For the first time since WWE switched to the oversized Titantron stage for its television shows, Friday Night SmackDown had a different look. This week’s show took place at the Coliseo de Puerto Rico in San Juan, Puerto Rico and had a much smaller entrance, giving it a unique look and feel befitting the venue.
Speaking of Puerto Rico, holy shit, that crowd was electrifying. When The LWO opened the show, they were showered with a reception worthy of kings and queens, and when The Judgment Day interrupted them during their opening promo, the reaction the other way was just as loud.
And as has become the norm, Dominik Mysterio can barely speak without being drowned out by the boo birds.
It is so good.
Here’s what was even better about the opening segment – I can’t even really tell you what was said. I don’t speak Spanish, it’s the main language Rey and Dom used as they walked back and forth. Dom said something about being a dead father, and I think Rey spent spanking his ass at WrestleMania 39.
The thing is, despite that barrier, it was still a great segment because the crowd got so excited and everyone else in the ring used their body language to get the point across. They ended up booking a mixed tag team match, with Dom & Rhea Ripley taking on Rey & Zelina Vega in the main event.
Said match later in the show was, predictably enough, great. The heat for Dom mixed with the love for Rey & Vega made the perfect mix for a main event match, TV or not. The finish came quickly with Rey holding his son in a roll-up, but I think that may have been necessary due to time constraints and to make sure they hit the go-home angle.
That angle, of course, is Damian Priest showing up to help Judgment Day shove poor Rey’s boots, and Bad Bunny finally making his promised appearance to make the parade, leading the charge to thunderous applause from the entire LWO led.
They built up Bunny with a kendo stick on Priest, but Damian bailed out when Dom gave him enough cover by taking a shot for him. The show ended with Bunny donning an LWO shirt and apparently becoming an honorary member of the group.
That was fantastic all around. Brilliantly played by all.
WWE had another opportunity to build on Cody Rhodes vs. Brock Lesnar at Backlash in Puerto Rico on SmackDown, and they did so in the form of a promo for the former.
The message was simple and effective – Brock Lesnar is many things and one of those things, perhaps the most important, is his status as a gatekeeper. It’s a mountain in itself, yes, but climbing it doesn’t mean Rhodes has achieved his goal.
No, the goal is still very much to finish the story and that story is to defeat Roman Reigns to win the WWE Universal Championship.
That being said, Cody had a great line where he said we still don’t know why Lesnar did what he did by attacking and attacking him, but maybe we’ll learn at Backlash, “if I beat it out of him”. That made a huge bang.
Well played.
I’m ready for the match now!
Within The Bloodline, things are visibly becoming more tense.
While trying to get excited about the six-man tag team match pitting Jimmy, Jey and Solo Sikoa against Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn & Matt Riddle, Jimmy Uso asked Sikoa if he was ready. He got no answer. He didn’t seem too bothered by that, but Jey did.
Naturally.
Jey went straight in Solo’s face and Sikoa played it off with a mixture of apathy and a subtle threat. He plans to take care of his side of the bargain at Backlash, and all he knows is that the Usos better damn take care of their side. Is this coming from Solo himself or from Roman Reigns?
Intrigue!
Later, Riddle, Owens, and Zayn got a chance to cut a promo about the match backstage, and Riddle said all the usual before attempting to dub it to the tag team champions. Zayn said, well, there’s nothing more to say at all. “It’s time.”
It really is.
Time for the match and maybe even more?
all the rest
- The show’s opening game featured The Viking Raiders in their final appearance on the blue stamp before being shipped off to Monday Night Raw where they faced off against The OC, who were re-drafted here. AJ Styles was in on the commentary and made it clear that he has his sights set on Roman Reigns — “of course I do” — along with the title. The match was fun, partly because of the teams work in the ring and partly because the crowd went crazy for each spot. It’s a great start for Luke Gallows, Karl Anderson, Michin and Styles on the blue side.
- Raw Women’s Champion Bianca Belair got a promo to remind us that she was drafted to SmackDown and how lucky she is to be here. She also made sure to point out that if she retains her title this weekend, she will be the “longest-reigning women’s champion in modern times.” Damage CTRL paused to send basically the same call-up message here while also getting some licks ahead of IYO SKY fighting for the championship at Backlash. Liv Morgan & Raquel Rodriguez showed up to save the segment. A bit general, but they nailed it.
- The Street Profits defeated Imperium in a head-to-head tag team match that was great fun. I really don’t know what else to say about that. It was just a fun tag team match, with the babyfaces heeling clean, and everyone had great times. Except for the bad guys of course!
- Shinsuke Nakamura and Karrion Kross had a pretty solid brawl with great physicality. Those who think Kross has fallen out of favor may feel that even more when he sees the loss here, but this seemed more about restoring some shine to Nakamura. For that purpose, it worked well enough.
- We got our first look at Cameron Grimes introducing himself to Adam Pearce. Baron Corbin stopped to poke fun at himself for being the last choice. Grimes fired back and insulted him by saying it was better than not being picked at all. Corbin tried to make it look like he was on Brock Lesnar’s level because he’s a free agent. In the end, a match between Grimes and Corbin was booked for next week. The grand debut of the main roster is finally here!
It was a really fun show overall and it was a pleasure to see a wrestling show with such an audience.
Class: A
It’s your turn!
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