After delivering a good showing in last week’s first episode of 2017, SmackDown Live looked to repeat its success, with the Royal Rumble only three weeks away. They did, with another good episode of SD Live outdoing Raw once again in terms of quality.
Dean Ambrose and The Miz’s feud took centre stage, opening the show with an edition of the Ambrose Asylum. Nikki Bella and Natalya ensued in a chaotic brawl due to their bad blood, with the rivalry between the two becoming even more personal.
Dolph Ziggler faced off against Kalisto, suffering another loss but making up for it with a vicious beatdown on Kalisto and Apollo Crews after the match. The Wyatt Family battled American Alpha in a rematch for the SD Tag Team Championships, with tensions between the Family leading to an upset win for Gable and Jordan.
These segments entertained fans well with simple but effective storytelling. However, two segments on the show disappointed fans rather than exciting them. Carmella and James Ellsworth’s baffling partnership continued, with an awful match leading to another insignificant win.
John Cena and Baron Corbin clashed in the main event, but it was a disappointing affair that led to a typical underdog victory for ‘Cenation’. So, what grade did each segment from this week’s SD Live receive? Let’s find out, as I analyse and grade each segment from the January 10th edition of SD Live.
The Ambrose Asylum with the Miz and Maryse:
Grade: 8/10
This was a good segment that capitalised on the main event from last week’s show, with Miz and Ambrose continuing their feud in a promo segment here. The video package that aired before this was splendid.
Both men announcing their intentions to enter the Royal Rumble match was great, as star power continues to be added to the match. Miz’s heel work here was excellent, and his obsession with the IC Title makes it feel very important even without him holding it.
Ambrose was also stellar here, as it seems he is finally hitting his stride as a face. If he continues to showcase himself like he did here, his reign as Champion will be strong.
Ambrose giving Miz his own participation award was awesome, as was Miz’s cheap beatdown on the Lunatic Fringe, and then Ambrose’s comeback and Dirty Deeds. The face/heel dynamic in this rivalry is perfect, with Miz clearly booed while the fans get behind Ambrose with cheers.
Overall, a strong opening segment that showcased the Miz/Ambrose rivalry, with Ambrose getting off to a good start as Intercontinental Champion.
Check out the segment here:
Nikki Bella vs. Natalya:
Result: no contest.
Grade: 7.5/10
This was a nice way to capitalise on the groundwork laid in this feud for the past few weeks, with the two women’s bad blood boiling over into a chaotic brawl. Bella is over as a face, so the crowd was somewhat hot here.
However, parts of the brawl were sloppy, with weak throws and punches leading to a shambled mess at points. Natalya targeting the leg and locking in the Sharpshooter was exactly the kind of offence she needed to bring as a heel, with her viciousness leading to sympathy for Bella.
WWE wisely didn’t give away a match between these two now, with a bigger stage being saved for the two’s eventual clash. Overall, a solid segment that saw Bella and Natalya’s personal rivalry boil over, with a match between the two being saved for a later date.
Dolph Ziggler vs. Kalisto:
Result: Kalisto pins Dolph Ziggler.
Grade: 7.5/10
This was a solid match after Ziggler’s heel turn last week, but the outcome was all wrong. Instead of giving Ziggler a much-needed victory after turning heel, he suffered yet another loss. Sure, he got his revenge post-match with a vicious beatdown, but that would have been much more effective had Ziggler won the bout and then brutalised both Kalisto and Crews.
WWE must pit Ziggler against more over faces than Crews and Kalisto as well. The Showoff will continue to be cheered unless he faces a good guy who the crowd actually want to get behind.
Still, the storyline here is intriguing, with Ziggler’s failures leading him down an even darker path. How it plays out in future weeks will be very interesting, but he should pick up some wins along the way. Overall, a solid match, but a questionable result, although a compelling story is being told of Ziggler as a developing heel right now.
American Alpha vs. The Wyatt Family (Smackdown Tag Team Championships):
Result: Chad Gable pins Randy Orton to retain the titles.
Grade: 8.5/10
This was a good match between these two teams, who have excellent chemistry. The action here was great, although American Alpha aren’t receiving the loudest reactions as faces. Some more character development may be needed.
The finish here was perfectly executed, with the tensions continuing to grow between all three members of the Wyatt Family, especially Orton and Harper. With this slow build of the implosion, the trio’s eventual split should be extraordinary.
American Alpha retaining here was definitely the right choice as well, with another win over Orton giving Gable and Jordan some big momentum. Overall, a strong tag team title match that continued to tease the implosion of the Wyatts, while giving American Alpha another big win.
Carmella vs. CJ Lunde:
Result: Carmella wins by submission with the Code of Silence.
Grade: 3/10
This was a terrible match that did little to enhance the Carmella/Ellsworth storyline, with another insignificant win for Carmella leading to a waste of a segment. Neither woman had the ability to wrestle a decent bout, making the in-ring action incredibly poor.
The Carmella/Ellsworth story doesn’t seem to be going anywhere either, with nobody benefiting from it. Although Carmella picked up another win, it was inconsequential. Overall, a filler match that had lacklustre action, with the storyline between Carmella and James Ellsworth destined to go nowhere.
John Cena vs. Baron Corbin:
Result: John Cena pins Baron Corbin.
Grade: 7/10
This was a solid match, but the in-ring action wasn’t very exciting. The build throughout the show for the match was nice, with backstage promos and video packages hyping it up, but the match didn’t live up to the anticipation.
Sure, it was great to see Cena back wrestling a match on SD Live, but he wasn’t his best here, and Corbin didn’t benefit much from this match. The finish left a lot to be desired as well.
Cena, after being beaten down for most of the match, made a quick comeback and hit the Five-Knuckle Shuffle and Attitude Adjustment for the win. This was a terrible way of keeping Corbin protected, and rather than using AJ Styles (who was on guest commentary) for interference, we got an old-school underdog Cena match, with Corbin losing clean.
The fact that the much was given little time to prosper didn’t help either. Hopefully, Corbin can recover from the loss here, and the Cena/Styles feud can be a bigger focus next week.
Check out the match here:
Overall Grade for SD Live January 10th: 7.5/10
