‘Friday Night Smackdown’ Review (Apr 12th 2024)
Welcome to this review of this past Friday’s episode of Friday Night Smackdown, right here on Nerdly. Let’s see what went down on this week’s show!
Match #1: Triple Threat Match – LA Knight def. Bobby Lashley and Santos Escobar
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
LA Knight and Bobby Lashley tried to gang up on Santos Escobar to start the match, but the Legado del Fantasma leader escaped to ringside to allow The All Mighty and The Megastar to duke it out. With no rules in play, Angel and Berto slithered their way into the match to try to give Escobar the winning edge. The Street Profits neutralized Legado del Fantasma, giving Lashley and Knight more of a fighting chance. With the match breaking down, The Megastar hit Escobar with a BFT to advance in the tournament to determine who will challenge WWE Champion Cody Rhodes at WWE Backlash in Lyon, France.
My Score: 2.5 out of 5
Match #2: Bron Breakker def. Cameron Grimes
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
Bron Breakker obliterated Cameron Grimes, hitting him with a super Steiner Line that shook the ring to its core. Breakker then Speared Grimes, staying undefeated on SmackDown.
My Score: 0 out of 5
Match #3: Naomi def. Tiffany Stratton
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
With a chance to face WWE Women’s Champion Bayley on the line, Naomi and Tiffany Stratton duked it out. Stratton had previously defeated Naomi and looked on her way to victory in an intense back-and-forth battle. After an Alabama Slam, Stratton took too long to jaw with Bayley at ringside. This allowed Naomi to move out of the way following a Prettiest Moonsault Ever attempt. Naomi then capitalized with a jackknife pin to win the match.
My Score: 2 out of 5
Match #4: Bianca Belair & Jade Cargill def. Chelsea Green & Piper Niven
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
Chelsea Green’s post-WrestleMania week went from bad to worse as she had to contend with Jade Cargill once more, this time with tag team partner Piper Niven against Cargill and Bianca Belair. Despite Green and Niven’s best efforts, Green once again got Jaded, and Cargill and Belair earned a big tag team victory.
My Score: 0 out of 5
Match #5: Triple Threat Match – AJ Styles def. Kevin Owens & Rey Mysterio
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
AJ Styles got one step closer to having a chance to take on Cody Rhodes for the WWE Title at WWE Backlash after going through a grueling battle with Kevin Owens and Rey Mysterio. KO lit up The Phenomenal One with a huge cannonball into the barricade before The Master of the 619 hit a West Coast Pop on Owens. In an immense show of athleticism, Styles executed a Styles Clash from the top rope on Mysterio, dropping him right onto KO and pinning Mysterio to earn the right to face LA Knight next week. After the match, The Megastar had a faceoff with The Phenomenal One just one week before their high-stakes WrestleMania rematch.
My Score: 3.5 out of 5
Final Verdict: 3/5
This first episode of Smackdown after Wrestlemania was something of a reset for the blue brand. With Roman Reigns now gone, the Bloodline got new blood; we got a couple of triple-threat matches to reset the totem pole of the men’s division pecking order. We got a couple of quick squash matches this episode too – mainly to give us more wrestling on a show that was full of Wrestlemania recaps. Overall not an amazing episode of Smackdown, but better than the one before WM40.
