Another episode of SmackDown is in the books, meaning it’s time to look back at the show to identify the highs and lows of an episode that featured Sami Zayn defending the WWE Championship against Trick Williams.
The Good
Finn Balor
It’s been obvious for a while now that the stuff with Danhausen was leading to the return of Balor’s “Demon” character. WWE pulled the trigger on the Halloween special, and it was done about as well as it could have been. While I’m not the biggest fan of wrestling silliness, the crowd was into it, and Gunther got to beat up the minihausens. Gunther’s look of fear really drove home the idea that this version of Balor was a threat to him in a way that “the ghost of Finn Balor” was not. It at least creates a bit of unpredictability for the eventual one-on-one match between the two, though I fully expect Gunther to win. Maybe there will be a stipulation where Gunther will “retire” the Demon.
Other Highlights
- Sami Zayn cut another strong promo and his match with Trick Williams to close the show felt like an actual main event. I’m not sure the No DQ restart was necessary, and the lack of interference leaves Williams without an obvious follow-up. Perhaps it will be Damian Priest based on his backstage segment earlier in the show.
- Cody Rhodes’ promo was short and sweet. It didn’t really break any new ground, but it kept the feud with Randy Orton front and center ahead of Crown Jewel.
- The match between Rey Fenix and Ricky Saints was solid. Fenix is morphing in the SmackDown version of Chad Gable, who fills time with quality in-ring work. Saints also looked good here.
The Bad
Chelsea Green vs. Nikki Bella
This match was always going to face an uphill battle. Green’s strength is her character work. Bella is a nostalgia act. They did what they could, but it was fairly short, contained little drama, and included a commercial break. The post-match was the real lowlight, though. We got yet another copy-and-paste segment with Judgment Day running in, Tiffany Stratton teasing a cash-in, and eventually Iyo Sky arriving to even the odds. I’d imagine this will eventually add four more women to set up War Games, but I’m not into this at all right now.
Other Lowlights
- So, Blake Monroe finally wraps up a lackluster feud with Giulia by winning a match where she looks good, and now she’s going to feud with Paige?
- I’m not saying Tatum Paxley should have beaten Jade Cargill, but I don’t understand putting her in this match in the first place. Paxley came up from NXT, looked good, and immediately won a title with Alexa Bliss. Now she’s dropped the belts and lost to Cargill in short order. They’re really blunting her momentum, which is what WWE seems to do with every NXT call-up not named Oba Femi.
The Ugly
Judgment Day
It is crazy how long the Judgment Day has been recycling the exact same material without any progression. The perpetual internal tension was its own endless cycle, but at least it was something. Has anything progressed since Balor got kicked out eight months ago? And whatever happened to his subplot with Roxanne Perez? The constant interference has trained fans not to react to matches because they know the finish isn’t coming until the interference starts. Can we mix it up a bit? Also, holding a show in Saudi Arabia right now is insane.
Related: WWE Raw Review for Oct. 26: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
