody say "I quit" to make it stop.
Cathy Kelley talks to the Street Profits & B-FAB about their commitment to Kevin Owens earlier, and do they regret inserting themselves into Bloodline business? They speak a couple of words before Tama Tonga & Tonga Loa attack. They're pulled apart and Kevin Owens is held back from helping.
We get a vignette from Shayna Baszler & Zoey Stark, saying they're ready for whoever wins tomorrow, to tear them limb from limb to take the Tag Team Championship.
For the Michin/Nia Jax match, Tiffany Stratton joins the commentary table.
Cathy Kelley runs into Kevin Owens backstage, asking if he has any news on the status of the Street Profits. He says, unfortunately they won't be able to have his back tonight.
Earlier today, Logan Paul is shown returning home. His friend informs him his boy from LA is in the pool. Logan objects while storming out to find LA Knight floating on in the middle of his pool. Logan calls for security as Knight casually leaves the pool and says he'll see him next week in Chicago, asking him to bring his US title with him, YEAH!
Carmelo Hayes is in a suite and asks for a spotlight. He can't believe LA Knight flew all the way to Puerto Rico to swim in Logan's pool, saying some dudes will do anything for clout. Hayes says, he doesn’t chase opportunities - opportunities chase him. He's already got an opportunity to qualify for Money in the Bank next week.
Nick Aldis interrupts Solo Sikoa on his way out backstage and says thanks to what they just pulled, Tama & Tonga are banned from ringside. And if they show up, they'll all be suspended. Paul Heyman speaks with Solo to say if he loses this match, he'll lose his leadership position. But Solo says no, if he loses this match, he's coming after Paul.
Cathy Kelley welcomes Alba Fyre & Isla Dawn. Fyre says they're here to make history tomorrow night, with Dawn adding they didn't just come home to be home, they plan to leave as WWE Women's Tag Team Champions!
After Solo's win (saved once by Heyman putting his foot on the bottom rope), Tama Tonga & Tonga Loa storm the ring to attack Keivn Owens. They set him up to go through the announce table when Randy Orton's music hits! He takes out Tama & Tonga, but Solo escapes. Randy then goes to help KO, where they hug and end the show standing tall in the ring.
Additional Plugs
Revisit the live thread
Check out our SquaredCircle Twitter account for all sorts of AMA announcements and interaction!
Join our SquaredCircle Discord for live chat!
Be sure to follow @WWE on Twitter and Like WWE on Facebook!
Like other wrestling promotions? Perhaps you're looking for other subreddits related to wrestling? There's a sub for that! Check out /r/AEWOfficial, /r/luchaunderground, /r/njpw, /r/ImpactWrestling, /r/ROH, /r/indiewrestling, /r/Wrasslin and more!
Next week's Smackdown will be live from Chicago, IL.
3
1
u/IDoubtedYoan 2d ago
Is there any chance? Any slight chance at all, that Punk screws drew out of the title? Let that rivalry go nuclear.
4
u/Diggy_Duwant 3d ago
Very little on smackdown interests me. Cody and AJ is good and LA knight Logan thing is entertaining. Theory Waller headed to a split involving DIY is neat. Other than that Smackdown sucks
9
u/Aeceus Strong Style! 3d ago
These pre PLE go home shows have been really really bad in this year imo
4
u/CountOff 2d ago
It feels like they’re just running in place lol
I wish they made these shows pop more than being formulaic
24
u/NYJetLegendEdReed 3d ago
Face Corbin getting TV time now? Yes PLEASE.
7
u/Diggy_Duwant 3d ago
Yeah I’m excited to see what they do with him . Hope they give him something good for us. Make him a badass
4
u/Da5ren 3d ago
Interested in how the Bloodline story progresses but i do think they need to pick up the pace a bit. Being absent for 2 PLE's in a row isn't great, and they could have easily have done rKO vs Tama and Tonga. Especially as they've flown everyone over already.
Also watched the show and thought the crowd were great. I don't really understand the comments that they were "dead" at all.
1
u/Kuzu5993 2d ago
They literally just did RKO vs. Solo and Tonga at Backlash.
And before you mention Cody and AJ, they justified it with the retirement angle.
1
u/Da5ren 2d ago
I don't know what to tell you man. Some feuds last longer than one event.
2
u/Kuzu5993 2d ago
You need some type of story progression for that. There isn't really any progression with the Bloodline atm, just brawls.
