Tiffany’s Takes: WWE SmackDown Live (5/14/19)

Tiffany Takes a look back at WWE Smackdown, and the final final effort before Money In The Bank! Did WWE impress her on the was to Hartford?

It’s go-home time for Money in the Bank, did SmackDown get its act together?

Kofi Kingston vs Kevin Owens: I’m not a fan of New Day, though I like all three guys involved, but New Day without Big E is not quite as good. That said, it’s clear that WWE seems invested in keeping New Day together, rather than having them go their separate ways like the Shield did.

I will also say that I’m more intrigued by Sami Zayn’s inclusion in the Kingston/KO feud than I am in the actual Kingston/KO feud. With Zayn entered in Money in the Bank, it’s very likely that he could cash in on either Kingston OR his BFF, Owens, which would be an interesting tweak to their feud.

Women’s Championships: I love the history video for Charlotte vs Becky. It’s been argued that Charlotte didn’t do anything wrong when Becky attacked her at SummerSlam, but given that Charlotte hadn’t done anything to earn that spot compared to what Becky had to do and she deliberately chose to rob her so-called ‘best friend’ of her moment, it’s clear Charlotte was a shitty friend and deserved every bit of that asskicking. I do think WWE could’ve done better by saying that Becky and Charlotte had made a deal before SummerSlam and Charlotte reneged on it and that’s why Becky attacked her. Either way, I hope Becky wins and moves on from Charlotte.

As for Lacey Evans, she thinks she’s the new Scarlett O’Hara, but she’s actually Emmie Slattery and I hope she loses too.

SmackDown Tag Team Championships: I’ve complained before about the Wild Card thing and the announcement that the Usos, who are on RAW, are going to challenge SmackDown’s Tag Team Championship at Money in the Bank, doesn’t thrill me. WWE needs to use the SmackDown teams they have.

Andrade vs Balor vs Ali vs Orton: I had pretty high hopes for this match and it really didn’t live up to my expectations.  It was a very formulaic match and Andrade won, giving him momentum for MitB. Ricochet’s run-in was the real highlight of the match, especially him grabbing the briefcase and taking off. He’s my favorite to win.

Aleister Black: I know Aleister Black will be wrestling at Money in the Bank, but I wish WWE would have him wrestle sooner, even though the promos have been fantastic.

Roman Reigns and Miz vs Shane McMahon and Company: It’s a pretty big cliche that whenever two unusual people get thrown into the same storyline, people start exclaiming that they NEED them to become a tag team and that is not something I see in the future of Reigns and Miz. They are definitely an unusual team, but the chemistry between them doesn’t work for me.

The handicap match was really good, but the stipulation about Miz was pretty standard for the McMahons and it made Miz’s post-match run-in less than a surprise. I’m ready for Miz and Shane to move on from each other.

Firefly Fun House Show: This is an absolute, fucking, mess. Please let this end soon.

Promos: I enjoyed Ember Moon and Bayley’s promos. I really want either of them to win, especially Ember Moon.

Kairi Sane and Asuka vs Fire and Desire: First things first, I’m not a fan of the new name for Asuka and Sane’s team – Kabuki Warriors. Kabuki is a form of Japanese drama known for its elaborate makeup. It sounds like someone, who isn’t Japanese, picked the name. The match between Pirate Empresses and Fire and Desire was really good, and it seems WWE is slowly building the feud between Rose and Deville by having Rose’s determination to get the win and the spotlight be the reason they lost. It’s interesting and hopefully it’ll come to a head at SummerSlam.

Lars Sullivan: A lot has been said about Lars Sullivan and his views, but I’m not going to comment on them. I did find it interesting that Kayla Braxton, who is biracial, didn’t seem thrilled to do the interview and I don’t blame her.

Overall Comments: How was SmackDown this week? Despite what it may seem like from my comments, it was a good show. It still wasn’t the kind of barnburner I really want for the go-home show for a PPV, even if it was just a low level PPV.

I do like that WWE is doing promo videos about the long-term history between rivals instead of just the short-term.

I’m still not thrilled abut the Wild Card rule, especially with the Tag Team Championship, but I’m banking that the Revival is going to cost the Usos the title.

SmackDown did pull itself together, but they’ve still got a ways to go to get things back on track.

Stay tuned for 205 Live!