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From Sonya Deville betraying Mandy Rose to John Cena and Bray Wyatt's cinematic confrontation at the end of the episode, this week's edition of SmackDown featured several contrasting moments.
The final SmackDown before WrestleMania 36 did a great job in building towards two particular matchups: Otis vs. Dolph Ziggler and John Cena vs. Bray Wyatt (Firefly Fun House Match).
Given the circumstances, WWE did a fairly decent job with their go-home SmackDown episode for the most part. Are you excited for this year's unique WrestleMania event?
Whatever the end result may be, the fans have little to no idea what to expect during WrestleMania weekend this year.
Here are the 5 biggest news stories from this week's episode of WWE SmackDown (April 3, 2020).
#5: Braun Strowman will face Goldberg for the Universal Championship at WrestleMania 36
After Roman Reigns pulled out from his WrestleMania 36 match against Goldberg, fans kept buzzing as to who would take The Big Dog's spot at the Grandest Stage of them All.
Braun Strowman had to be one of the most rumored names to replace Roman Reigns, and that rumor came true on last night's SmackDown, where it was confirmed that The Monster Among Men will take on Goldberg with the Universal Title at stake.
While Reigns vs. Goldberg was primed for the main event spot, the same cannot be said for a match with absolutely no buildup heading into WrestleMania 36.
We all know that The Big Dog's Universal Title victory is the final ending to his storyline with Goldberg, so it seems very unlikely that Strowman is going to pull off a miraculous victory under these circumstances.
Still, a battle between these two men should be a short and entertaining trip on a Pay-Per-View filled with matches like Edge vs. Randy Orton and The Undertaker vs. AJ Styles.
#4: Tamina dominated her WrestleMania opponents as Sasha Banks and Bayley's alliance hangs in the balance
Last week, Tamina laid down Lacey Evans and Naomi in a confrontation between all participants of the upcoming Fatal 5-Way Elimination Match at WrestleMania.
Sasha Banks and Bayley peacefully exited the ring last week, but the same didn't happen this time around, as Tamina, Lacey Evans and Naomi fought each other in a Triple Threat contest.
The bout itself was a small preview of their WrestleMania match. Tamina super-kicked her way to victory against Lacey and Naomi.
It was after the match that Bayley decided to shake hands with Tamina, but the veteran responded with a Superkick. Sasha Banks received a Samoan Drop as Tamina reigned supreme over all five of her rivals this week.
Tamina has been booked as a "wildcard" in this situation, but we all know that the real story revolves around whether or not Sasha will turn against Bayley to win the SmackDown Women's Title at WrestleMania.
This issue was brushed away on commentary. However, it is apparent that Tamina's strong booking is only a temporary distraction from Bayley and Sasha's equation as best friends.
#3: Cesaro, Shinsuke Nakamura & Sami Zayn launched a 3-on-1 assault on Daniel Bryan ahead of WrestleMania 36
Drew Gulak has proved to be a valuable asset for Daniel Bryan on Friday Night SmackDown over the past few weeks.
Both of them started out as potential rivals, but eventually, Bryan and Gulak realized that teaming up was the best option to stand against a bigger threat of Sami Zayn, Shinsuke Nakamura & Cesaro.
Now, Zayn's reign as the Intercontinental Champion is in jeopardy after Gulak earned Bryan a shot against the loudmouth at The Showcase of The Immortals.
Nakamura and Bryan were involved in a hard-hitting singles match last night. Both men gave us a preview of the potential of this bout. After witnessing their amazing in-ring chemistry, it will be interesting to see how Nakamura and Bryan would fare in an uninterrupted match under different circumstances.
Cesaro interrupted this bout, which led to a 3-on-1 assault on Bryan. The babyfaces couldn't overcome the numbers game this time around.
This feud has taken a decent amount of TV Time on the Road to WrestleMania 36. Hopefully, both Sami Zayn and Daniel Bryan prove that they earned this privilege by putting on a great showcase at the Grandest Stage of them All.
#2: Sonya Deville and Dolph Ziggler were revealed to have conspired against Otis and Mandy Rose all along
There were two major advances on SmackDown this week.
Firstly, it was finally revealed that Sonya Deville manipulated Mandy Rose and Otis Dozovic's Valentine's date all along. Dolph Ziggler was a part of this plan as well.
Secondly, we got an extended look towards the mystery of the bright graphic that kept appearing on SmackDown over the past few months. Apparently, a mysterious hacker is behind this whole angle, whose main purpose was to expose Sonya Deville's plan via video footage.
Many have speculated that Ali is being repackaged as this mysterious hacker to give him an interesting personality on the Blue brand.
So we finally know that Tucker didn't betray his partner, Otis, which would have been a cop-out reveal for one of the most successful WWE storylines on the Road to WrestleMania 36.
This was the perfect way to set-up Otis and Ziggler's showdown at The Grandest Stage of Them All. Now that the truth has been revealed, Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville's equation will change as well.
#1: John Cena and Bray Wyatt had a bizarre showdown ahead of WrestleMania 36
John Cena and Bray Wyatt's re-ignited feud has been one of the most unique aspects of the buildup to this year's WrestleMania event.
SmackDown took a unique approach towards pre-taped segments at the end of last night's episode.
John Cena cut a great promo about his fearless attitude towards one of the most feared gimmicks in WWE history. The Fiend doesn't scare John Cena, apparently. But the veteran may have pushed himself into an unprecedented situation at WrestleMania 36.
The well-known puppets of Bray Wyatt's Firefly Fun House made a ringside appearance during John Cena's promo. They can't wait for Cena to "join" them after his battle with The Fiend.
Bray Wyatt's evil alter-ego appeared on the podium, and both of them had a staredown, that is until Fun House Bray Wyatt spooked Cena from behind at the same time. Thanks to the benefit of pre-taping their segments, WWE infused a cinematic quality to this rivalry on the final episode before WrestleMania 36.
One of the best aspects of this unique event is that we have little to no idea about what will actually happen in a Boneyard or a Firefly Fun House Match. But for what it's worth, WWE has fully embraced Bray Wyatt's uniqueness as we head into the unknown in less than 24 hours.