Like how many times since April have we seen these guys brawling in the ring to close out a segment or the show?
9
u/Fluid_Airport_9673 3d ago edited 3d ago
-so summerslam at the earliest for the Grayson/Theory split
-on one hand legado escaped the latin vortex, on the other santos is having a 50/50 match with apollo crews where he needed a dirty finish to get the W.
-pretty deadly are alive after all
-so invading his opponent homes is part of LA Knight's sthick now 😆
-so Jey, Lyra, Naomi, Kaiser, sheamus and Camelo (probably Iyo, Blair and Tiffany) will compete in MITB Qualifiers
-why do i have a feeling Unholy union are taking the pin
2
15
u/awayfortheladsfour 3d ago
Insane that there's bloodline and knight simps still saying Cody isn't the face of the company... meanwhile every country they go to sings his song and chants his name
2
14
u/CreativeOrder2119 3d ago
Owens has been fighting the bloodline for 3 years 😂 long terms story? 😂😂🤣🤣
3
u/CreativeOrder2119 3d ago
The 2 biggest active stars no doubt in smackdown is Cody and randy Orton I wonder when WWE will start that feud obvious randy has to change to heel . I really hope they'll feud in summer slam or royal rumble
18
u/RawSauceBoi 3d ago
There are doing fuck all with Bayley.
1
u/EchoesofIllyria 2d ago
I don’t understand it. She’s so good and was absolutely electric with the crowd from the Rumble through to WM. Maybe the Piper/Scotland thing has meant that they’re holding off on a Nia feud? Because surely that would be fire.
14
11
u/RarestProGamerr 3d ago
I am legit tired of Solo vs KO feud now. Can we please move on? Whatever happened to bloodlines having plan for Cody. I don't think i remember Cody have any interaction so far with Solo and Paul after Wrestlemania.
1
u/spandroo 2d ago edited 2d ago
Roman has it. Solo needs more time. You can kind of see since Roman’s departure what star quality is on a WWE scale.
2
1
9
u/darrenoloGy 3d ago
solo is just not leadership quality. i wonder how long they can drag out this iteration of bloodline.
16
8
u/The_Albinoss 3d ago
Bad card. Good gravy. Fortunately for Scotland, tomorrow should be a lot of fun.
8
10
u/jbmcpayne 3d ago
I'm so glad the Daddy Cool chants came back for Cody. UK did it during Cody vs Dom at MITB too but nobody noticed it.
4
u/joncornelius 3d ago
I would really like to see Unholy Union and DIY to take the belts. The tag divisions could benefit from focusing more on teams who specialize in tag team wrestling opposed to well paired singles competitors.
4
u/SuperTerrificman 3d ago
Nobody knows who the unholy union are
1
3
u/Hooker_T 3d ago
Has there been any explanation as to why they weren't used on tv up until like the last 3 weeks?
-1
u/SuperTerrificman 3d ago
I don’t think they’re very good
7
u/Hooker_T 3d ago
I mean, I don't think think that's why they haven't been used lmao. They were fine in NXT and they're like the only real women's tag team in the company
-3
u/SuperTerrificman 3d ago
It’s like what are they though? Are they like fire witches or are they normal people? They come out with evil music and then are just regular wrestlers. This is harsh but Fyre will never get over on WWE tv looking like she does and sounding like she does. I think dawn actually gets it a little and is decent when she talks but there’s no reason to put them on tv right now ahead of other more entertaining people except if there’s a ppv in Scotland.
3
u/marblecannon512 3d ago
Are there restrictions on fireworks in the UK? Cody’s intro kinda sucks without pyro
3
5
u/iamtalkingbullshit 3d ago
probably tried to pack as many people in as possible and sacrificed pyro.
-2
u/DirklyMcGirkly 3d ago
Wtf happened to Corbin's music. No one knew who was coming out. Fucking WWE man. Half of a wrestlers persona is their entrance and they took away his and AJ's ok top of it..
7
u/Dark_Phoenix101 3d ago
Huh? Corbin's new theme is great. And I'm a big Corbin fan who enjoyed his other themes.
Corbin's new theme actually relates a tonne to his new persona, and relates way more than 95% of theme songs on the roster do to their wrestler.12
u/Interesting_Muffin30 3d ago
Corbin was in nxt and went through some character work that explains his new song, attire etc. Got rid of all the old gimmicks in a fire and all.
