19th Oct2020

Friday Night SmackDown – Oct 16th 2020: Results & Review

by Nathan Favel

Welcome to this week’s Friday Night SmackDown review, right here on Nerdly. I’m Nathan Favel and you are gonna buy me…a puppy! Yeaaaaaaaaaaah!!!!!!!! You’re gonna get me a freakin’ puppy and I’ll hug it, kiss it, f—k it, kill it, cook it, eat it and burn down a children’s hospital as they scream! Hahahahahahahahahahaha!!!!!!! We have the season premiere of SmackDown, with Roman Reigns defending the WWE Universal Title against Braun Strowman, who spends his free time insulting poor people. Are you ready for the season premiere of a show that never has an off-season? Does a bat s—t in Mukkawukkafukkastan?! Let’s wrestle, Dick Head! If I said that again, do you know what I’d have? …more Head! SmackDown! Hiya!

Match #1: Lars Sullivan def. Jeff Hardy

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

Lars Sullivan bulldozed his way back into WWE action with a brutal beatdown of Jeff Hardy, Matt Riddle and The Miz last week. The Freak returned to the squared circle against The Charismatic Enigma and immediately came out charging. An injured knee grounded the high-flying Superstar, but Hardy nearly grinded out another win with a Twist of Fate. Sullivan was triumphant in his return though after a Freak Accident put Hardy away.

My Opinion: 2.7 out of 5 – Lars is a poor man’s Brock Lesnar and that’s not bad. Jeff gave Lars the same gift he gave Brock back in 2002 and it was good. This was a glorified squash that was not the worst thing I’ve ever seen on this show.

Match #2: The New Day def. Shinsuke Nakamura, Cesaro & Sheamus – New Day Farewell Match

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

The New Day started their Farewell Match with an impassioned speech to the WWE Universe and a promise that they will remain as strong as ever. Shinsuke Nakamura, Cesaro & Sheamus tried to spoil the party with some early aggression. The trio of challengers looked for retribution after all suffering crushing defeats the week prior. An incredible combo started with Cesaro’s swing of Kingston into a Nakamura running knee that was followed up by a White Noise assist to Sheamus. After the dust settled, Big E and Woods teamed up for an earth-shattering double team maneuver to earn the emotional victory. The New Day embraced at the center of the ring and basked in their impeccable history on the blue brand.

My Opinion: 3.3 out of 5 – This was a fun, simple way to say good-bye to The New Day and Sheamus at the same time. The moves were what you’d expect and The New Day had a fine celebration when they won…so this sucked. Don’t watch this decent s—t!

Match #3: The Street Profits def. Dolph Ziggler & Robert Roode – SmackDown Tag Team Championship Match (Disqualification)

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

The Street Profits came to the blue brand in a shocking WWE Draft development and were looking to bring all the smoke in their debut as SmackDown Tag Team Champions. With “The Nature Boy” Ric Flair watching, Montez Ford and Angelo Dawkins put on a show against Dolph Ziggler & Robert Roode. Frustrated by the unstoppable energy of The Street Profits, Ziggler & Roode lashed out, resulting in a disqualification. Ford delivered the final blow with a high-flying maneuver that took out both Ziggler & Roode and left the champions standing tall on the SmackDown season premiere.

My Opinion: 2 out of 5 – This was way too short and it had a DQ finish. Eat my shorts!

Match #4: (Main Event) Roman Reigns def. Braun Strowman – WWE Universal Championship Match

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

Roman Reigns and Braun Strowman closed the SmackDown season premiere with a larger-than-life Universal Title showdown. The Strowman Express was rolling early as the Goliath pounded Reigns over the barricade outside the ring. In shades of his showdown with Jey Uso at WWE Clash of Champions, Reigns drilled Strowman with a low blow while kicking out. Reigns pounced on Strowman and squeezed the life out of The Monster with a vicious guillotine hold to force the tapout.

My Opinion: 3.5 out of 5 – Roman and Braun had another fine match together, with the final stretch being fantastic. Who woulda thought that Roman and Braun would spend the last few minutes working a great submission/clinch and making it look spectacular? This didn’t go as long as I hoped it would, but it was quite arresting for the brief time it went for. All in all, this was a fine main event that I really enjoyed.

News Of The Night:

  1. Jey Uso brawled with Roman Reigns, to spectacular effect.
  2. Daniel Bryan and Seth Rollins seem poised to feud, over who is dumber (stupid angle).
  3. Bayley wouldn’t sign the contract for the Women’s Title match against Sasha Banks.

Final Verdict: 3.2/5

This turned out fine for a show that was not enough.

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