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Last night's SmackDown was far more enjoyable than this week's Raw, delivering two hours of solid content - with a couple of glaring notable exceptions. It helped that the crowd didn't sound like it was at a funeral home this time around.
The NXT takeover of the main roster continued, as Aleister Black, Tommaso Ciampa, Johnny Gargano, and Ricochet were all once again in action. Unfortunately, for the excitement they all brought, the actual build to Fastlane was lacklustre.
Who got the most and least out of last night's show?
Winner: Aleister Black
I think it's safe to say it - Aleister Black is going to be a star. They were in New Orleans, and it was in that very arena nearly a year ago that Aleister Black defeated Andrade "Cien" Almas to win the NXT Championship - a fact which was fully acknowledged, which was somewhat unusual.
For better or worse, the company views Andrade as a guy they can throw out there to have a top quality match with people they consider as top stars. The fact that Aleister Black defeated him on his second night says a lot about how he's viewed backstage. They needed to be impressed with the reactions he got as well.
We still need to see where it ultimately goes, but this is how you get somebody over.
Winners: Tommaso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano
Not to be outdone, WWE delivered us a dream match between DIY and The Bar. There was a concerning spot where Ciampa's knee bent awkwardly during a top rope powerbomb spot, but he's thankfully OK.
While I'm tentative about these two being a tag team, Ciampa kept to his character, showcasing the sadistic heel just waiting to come out, while Gargano looked reluctant to team with his former partner, but did so out of necessity in making an impression.
Ultimately, Ciampa, in particular, should be a singles star, but this was a good showing for both.
Loser: Asuka
Asuka made her return after three weeks of absence. She acknowledged that she made Becky Lynch tap out at the Royal Rumble.
And then she lost for the first time on television to Mandy Rose.
This kind of hot/cold pushing is exactly why WWE is so devoid of star power and why this year's road to WrestleMania feels so lacklustre. While it's understandable that Asuka needed an opponent at Fastlane, setting up the match by pinning the champion is typical, lazy, formulaic WWE booking. It would unfortunately not be the last time we saw it that night. It ultimately made Asuka look worse than made Mandy Rose, who is still nothing but mediocre as a talent, good.
To make matters worse for the champion, there might be some legs to those Lacey Evans rumours. Evans is an even greener talent than Rose. Asuka might have a tough road to WrestleMania ahead.
Winner: Ricochet
Ricochet got the weakest match of the NXT talent this time around, but that was to be expected with the mundane Eric Young. He still managed to shine, however. With his offence, there's no way that he couldn't. There were a lot of rest holds throughout the match, but it set up the Future of Flight to do what he does best.
Judging by the past few days, Ricochet (and Gargano, too) seems to have avoided the curse of 205 Live, which is a fate that many of the NXT faithful feared for him. That's the biggest takeaway here, and it's clear the company views him favourably.
With WWE so void of star power, these four guys can provide the "fresh start" that the company has been crowing about but has delivered mixed results on since the McMahon's mea culpa in December. Any rebuild should feature all four prominently.
Losers: Daniel Bryan and Kofi Kingston
It was a good match, but in another bit of lazy storytelling, Kofi Kingston pinned the WWE Champion to earn his title shot at Fastlane. It's actually bad news for both men, as Fastlane is the most filler of filler pay per views, and it likely means that Kofi Kingston won't be getting his title shot at WrestleMania, which also suddenly takes away the hottest potential match for the WWE Championship there.
It's possible that the feud could be extended past the unnecessary March pay per view, but I wouldn't bet on it. Either way, Kofi has no chance of winning after having pinned the champion last night and getting his shot at the filler pay per view instead of the big one. WWE seems content to once again not pull the trigger on an act that's suddenly nuclear hot.
Even if Kofi were to have lost at WrestleMania (I'd have serious reservations of him taking the title from Bryan), it would have been the match that generated the most interest at this juncture.