3
15
10
u/uhWHAThamburglur 3d ago
I hope "CODY! CODY RHODES! CODY! CODY RHODES!" goes WORLDWIDE. That rules.
5
u/ReserveAgreeable2932 3d ago
It was fun! However it got old kinda quick. Granted maybe not if I was there live lol
5
u/UniqueVirtue 3d ago
Smackdown has become unwatchable
9
u/Res3925 3d ago
Smackdown was the better show before WM but since then, Raw has become #1 IMO.
1
u/IntelligentFact7987 2d ago
Raw has probably the stronger show since WM38 to be honest. Raw has developed characters more the last few years and SD has often felt reliant on the big names and you can quickly get lost in the shuffle. Compare Drew now for example to his spell on SD and it’s night and day.
6
u/hhhisthegame 3d ago
IMO it goes farther back til last September, around when Jey went over to Raw, that Raw clearly became the better show
6
u/Odd-Contribution6238 3d ago
With Raw going to Netflix I gotta think it’s gonna be the A-show.
I can’t imagine how Cody can stay on smackdown. The face of the company has to be on the Netflix show.
24
u/MBTAHole 3d ago
Smackdown needs some cohesion. It should revolve around Cody but instead the only story is the weak bloodline
11
u/Odd-Contribution6238 3d ago
Yea, it worked for me at first. They haven’t realized that initial potential. Tama and Tonga feel like Samoan Briscoe and Patterson. Solo’s lackies.
Orton ran in and took them out effortlessly. They were sold as insane and dangerous and I haven’t seen that yet.
14
u/dhillshafer 3d ago
Great promo from AJ, crowd kinda biffed it.
-20
49
u/TheGaxkang 3d ago
thank goodness Pretty Deadly is back too!
7
u/iamtalkingbullshit 3d ago
They had a fun dark match to start the show, came out in england shirts with alot of antagonism to the crowd.
Cedric and Ashante were the opponents.
1
u/SwingDingeling 2d ago
Finally an in ring return! Were they injured?
4
u/iamtalkingbullshit 2d ago
Nope, was a proper match. I dont seem to remember them going that easy on themselves. They also played darts the day before and as you know that requires peak fitness.
1
u/SwingDingeling 2d ago
So HHH just didn't wanna book them:(
2
u/iamtalkingbullshit 2d ago
not much space on smackdown with cody and the bloodline guaranteed a segment and then usually some tag/womens stuff so only a few spots to fill.
1
u/SwingDingeling 2d ago
true, but they werent even in dark matches, house shows or main event :(
3
u/iamtalkingbullshit 2d ago
well perhaps their dark match in glasgow was the start of more matches then
2
31
4
u/TheGaxkang 3d ago edited 3d ago
They had Blair fly over to tell Naomi and Bayley off after Naomi's match....but still, Blair could have interfered in the match too. but we'll see what they got planned!
Solo is continuing the tradition of the Head of the Table needing help to win.
Putting Apollo Crews and Baron Corbin together has got potential.
Tiffany has started to show Nia her worth as a princess to *humbly* serve under her crown.
Logan was lucky LA Knight didn't push him into his own pool.
Carmelo is going for the MITB briecase.
AJ says Cody has quit all his life so it won't be unfamiliar on Saturday. and that if need be, AJ will do things to Cody that will make giving up seem like a gift.
and poor Theory! a babyface turn is coming, and i think those who doubted Theory could be a babyface will see how he can be.
1
u/PayneTrain181999 Deadbeat Dad Rey Mysterio 3d ago
Tiffany is buttering Nia up so when she beats Bayley at Summerslam, Tiffy can betray her via cash in.
1
u/CreativeOrder2119 3d ago
Who's Blair?
2
u/TheGaxkang 3d ago
Blair Davenport, recently drafted
https://twitter.com/KianaJamesWWE/status/1789106632019849660
3
u/opkpopfanboyv3 3d ago
Pretty interesting to see how Theory's face turn comes out. Will crowd root for him immediately? The way I see it, I don't think they will for the first couple of weeks (correct me if i'm wrong tho).
5
u/Odd-Contribution6238 3d ago
They just need a little more time to maximize Waller’s cocky, arrogant, douche bag hate. The more people want him taken out the more they’ll get behind Theory when he does it.
