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Last night's SmackDown was a compact, concise episode that delivered impressive matches and advanced title feuds heading into Clash of Champions.
Meanwhile, the King of the Ring tournament continued. Elsewhere, a certain former Cruiserweight Champion was the highlight of the show once again. Unfortunately, there was one big setback that stopped SmackDown from being perfect.
Who got the most and least out of last night's show?
Winner: Andrade
Apollo Crews really showed something here, as he's periodically allowed to do. Alas, it never gets him anywhere. It shouldn't be surprising that Andrade was the winner of this match. He showed something of his own, though he can't be expected to be a favorite to win the King of the Ring tournament, especially with Buddy Murphy blazing onto the scene at a superheated temperature (more on that later).
That isn't to say that Andrade has no chance, though. We'll just need to see.
Winner: Charlotte Flair
Everybody knew it was only a matter of time before Charlotte Flair got back in the title hunt, especially after her match with Trish Stratus at SummerSlam. Well, now it's official. Charlotte is going to challenge Bayley at Clash of Champions for Bayley's title.
As good as it's been for her compared to where she was, Bayley's reign has been cold. The SmackDown women's division isn't exactly the pinnacle of excitement with her at the top of the heap, which is a stark contrast to this time last year, when Charlotte and Becky's feud was beginning to heat up after the latter's "heel turn" at SummerSlam.
As tiresome as it would be, we shouldn't be surprised if Bayley winds up dropping the title to Charlotte Flair on September 15th. She has felt like a placeholder champion up until now, with forgettable feuds since May.
Winner: Buddy Murphy
For the second week in a row, Buddy Murphy put on one of the best matches on TV all year. Since it was against Daniel Bryan, no one should be surprised. The "best-kept secret" isn't waiting very long at all to come out. This had been a dream match for a long time and it certainly delivered.
Murphy actually defeated Bryan to boot, overcoming interference from Rowan in the process.
Murphy also still finds himself involved in the Roman Reigns attacker angle, even if the culprit was "revealed" last night.
From nothing, Murphy has exploded onto the SmackDown scene. He might even be a favorite to win the King of the Ring tournament. One wonders whether an Intercontinental title challenge will soon be on the cards.
Or who knows? Maybe something even greater is in store for him, if he keeps this up (which he will, if given the chance, the guy might just be the most reliable performer in the company).
Winner: The Revival
In addition to being involved with the New Day and Randy Orton, The Revival made short work of Heavy Machinery last night. Clearly, they're heating up for a title challenge against the New Day.
They probably won't win, but it's a marked improvement to how The Revival were treated in the spring. Remember that Ucey Hot stuff?
The Revival are another example of underutilized performers doing good work of late. Perhaps under the auspices of Paul Heyman and Eric Bischoff, WWE is finally starting to get the hang of using everyone to their strengths.
Winner: Shinsuke Nakamura
Last night, Shinsuke Nakamura got a new manager, Sami Zayn. It was the best thing that could ever happen to him.
Now Sami Zayn will be able to talk for him and Nakamura can just do his thing in the ring and with his eccentric mannerisms. The Intercontinental Champion looks formidable and might appear more than once every few weeks.
Sami Zayn, meanwhile, will be able to do something more meaningful than whining and losing.
Simple, effective, and again an example of WWE utilizing guys to their strengths of late.
Loser: Kevin Owens
The feud must continue.
Because, of course, it has to.
Kevin Owens lost his King of the Ring match to Elias of all people so that his feud with Shane McMahon can continue, despite his victory at SummerSlam.
For all the steps forward that WWE has taken of late, this was a big step back. WWE needs to learn how to end feuds at the right time. Nobody wants to see this feud continue, because nobody wants to see Shane McMahon on television anymore.
The one common denominator that has defined SmackDown since the start of the second brand split is that the more Shane McMahon is on the show, the worse it gets. When he's absent or not involved in a heavy way, the better the show gets.
Let's hope that we'll soon be heading into a Shane McMahon-free SmackDown show as the blue brand comes to FOX in October.
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