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Smackdown Live was the only main roster show worth your time last year, and from the way Raw panned out last night, it seems like it is still the only main roster show worth watching, as WWE gave fans a variety of narratives and matches to look forward on the show.
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And even though this show was pre-taped, it felt like the quality WWE was going for was met, as this show was really entertaining, with actual narrative development. So let's go through what WWE got right on Smackdown Live this week.
#1 A fun opening
Even though The New Day is one of WWE most recognisable factions of the last decade, it is disappointing to say that their act is becoming increasingly stale, as fans loved the act of Big E, Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods due to their innovation in the character department and in an in-ring sense as well.
So are we on the verge of seeing the comeback of the 'New Day sucks' chants? Maybe not yet, as these three men are still captivating enough to hold your attention, and on Smackdown Live this week, they did just that.
The trio came down to the ring to celebrate the new year, and everything about their promo was hilarious, from Big E eating pancakes out of his diaper, Kofi ranting about his lack of World Title shots, and Big E referencing Scott Steiners infamous math promo was just amusing to watch. While this wasn't perfect it was surely entertaining.
#2 Samoa Joe is slowly building himself up again
Samoa Joe is one of WWE's most underrated stars, and that is a fact you must have already thought about by now. Joe failing to conquer the likes of Brock Lesnar, Roman Reigns, and AJ Styles really hurt his career.
However, it seems like WWE is trying to rebuild the man, as they realize how much of an asset he is to them, and Joe convincingly beating Jeff Hardy on Smackdown Live this week to earn his way to the number one contenders match for the WWE Title later in the night showed that WWE is trying to rebuild the Samoan Submission Machine.
Another thing about this match is that it really sold Joe's intelligence in the ring, as he avoided defeated to obtain victory in many clever ways, while Joe didn't go on to be the number one contender, his string of victories could put him back on the right track.
#3 John Cena puts Becky Lynch over
The main reason why this episode of Smackdown Live was going to be special was due to the fact that John Cena returned to WWE this week, and instead of roasting whoever WWE put in front of him like the good old days, Cena decided to roast himself, which basically gave little material for the superstar that was going to meet Cena in the ring.
So who was going to be Cena's adversary, was it Samoa Joe, Jeff Hardy or even AJ Styles? Nope, WWE flipped the script and sent Becky Lynch out to address Cena in the ring, and while this was unexpected, it sure was a great idea, as Lynch was put over by Cena so much, the rumour of her and Ronda Rousey main eventing Wrestlemania seems pausable now.
While some feel that Becky came off too aggressive in this promo, it feels like her character is centered towards grabbing the brass rings that she couldn't all those years ago, and that is the right direction for her.
#4 A little soap opera never hurt anybody
WWE is a wrestling company that focuses more on the narrative side of things than the actual wrestling, and sometimes it's tedious to watch that sort of television play out. But on a show like Smackdown Live where there is a balance of silly antics and serious competition, a soap opera-like narrative with Naomi and Mandy Rose is worth watching.
And yes, the whole married wrestling couple having relationship problems because of another superstar is so outdated it's terrible, but sometimes those types of narratives are fun to watch. The best thing about this whole narrative is that Sonya Deville picked up another important win against a former Women's Champion in Naomi.
#5 Andrade 'Cien' Almas saves face
After Cena and Becky Lynch had a heated exchange of words in their segment, they were interrupted by Zelina Vega and her client Andrade 'Cien' Almas, and this prompted a mixed tag team match between the four superstars.
It was so easy for WWE to bury Almas here, as he has not had the best luck ever since he joined Smackdown Live last year, but thankfully, that's not what happened.. As Cena was on the verge of pinning El Idolo, Becky threw Cena out of the ring so that she could pick up the win for their team.
That was a great booking strategy to sell Becky's new attitude, and it allowed Almas to save credibility for the new year, so could it mean that WWE will finally give the man the push he needs? Well, only time will tell but WWE should consider a future programme between Almas and Cena, as it could be career-defining for Almas.
#6 Mustafa Ali is in the big leagues
The fatal five-way number one contenders match included so many legends of the business such as Samoa Joe, AJ Styles, Randy Orton, and Rey Mysterio, which made it impressive on WWE's part to book that type of match for an episode of Smackdown.
But the highlight of WWE's booking was that the very young Mustafa Ali had a place among those veterans, and you know WWE is making changes to their programming when a newbie like Ali gets a chance to shine with some of the greatest wrestlers of their generation.
Just a few years ago, someone of Ali's experience in a company like WWE would see him on the pre-show. But here we are, and Ali has shown the world why he is deserving of his spot among the best of the best.
Ali was very impressive in this match, as he helped improve the quality of this match drastically, and this sort of exposure is going to help his career immensely. And while there are some saying that Ali should have won this match, here's your answer - WWE is in the process of building up the man and that is a win for Ali in itself.
#7 AJ Styles brings out his inner animal
AJ Styles said in an interview years ago when Vince McMahon signed him; he told AJ that he needed to have a pitbull-like mentality in the ring and on the mic, and it was clear in Styles' run as a heel that he took McMahon's advice.
But over time, Styles watered himself down as his babyface, and his run was not as good as his heel run. After smacking the living daylights out of the boss last week, it seems like McMahon has brought out the animal in Styles, which allowed him to go on and become the number one contender for the WWE Championship this week.
But what is interesting is that another star who was coaxed by an authority figure to bring out the animal in them was Seth Rollins last night on Raw. Is this WWE signaling to fans who the top dogs on each brand or could we see Rollins vs Styles in a high profile match down the road? Only time will tell.