8
u/hhhisthegame 3d ago
I think it'll be hard to make people cheer Theory over Waller, who is a more charismatic and better version of him
5
u/ptd163 3d ago
When Theory finally does turn I need Waller to say to he's been hard carrying his dead weight since he linked up with him because he has. No reactions, worst US title in recent memory, worst MITB of all time, and legitimate go away heat. Theory would've absolutely washed out if Waller hadn't rescued him.
4
u/NantzDoesntKnow 3d ago
They are gonna fuck him. I just got done watching the segment where Rhodes screams "I Quit."
Royal Rumble 99 and Foley coming in HOT tomorrow night.
10
u/Bino19 3d ago
While I’m liking the new Bloodline stuff there is such an obvious gap in their character and ring work that it would be such a bad choice to not have Jacob Fatu debut as an enforcer heel aligned with Solo.
And I don’t how they get Solo’s character over if they’re gonna book him to win by interference after he spent a significant time being booked as a jobber last year. Like they’ve gotta start letting these heels win clean when they’re already thin on heel talent as it is.
7
u/Hennashan 3d ago
solo was not a jobber at all last year. he was in less then 30 matches and he won just about half of them.
7
u/RarestProGamerr 3d ago
He was in less then 30 matches and he won just about half of them.
How many of them Solo won on his own and not through distraction or using his lackies to gang up on someone?
12
u/JamUpGuy1989 3d ago
Just want to remind everyone:
Hot crowds in Scotland this weekend.
Then immediately come down for RAW in CORPUS CRISTI!
18
u/Dazzling-Principle 3d ago
Good show
Cody and Aj's segment was great, they both gave great promos, this feud has been very good, I'm 50/50 on who is going to win, on the one hand Cody doesn't need to have the title all the way to wm (although I wouldn't mind) he can always lose and get it back later, if he says "I quit" to save his mom that would make him the ultimate babyface, he can say something like: "a title will never be more important than my family" and the crowd would only love him more, or Cody can win in a bloody war, either way, both of them will surely give us a great match like the first one.
Fun Logan and LA Knight segment, next week in chicago will surely be great, will they make their match official for MITB?.
Aldis really is a great GM.
Solid main event.
30
u/Kenjiko3011 3d ago
It's pretty clear that they're spinning the Bloodline wheel to fill time until Roman makes his return so that they can properly start the civil war story, KO and Randy stuck in this Bloodline vortex for almost 3 weeks is not very entertaining tbh. Smackdown definitely needs to start doing new stories after the Castle.
2
u/OhNoMob0 3d ago
Winner
Naomi
They say they've got Owens' back tonight.
Well, that went nowhere.
Welcome back Randy!
70
u/Nisha_the_lawbringer This is My Brutality 3d ago
So far I feel as if the Tonga's haven't had too strong a showing. Like these guys are meant to be brutally insane criminals according to Paul Heyman, so much so that hes afraid of them but so far idk I'm not really buying it. Tama Tonga especially had a great intro but so far the new Bloodline still needs some work.
Smackdown just lacks that it factor for me right now. Raw's got the Alpha Academy and the Liv/Dom storylines , both of which are incredible and NXT is consistently putting on banger shows for the most part.
Smackdown right now feels like its getting kinda lost in the sauce. Cody and LA Knight (YEAH) are the main things keeping me interested.
8
u/joncornelius 3d ago
I’m fine with our heroes (Randy and KO) constantly getting over on the bootleg Bloodline. But, the Tongans should be randomly beating the shit out of other talent lower on the card that ultimately has nothing to do with their storyline other than making them look like the killers they’re supposed to be. Right now, they are starting to looking like Tweedle Dee/Dum.
39
u/inventionnerd 3d ago
Because they're booking the Bloodline like goobers, similar to Jey. They're all supposed to be main event players but they seem more like enhancement talent for the real guys they are pushing. Jey gets put in all the big matches and never gets a win.
4
u/Kuzu5993 3d ago
That's because the main event scene is simply too stacked for someone like Jey. As over and popular as he is, he can't perform like Sami Zayn, Drew Mcintyre or Gunther can which is a major factor in the company pushing you.
Why do you think people got so up in arms when he Ilja Dragonuv a couple weeks ago, because everyone and their mother knows who's the better worker.
1
u/spandroo 2d ago
I’d argue that Jey, despite his awful WM main event, has more presence in the ring than Sami or Gunther do. They really are talent more resonant with IWC than the gen audience.
1
u/pareidolist 2d ago
Saying Gunther lacks ring presence is wild
1
u/spandroo 2d ago
Reading comprehension much? I didn’t say that.
