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From Bray Wyatt and Braun Strowman's live confrontation to Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville's heated matchup, this week's edition of WWE SmackDown featured many contrasting moments.
The Blue brand may have missed some interesting opportunities on the last WWE episode before Money in the Bank. But as a whole, SmackDown did a fine job in reeling some interest for Sunday's pay-per-view.
If you look at WWE's card for this year's MITB event, most non-ladder matches belong to the SmackDown brand, which goes on to prove that WWE on Friday has a bigger appeal than its 3-hour counterpart on Mondays right now.
Which show did you like better this week, RAW or SmackDown? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
Here are the five biggest news stories from this week's episode of WWE SmackDown (May 8, 2020).
#5: CM Punk was teased as SmackDown's resident hacker
If you've been following WWE rumors periodically, then one of the biggest stories circulating recently has been that CM Punk may turn out to be SmackDown's mysterious hacker.
The hacker had a message for viewers this week, which began on a static note, just like CM Punk's iconic theme song.
Most likely, this may just be WWE's way of misleading viewers to keep this topic afloat. We know that AEW did the same thing with The Exalted One's reveal, and it should come off as no surprise if Punk doesn't turn out to be the hacker after all.
As a storyline, this has been one of the more intriguing aspects of WWE programming recently. Not only did the hacker kickstart the next phase of Otis, Mandy Rose, and Dolph Ziggler's love triangle, but this mysterious individual may be an important catalyst for the breakup of a popular SmackDown tag team.
#4: Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville's heated match struck a chord with fans
Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville's onscreen chemistry in WWE is at its best right now.
Both former best friends collided in a singles match since their relationship turned sour on SmackDown. WWE made a good decision by letting Sonya Deville shine since they broke up Fire & Desire.
WWE aired a few pre-match moments for both sides, and you could make out that this confrontation was going to be different when the bout began with complete chaos.
Although the fight was rushed, the psychology of their highly personal feud and Sonya's trash-talking made it stand out from the rest of the pack. From the beginning itself, Sonya battered her former best friend to a point where it looked like Mandy was outmatched inside a WWE ring.
But The Golden Goddess gained some momentum before the match came to an abrupt halt when Sonya squeaked past her opponent with a quick pinfall victory.
Sonya winning here was the right decision made by WWE. It leaves some room for future matches between the two competitors, and it gave Sonya Deville an in-ring edge over her current rival as well.
#3: Bray Wyatt offered Braun Strowman a chance to come back home
It is no secret that WWE could have invested more into this feud at the moment.
Braun Strowman and Bray Wyatt have a complex history with each other, and it feels as if the company has only scratched the surface to an interesting past.
Last night, Wyatt offered Strowman a chance to return home, but the Universal Champion refused to do so and stated that he is already "home" as the top titleholder on WWE SmackDown right now.
Since Strowman will face the Fun House version of his opponent at Money in the Bank, it gives the champion a good advantage at the pay-per-view. But the fact that he hasn't faced The Fiend yet may leave a lot to be desired.
This WWE storyline should continue past Sunday's event. Like I said before, WWE has a lot to explore in this feud, and Strowman's one-dimensional arc needs to evolve as well.
The Monster Among Men seems unfazed to Bray Wyatt's mind games so far, that may change if the latter decides to dig deeper into Strowman's psyche after Money in the Bank.
#2: Sheamus and Jeff Hardy collided in a brawl after weeks of buildup
If you listened to Corey Graves' recent interview with Jeff Hardy, it became clear that Hardy is aware of the fact that this may be his last shot at redemption in WWE.
WWE chose to adapt this theme for Hardy's latest run on SmackDown.
We saw vignettes for The Charismatic Enigma's return throughout previous episodes, and only one man, Sheamus, has objected to the whole thing so far.
The Celtic Warrior was upset over the fact that Michael Cole kept switching the conversation back to Jeff Hardy's vignettes instead of focusing on Sheamus and his in-ring dominance. This week, Hardy returned and talked to Renee Young about his last chance at redemption in WWE.
Things escalated when Sheamus arrived and started brawling with Hardy right away. You could see how both men were itching for a program like this by the intensity of their brawl last night.
Not only did Jeff Hardy execute his move set in rapid motion, but Sheamus got right back up after the returning Superstar planted his finisher on The Celtic Warrior. Undoubtedly, Sheamus vs. Jeff Hardy should be a good WWE program for both parties involved right now.
#1: King Corbin solidified his stance as one of the favorites to win the MITB briefcase
Fans witnessed a typical WWE scramble before this year's Money in the Bank pay-per-view.
The night concluded with a standard six-man tag team match, with King Corbin, Shinsuke Nakamura & Cesaro picking up the victory over the babyface team of Daniel Bryan, Drew Gulak & Otis.
It was after the bout where Otis, Bryan, and Corbin rushed to grab the briefcase in a MITB preview.
Of course, WWE's big bad heel, King Corbin ended up being the one who grabbed the briefcase to display his dominance. As one of the only two heels from the men's division to take part in Sunday's Ladder Match - the other being AJ Styles - Corbin will prove to be a huge conflict during the pay-per-view itself.
Otis had a good moment during the scuffle as well. He might be the least likely candidate to win the MITB Ladder Match, especially one that spans across several floors.
WWE's most lovable personality broke two ladder steps on last night's episode, and judging by how both Corbin and Otis were booked this week, Sunday's pay-per-view could yield exact opposite results than what we expect.
