WWE Smackdown Live: Dec 4th 2018 – Results & Review
Welcome to this weeks Smackdown Live review, right here on Nerdly. And it’s the THIRD week in a row that we have to ask: “will this episode of Smackdown be more of a success than Monday’s Raw” – lets see shall we?!
Match #1: Mandy Rose & Sonya Deville def. Charlotte Flair & Asuka
The following is courtesy of WWE.com:
With SmackDown Women’s Champion Becky Lynch looking on, her two WWE TLC challengers, Charlotte and Asuka, reluctantly joined forces against Mandy Rose & Sonya Deville. Despite obvious tension between The Queen & The Empress of Tomorrow, who attempted to outdo each other from the start, the tandem seemed strong for most of the bout. However, Flair kicked Asuka off the apron – apparently by accident after she seemingly believed it was Mandy Rose – and Asuka returned fire on her own partner with a sliding knee that was 100 percent on purpose and allowed Deville to pin Flair. Lynch raised her title over her head in a moment of pure defiance, as all three Superstars stared daggers through one another.
My Take: A great opening match for Smackdown, with all 4 women coming out of it strong. Deville and Rose deserve to get a huge push if, and when, the WWE pull the trigger on the Womens Tag Titles.
Match #2: Jey Uso def. Xavier Woods and Cesaro in a Triple Threat Match
The following is courtesy of WWE.com:
With Big E and Kofi Kingston bringing The Power of Positivity to commentary, Xavier Woods, Jey Uso and Cesaro squared off in a furious Triple Threat Match just two weeks before The Usos, The New Day and The Bar battle for the SmackDown Tag Team Championship in a Triple Threat Tag Team Match at WWE TLC. In the final moments of the whirlwind free-for-all that truly gave the WWE a taste of what they will see at the Dec. 16 pay-per-view, Cesaro threw Woods out of the ring, but as he turned back around, he walked right into Jey’s earth-shattering superkick that earned Uso the important three-count. With all three tag teams keeping an eye on each other in the ring as the dust settled, the WWE Universe is in for an all-out slugfest for the SmackDown Tag Team Championship.
My Take: A teaser for TLC, this match was at least action-packed. Each man got a chance to shine and the back-and-froth between all three was well-paced and made for a fun match.
Match #3: Randy Orton def. Jeff Hardy
The following is courtesy of WWE.com:
In the wake of his 20th anniversary celebration last week, a reinvigorated Jeff Hardy reignited his rivalry against Randy Orton one week after The Viper unleashed a brutal assault on Rey Mysterio. Just after Hardy dropped Orton with a back suplex on the announce table and ascended the ropes looking to crash down onto The Viper, Samoa Joe suddenly appeared on the TitanTron from a bar, callously mocking The Charismatic Enigma and keeping him distracted long enough for Orton to level his opponent with the RKO for the victory. As Hardy recovered, Joe added insult to injury be mocking Hardy with a “public service announcement” on the dangers of drinking in excess.
My Take: Just f*ck off WWE. F*ck right off. Jesus… Just when you thought Randy “I’m the laziest wrestler in the WWE” Orton had moved onto Rey Mysterio along comes this crap. I feel sorry for Jeff Hardy, he comes back to the WWE for rubbish like this.
Match #4: AJ Styles def. The Miz
The following is courtesy of WWE.com:
After being dropped with a Skull-Crushing Finale earlier in the night, AJ Styles looked for retribution in a one-on-one match against The A-Lister, as WWE Champion Daniel Bryan sat in on commentary and continued to renounce The “Yes!” Movement and the WWE Universe. When the action moved outside the ring during the hard-fought main event, Bryan distracted his WWE TLC opponent and allowed The A-Lister to run Styles into the steel steps and drop him with the Skull-Crushing Finale back inside the ring. After Styles kicked out at two, Bryan again interfered by grabbing his adversary’s leg. Nevertheless, Styles shook him off and locked his opponent in the excruciating Calf Crusher, forcing a frantic Miz to tap out. Not to be outdone, the WWE Champion wasted little time dropping Styles after the bell and unleashed an absolutely brutal assault on his WWE TLC challenger, targeting his knee and driving him into the ring post. After forcing the ring announcer to announce him as “WWE Champion, the NEW Daniel Bryan!” the condescending Bryan mocked the WWE Universe by calling them “fickle” over and over and asking them why they don’t like the “new” Daniel Bryan. The Beard ran back into the ring and once again took Styles down with a chopblock and locked him in a Heel Hook as SmackDown LIVE concluded.
My Take: You’ve got to love a match where the first two-thirds are spent pointing the camera on commentary rather than the match. I get that the WWE are building the Styles/Bryan feud for TLC… but at the expense of an actual match? That’s something Raw would do! And what’s with the “New Daniel Bryan” nonsense? This isn’t Marvel, you’re not rebooting a comic for the umpteenth time (All-New; All-New All Different; All-New Marvel Now! – remember those?) this is one guy whose turning not so much into a heel as a sanctimonious asshole. But hey, at least Bryan is getting heel heat right?!
News of the Night:
- Samoa Joe and Daniel Bryan apparently wanted to use their promo time to point out societal issues. Weird.
- Turns out The Miz was right all along about Daniel Bryan being a “bad guy,” as he trashed everyone and everything in a promo.
- The Bar are to take part in a “rap battle” next week.
- Charlotte Flair will take on Asuka next week in a WrestleMania rematch.
Final Verdict: 2/5
Despite a decent, on paper, opening match and a decent, on paper, main event, this weeks Smackdown was dull. Deathly dull. It seemed that at no point was there any excitement or sense of urgency – and just when things got interesting we got picture-in-picture ads!