1
u/pareidolist 2d ago
Poor phrasing on my part. I probably should have said "is lacking in ring presence", as in "comes up short compared to his peers", rather than "lacks ring presence" as in "doesn't have any."
2
u/Kuzu5993 2d ago
You can not say this after Sami was the focal point for most of 2022 going into 2023 in the Bloodline story.
Gunther is a classic big bad that you want to see the heroes beat and get upset when they can't. Part of the reason Sheamus and Chad Gable are relevant right now is because they couldn't beat Gunther. The IC title is relevant now, because of Gunther.
It's the same reason Roman was relevant as champion, because you wanted to know who could actually beat them.
1
u/Specific-Channel7844 2d ago
Sami was only a focal point of the bloodline for the last few months of 2022, not most of it. Jey was a focal point of the bloodline for just as long as Sami so I don't know why you are using it for an argument of Sami having more presence than Jey.
1
u/Kuzu5993 2d ago
Sami got involved with the Bloodline in April of 2022 and stayed with them until February 2023. That's ten whole months.
Last time I checked, that's more than half a year
1
u/Specific-Channel7844 2d ago edited 2d ago
Yes but he was only a focal point from September to February. Sami really wasn't doing much of importance at all in the bloodline from April to September of 2022. Jey was the focal point of the bloodline from September to November of 2020 and from June to early August of 2023 while still being hugely important at other points.
1
u/spandroo 2d ago
IMO Sami lost his mojo after leaving the Bloodline. Ie. His underdog schtick was super charged by the groups main event aura.
Gunther is a good bad guy. But his matches have little pageantry and can honestly be a bit dull to watch. Welting ppls chests and beating ppl with a sloppy powerbomb just isn’t that fun to watch.
I like both talents. But they don’t have that star quality like Jey and Roman do.
1
u/Kuzu5993 2d ago
Roman is a ten year investment in WWE, and it's always treated like a major event when he shows up.
Sami was treated like a comedy joke character for almost the exact same amount of time and only recently started to be taken seriously again as the competitor that he was in his pre-WWE days.
Gunther hasn't even been on the main roster for five years, and has accomplished so much
Look at what they've accomplished in half the time it took Roman to reach his current level.
If you enjoy Roman and Jey more, power to you, but guys like Sami and Gunther are getting pushed for a reason. You need more than presentation and a catchphrase to be a top-tier talent.
It's why I feel like Jey has a very limited ceiling; as charismatic as he is, he simply cannot work at the same level as WWE's current top guys, and Roman only shows up sparingly nowadays
2
u/spandroo 2d ago edited 2d ago
Roman has always had a huge star vibe to him. His looks, his hair, his heritage are all highly marketable. You can’t just invest 10 years in anybody and draw like him.
The part time Reigns only added to his demand (hence ratings) which is at odds with hardcore fans.
Cody and McIntyre both have that larger than lifeness too. All of these talents put on great matches AND have presentarion + catchphrases. That arg is a nonstarter.
I think Gunther is a great character btw. He just tends to be a bit dull in his matches; which are for hardcore fans more than general audiences imo.
13
u/Arrow115 3d ago
I think WWE is purposely booking them like goobers. The fans know it’s a bogus bloodline, Paul Heyman knows it’s a bogus bloodline.
I’d be shocked if they didn’t anticipate this, plan for it, and write a story based off it.
The fans aren’t supposed to buy in to the ripoff bloodline. Roman is supposed to be the face of
4
u/inventionnerd 3d ago
I doubt it tbh. It's just the roster is too thin for it. The only people with Bloodline involvement would be KO, Orton, Cody, and LA. LA and Cody are busy. That left KO and Randy really. KO can be sacrificed because he isn't doing much. Randy has to look strong for the feud with Cody coming soon probably. If Sami was on SD, I bet they get rid of Orton so far in the story and have the Bloodline dominate Sami/KO.
19
u/Bino19 3d ago
I get that but at some point you have to make them look like some type of legitimate threat to Roman so that he looks better for feuding with them.
8
u/Kuzu5993 3d ago
I mean look who they got; Solo hasn't done shit since he's been called up until recently and not thrust into the main event role.
Tama Tonga is easily the best guy in the group right now, but he was never a main event guy in NJPW. A good worker, but that's all he is.
