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From The Rock's electrifying return to Kofi Kingston's embarrassing title loss against Brock Lesnar (followed by Lesnar's former UFC nemesis, Cain Velasquez's shocking debut), WWE SmackDown's premiere episode on FOX featured a lot of contrasting moments.
Judging this show like any other SmackDown episode from the past is quite problematic here. Because, on one hand, the show undoubtedly excelled in terms of quality entertainment from start to finish.
But the episode became very controversial (more on that later) towards its end and the fact that several moments felt rushed didn't help either. However, I would say that Friday Night SmackDown is off to an explosive start simply because the show finally feels larger-than-life once again.
Here are a few interesting observations from the premiere episode of SmackDown on FOX:
#3 What Kofi Kingston's title loss and Cain Velasquez' potential WWE rivalry against Brock Lesnar tells us about the show in general
Brock Lesnar was the favorite going into the WWE Title match against Kofi Kingston last night.
However, what people did not expect was for Kofi Kingston to lose the match in mere seconds!
In any other scenario, before KofiMania set in, this outcome would have been perfectly reasonable (without the title being involved, obviously). However, as you can see all over Twitter by now - KofiMania's conclusion as a long-term storyline was terrible.
On the other hand, a part of this negative outpour from the WWE Universe may have been diluted when Brock Lesnar's former UFC nemesis, Cain Velasquez made a shocking debut and challenged the Beast Incarnate to step up.
One of the biggest wins of Velasquez's UFC career came against Brock Lesnar, and this premise is why 'Lesnar vs. Velasquez' can be a big hit in the numbers game for WWE.
These two contrasting scenarios (Kofi's Loss & Velasquez's debut) might tell us that Friday Night SmackDown will be all about topping the charts and aiming for the 'bigger is better' approach towards Professional Wrestling.
This is not necessarily a bad thing, as it can increase WWE's popularity closer to its prime like back in the Attitude Era, but by doing so, will the biggest sports entertainment giant alienate its core fanbase at the same time?
#2 Why Shane McMahon's 'public firing' changes the show's primary focus from now onwards
One of the most awaited events from last night's show was the ladder match between Kevin Owens and Shane McMahon to determine who would have to leave WWE in the end.
The match was a little rushed but it was highly entertaining nonetheless.
As expected, Owens got the upper hand and gave Shane McMahon a taste of his own medicine.
But in the broader scope of things, Shane McMahon's dictatorial control over the Blue brand was a huge part of the show in the recent past, and it is public knowledge that fans have expressed their distaste over rehashed authoritarian storylines too.
If WWE wants the Blue brand to be a highly successful venture when it comes to ratings, it looks like Shane McMahon's (the character) unfair control will no longer be an integral part of the show, to begin with.
This allows WWE to explore storylines without the presence of a looming authority, just like Tyson Fury and Cain Velasquez being potentially involved in larger-than-life storylines in the future.
#1 Can King Corbin be never truly buried?
After all that happened last night, I could have shed some light on Bray Wyatt's Firefly Fun House episode, or perhaps Tyson Fury & Braun Strowman's potential feud would be an appropriate topic to write about at this moment.
As weird as it may sound, I think people really need to know that Baron Corbin has a rare ability that makes him stand out from the rest of the roster - he can never be buried.
After The Rock completely owned him on the microphone last night (as expected), The Great One and Becky Lynch took down King Corbin together.
Corbin has been part of such humiliating instances in the past too.
But King Corbin's effectiveness as a heel never changes at all.
The character's ability to annoy the WWE Universe gives fans a sense of relief when Corbin meets his ugly fate in the end, and this loop repeats itself from time-to-time.
So don't be surprised when King Corbin comes out on next week's RAW to do his job perfectly, and that is, to be the most annoying heel in WWE today.
What did you think about Friday Night SmackDown's premiere episode on FOX in general?
Thanks for reading this article, please share it to spread the word. Leave your thoughts in the comments section below, and stay tuned for more!
Teddy Long snaps when Swerve Strickland's race is brought up HERE