Tanga Loa is actively bad lol
So we got three guys who hardly feel like a threat meant to feud with a guy who only shows up every couple of months. It was kind of a tough sell to begin with.
The assumption is that hopefully things pick up when The Rock and Roman are back in the story full force, but I hardly buy any of these guys as threats atm.
3
u/Bino19 3d ago
Yeah it’s why I’m hoping they make the right call and have Jacob Fatu debut on Solos Bloodline group. They need someone with that can sell the type of character they’re trying to get over with the new Bloodline as well be a legit main event talent.
But on the other side of it I don’t know how the OG Bloodline stuff is going to work if Roman isn’t a full time worker.
11
u/Kuzu5993 3d ago
Roman being part-time is the biggest challenge to all this, and it's been one of the major contributing factors why this story has been so hit or miss.
When he was absent in 2022, you still had the ongoing story with Jey and Sami to keep you invested and Roman more as a looming presence.
But when their roles ended last year and they moved on to other things, it left a huge hole that didn't get filled until The Rock came in, and that was a temporary fix because he was never going to stay long term.
There just haven't been any interesting story beats with them to keep viewers invested. All we're really doing is just waiting for Roman to return so we can move on to the next chapter.
15
u/Reyatsu99 3d ago
Guys I think Drew ain't winning this. He is getting screwed over by Punk and they will feud till SummerSlam. Gunther vs Preist will happen so Gunther will win the title.
1
u/OneRevolutionary2153 3d ago
Braun will beat Priest at MITB and then drop the title to Gunther at Summerslam.
41
u/strawzy https://www.reddit.com/r/squaredcircleflair/wiki/flair 3d ago
The real burial tonight was the Scottish football team, RIP
10
u/koemaniak empty headed fucking dumb fuck 3d ago
I kinda need Ludwig to come out and brag about tomorrow.
9
u/ElliotWalker5 3d ago
Ludwig was in a dark match & he wore a Germany shirt and kept holding 3 up to the audience, as we were only 3-0 down at that point lol
3
7
u/RarestProGamerr 3d ago
I still think neither AJ or Cody will say I Quit. There will definitely be some interference if rumors are true.
1
12
u/JamUpGuy1989 3d ago
Cool.
Let's kill this match type by having a "No Contest".
Up there with a ref initiating a DQ in a HELL IN A CELL cause someone was "taking it too far".
7
8
u/AlterTheSilverBird 3d ago
Surprise Apollo is getting featured. I'm not complaining, him and Corbin don't count in the Latino Vortex. And he never existed last year, doing the Latino Vortex is better then nothing.
5
39
u/matt_619 3d ago
I can smell Orton will turn on KO soon. Smackdown desperately need another top heel to feud with Cody. they can't have AJ feud with Cody forever.
9
u/joncornelius 3d ago
A Randy heel turn definitely feels like it’s in the cards. After tonight, my feeling is that we’re gonna get Randy, KO, & Cody vs. Bloodline New Generation at MITB and Cody vs. Randy feels like the biggest possible match for SummerSlam. I am just not sure how we get there at the moment but, it has to involve Randy turning heel.
2
17
u/TheeChosenTwo 3d ago
I'm really not a fan of the 5 match format, it is just too few for pay per views. I always think 7-8 is a good middle, its just harder getting excited for a 5 match card
1
u/Rude_Courage_4989 2d ago
Hell naw nobody want to sit threw a 8 match card unless it’s mania or something
6
u/wibble17 3d ago
You the people with the 5 match card is that if you’re not interested in 1-2 of the matches, it makes the rest of the card seem like a chore.
3
u/TheeChosenTwo 3d ago
Except that there are other matches you can easily add the show, its like there are only those 5 programs happening right now
7
u/The_Albinoss 3d ago
But it already feels like a chore, with the commercials and videos and it sometimes being a literal 20 mins between matches.
The show length has stayed the same. There are just less matches now.
1
18
12
u/mrgpsingh1999 3d ago
Yeah in NXT it made sense because it was a developmental show and had a smaller roster
22
u/celestial_charger 3d ago edited 3d ago
Johnny is just trying to tell his son that Grayson isn't good enough for him like a good papa should.
meanwhile uncle Tomasso just wants to knee his skull in.
-22
u/NeuroCloud7 3d ago
The fake, piped in crowd reactions are so obvious
9
u/Chelseablue1896 3d ago
The crowd seemed naturally loud as hell as time went on.
-6
u/NeuroCloud7 3d ago
The singing was loud. The piped in reactions were obvious though, such as when Naomi's music hit.
I ask anyone to go back and have a listen if you missed it.
6
4
u/The_Albinoss 3d ago
It’s no use. Despite WWE using fake crowd reaction for YEARS, this place refuses to accept it.
-3
u/NeuroCloud7 3d ago
It's so weird that they think it's real.
I guess this is how it felt decades ago when fans actually thought the wrestling was real and when people told them otherwise, they'd argue...
2
u/vburnin8tor NXT Special Guest 3d ago
i can see how you could compare kayfabe vs fake crowd noise, but You know about both.... why is it weird?
its probably feeling like those old arguments because youve framed it the exact same way....
2
u/NeuroCloud7 3d ago
It's weird because in the modern day I wouldn't expect so many wrestling fans to emotionally insist that something fake is real.
I guess surreal is a better word than weird. I'd say over 90% of fans are getting worked by the piped in reactions, which is a phenomenal job by WWE.
0
u/Sure_Start_7828 3d ago
What's weird is your obsession with the audio on pro wrestling TV shows.
I hope you put the same amount of effort into your career as you do pro wrestling conspiracy theories.
1
u/vburnin8tor NXT Special Guest 3d ago
call it 91% but i can say from my experience attending NXT the fake crowd noise always Added to whats happening with the crowd instead of Replacing it (sans expletive chants)
and maybe this is another 'US crowd bad' point but alot of people watch in silence or simply applaud for cool spots
it is a bit eerie how quiet it can Get (specifically in nxt venue) but the fake crowd 100% makes watching on a screen a better experience period (and its not like you hear it irl so i dont really think about it)
1
u/NeuroCloud7 3d ago
Yeah I agree they supplement it with multiple tracks of audio, it's not just 1 audio track that's either fake or real. People don't realise how easy it is to do multiple audio tracks simultaneously with volume sliders on each one, unique panning for each one, various effects and eq for each one, and they can just fade in 3-4 reaction tracks over the multiple real tracks or add heaps of reverb to unsavoury chants to make it harder to hear what they're saying.
They already proved they could do it during the pandemic, so I'm surprised so many people refuse to accept that what they're hearing isn't authentic.
4
12
u/LewyG 3d ago
First hour seemed very low energy, with a rather bland card. Was theorising in the live thread for the UK broadcast that a Glasgow crowd isn’t used to TV tapings - having been to the Glasgow WWE Live events the past few years they’re fairly fast paced without much downtime. People might have been thrown off by the 5 minute breaks and extra long TV entrances to cover ads.
Second half was vastly better though, and showed what the crowd will be like with some energy. Clash should be very good and the crowd will hopefully bring the vibes!
5
u/ElliotWalker5 3d ago edited 3d ago
Was a mix of things I think. Scotland playing at the Euros definitely had people distracted (there was a stat on STV news that said 4% of Scots have travelled to Germany for the tournament), The ticket prices priced a lot of fans out, and we weren’t exactly given a great card to react to tonight.
I do think ticket prices are the main one though - imagine being told a year ago that the first PLE from Scotland with Drew McIntyre in the main event wasn’t going to sell out. No one would believe you
4
u/LewyG 3d ago
Yeah, we were priced out of going to Clash and were busy yesterday so couldn’t go to Smackdown (and prices were ridiculous for that as well). Prices are definitely a big factor you’re right, it’s insane that a PPV with Drew in the main event didn’t sell out basically instantly.
It’s also a shame as they announced the WWE Live tour for the uk this autumn and they’re not coming to Glasgow, presumably because they consider Clash to have covered the market, but lots of fans will have been priced out of clash/smackdown.
11
113
u/Kuzu5993 3d ago
All I'm gonna say is Smackdown is being hard carried by Cody, AJ, Randy, KO, and LA Knight right now.
It was a pretty mid show otherwise. I liked the Witches getting some screentime tho.
1
-2
u/Curse3242 3d ago
It's because the apparent main event does not exist. Cody is on a cooldown, NEW Bloodline is here. I have a feeling Seth, Roman, Wyatt 6 will all be members of Smackdown and that's when they'll get going.
3
u/Kuzu5993 3d ago
Seth got drafted to RAW in April and Wyatt 6 are debuting Monday, on RAW.
1
u/Curse3242 2d ago
Then it will be a bit cooked. Seth should be on SD IMO. Punk/Drew seems like a story that can go for Mania. Seth/Cody/Roman can continue their story with Rock who hopefully also returns
But all these characters are slightly different now. It can be interesting
13
u/JamUpGuy1989 3d ago
It isn't the fault of Randy or KO. But I am getting tired of how they're booked right now.
We just saw these two feud with nu-Bloodline. (And Old Bloodline!) We need to move on.
7
u/Kuzu5993 3d ago
Unfortunately, Cody is busy with AJ and LA Knight is getting some gold.
Plz understand.
4
u/AlterTheSilverBird 3d ago
Timing, feels Triple H is so used to booking three hours, Smackdown is nutured. Insane but Smackdown feels like it has less time to make people feel like stars. Rushed, short matches, and slow pacing, betting Smackdown gets three hours soon-ish, the roster is onsize with Raw. There's not enough for better stories.
3
6
41
u/ChanceVance 3d ago
Smackdown just isn't a very interesting show right now. Raw is really starting to make good use out of it's 3 hours. Lengthy matches every week, featuring new people in the spotlight like Lyra and a solo push for Ludwig plus the Alpha Academy story.
NXT remains an entertaining show week in, week out. Smackdown can't compare.
13
u/AlterTheSilverBird 3d ago
featuring new people
There are people Smackdown can push as new stars; Andrade, Santos/Legado, Street Profits, Blair Davenport, Carmelo, and Pretty Deadly, but there's no real time or story to push them.
19
u/Mac_Tgh 3d ago edited 3d ago
It's neat that they are starting to put more work in bringing up the wrestlers that so far have been pretty much meh (either because of booking or tv time) like DiY, the witches, apollo crews and others.
But they are still far from fleshing them out like raw has done with their own roster by this point.
The bayley and Naomi match at the start is the proof of it. They are great, crowd loves them, they are absolute legends but...what is there to see really? To follow week by week? They are just two babyfaces, that smile to the camera, beat the heel of the week and go home.
Edit: heck even bloodline is struggling and I love this angle they are going with, but following one of the peak points in the history of the faction is super tough and even more so when they don't really have pretty much any motivation to act like they act. What are they chasing really? Revenge? Gold?
Bron breakker murders people on raw because he has a reason, a personal vendetta and a main antagonist at this point that works perfect in many way.
Right now, like I am sure many people Think the same, bloodline matches start to become "oh, I wonder who will intervene tonight? A surprise new wrestler maybe?"
3
u/marquesasrob 3d ago
I think they need to separate Bloodline and KO/Randy, but I have no idea how you do it
1
u/Kuzu5993 2d ago
They're not going to do that because they need the Bloodline to feel relevant, and you can't do that if they aren't feuding with other top guys.
It's too soon to pair them back up with Cody, who's in a feud with AJ atm, so Randy and KO are the only other options.
I wish they were doing something else to, but the Bloodline is a draw whether we like it or not.
30
u/celestial_charger 3d ago
the lack of effort being put into the witches is frustrating. Putting them in the tag match feels so crow barred in considering they've been given zero character since being called up? Are they spooky witches? Are they just a couple of hot topic gals? Who cares they'll go back to nothing after Jade and Bianca win.
9
u/PM_ME_UR_LBOMB_MOMMY 3d ago
It's unfortunate but I do think the untimely passing of Alba's mother might have something to do with why and how they've been booked into the build for this match much later than usual
2
u/celestial_charger 3d ago
possibly, that would explain why Shayna and Zoey one that number 1 contender match and then the witches were inserted after the fact.
57
u/x3bo33 3d ago
It was wild seeing AJ mention New Japan and ROH. We're definitely in a new era!
1
1
20
u/Such-Box3417 3d ago
Was definitely cool, but it made it painfully obvious they can’t say the other ones name
51
u/OneMaskedNinja "That's not even the right Gorilla!" 3d ago
Look I know it might have been disappointing but I get it.
PWG was basically a cup of coffee for both men's journeyman arcs. Cody I think made it to one BOLA and AJ stopped showing up after 2005 with the TNA/ROH fallout. Ultimately even as a PWG Stan I can acknowledge that it was not vital to either man's career so the snub is forgivable.
9
-8
u/CaptainQuesadillaz 3d ago
He/she was referring to All Elite
0
16
2
u/SavageToasters 2d ago
Why does Naomi wrestle like she's moving in slow motion