Ziggler opened up the show and the crowd chanted “you deserve it!” as he held up the Intercontinental Championship. Ziggler stated that for the first time in 12 years he doubted himself and thought he had made a mistake before his match at No Mercy. Ziggler claimed as soon as he started walking down the entrance ramp he knew that the WWE is where he belonged and that there was no way in hell he wasn’t leaving with the IC title.
The Miz interrupted and came down to the ring. He didn’t make eye contact with Ziggler for a couple of moments. Maryse was along side him and they were both wearing sunglasses. The Miz stated that he wanted to take a moment to mourn the death of the Intercontinental Championship. The Miz claimed that he was the one that brought the prestige back to the IC title. The Miz then stated that he wanted his gold back.
Ziggler then rolled a video of The Miz crying after the match at No Mercy. The Miz went to respond but the audience broke out in a “you were crying!” chant. The Miz stated that he wasn’t done with Ziggler. The Spirit Squad came out and challenged Dolph to a match.
Handicap Match: The Spirit Squad vs Dolph Ziggler
The Spirit Squad started out in control of the match. Dolph battled back and knocked them both out of the ring. Mauro Ranallo accidentally referred to Ziggler as Daniel Bryan and JBL called him out on it. Ranallo was going to send Smackdown to break and almost referred to Ziggler as Bryan once again.
When Smackdown returned, the Spirit Squad once again had control of the match. The Miz was ringside and enjoyed watching Ziggler get beatdown. Ziggler finally fought back and hit the Spirit Squad with a Double DDT. Ziggler hit Kenny with a Superkick for the victory.
After the match, The Miz attacked Ziggler and hit him with a Skull Crushing Finale. JBL announced that The Miz gets a mandatory rematch for the IC title. The Spirit Squad went to attack Ziggler again but Heath Slater and Rhyno came out and made the save.
Winner: Dolph Ziggler
Reaction: Dolph Ziggler and the Miz had another good promo to start the show. The Miz has been terrific as of late. He has always been a solid heel but he has really taken it to another level recently. My only concern with another Ziggler vs Miz match is that it might be impossible to top the one at No Mercy. It will be difficult to replicate that match and get the WWE Universe as emotionally invested as they were on Sunday.
Shane McMahon and Daniel Bryan challenged Monday Night Raw to a series of traditional Survivor Series matches at the upcoming PPV. The three matches proposed by Shane and Daniel were as follows:
- 5 vs 5 Elimination Match (Top 5 Male Superstars on Each Brand)
- 5 vs 5 Elimination Match (Top 5 Female Superstars on Each Brand)
- 5 vs 5 Elimination Match (Top 5 Tag Teams On Each Brand)
Carmella vs Naomi
Carmella attacked Naomi during her entrance and Smackdown went to commercial. When Smackdown returned, Carmella was in control. The crowd was chanting “how you doin?!” and Carmella was told them to shut up. Alexa Bliss was shown watching the match with her arms crossed. Carmella posed for the crowd and Naomi took advantage. Naomi hit a Jawbreaker and followed it up with a series of kicks.
Naomi hit a Crossbody off the top rope but Carmella kicked out at two. Nikki Bella then came down to the ring to attack Carmella but the referees blocked her. Carmella became distracted by this and Naomi rolled her up for the pinfall victory. After the match, Nikki Bella chased Carmella around the ring. She caught her for a moment in the ring but Carmella escaped by hopping over the barricade and running through the crowd. Carmella seemed to misjudge the height of the barricade and had trouble getting over it. Nikki actually had to help Carmella over it while pretending to stop her.
Winner: Naomi
Alexa Bliss was interviewed backstage and stated that she could beat Naomi any day of the week. Daniel Bryan appeared and made a match between Alexa Bliss and Naomi for next Tuesday’s episode of Smackdown.
Jimmy Uso vs Chad Gable
Jey Uso and Jason Jordan were ringside for the match. Jimmy controlled the bginning of this match. Gable fought back but Jey Uso wound up playing a pivotal role in this match. Jimmy Uso rolled Gable up and Jey Uso assisted in the pin without the referee noticing.
Winner: Jimmy Uso
The Hype Bros were getting themselves hyped up about something backstage when The Ascension showed up. The Ascension simply started the Hype Bros down and walked away.
Reaction: The first hour of Smackdown was good. The major difference I’ve noticed recently between Smackdown and Raw is that everything makes sense on Smackdown. The Usos have a problem with American Alpha so the singles match made sense. Alexa Bliss just lost to Naomi on Sunday and she is pissed about it. It makes sense that she will be facing off against Naomi next week.
The Ascension came down to the entrance ramp and observed The Vaudevillians and Hype Bros match last week. Now, The Ascension having a feud with the Hype Bros may not sound great but at least a story is being told here. There are moments during every episode of Raw that I don’t understand why a particular promo or match is even happening.
AJ Styles vs James Ellsworth w/ Special Referee Dean Ambrose
The match was playing in the corner of the screen during the commercial break without any sound. Ambrose was coaching Ellsworth and James hit a thunderous Irish Whip. When Smackdown returned from the break, Styles had Ellsworth trapped in the corner.
Styles was barking at Dean Ambrose and Ellsworth hit Styles with a vicious right hand. Styles got fired up and hit a Backbreaker on Ellsworth. There were dueling “lets go Ellsworth) and (AJ Styles!) chants. Styles locked in the Calf Crusher and Ellsworth tapped out. However, referee Dean Ambrose decided to take a phone call and didn’t see Ellsworth tapping. Styles slammed Ellsworth into the barricade outside the ring.
Ambrose went to take a selfie with a female in the audience but Styles got annoyed and started shouting at him. The action spilled back into the ring where Styles hit the Styles Clash but Ambrose refused to count to three. Ambrose hit the Dirty Deeds on Styles and dragged Ellsworth on top of him. Styles kicked out at two. Ambrose went back outside the ring and had a sip of coffee. Ambrose got back in the ring and hit Styles with another Dirty Deeds. This time Styles didn’t kick out and James Ellsworth got the victory.
Winner: James Ellsworth
Reaction: Overall, this segment was amusing. I thought it dragged on a bit and became tedious towards the end of it. It appears that Styles and Ambrose will be continuing their feud. I was hoping that Styles might move onto another feud after his victory over Cena and Ambrose at No Mercy. There might be some that complain that this somehow devalues AJ Styles as the champion. I disagree, simply because Styles lost in such a ridiculous way due to Ambrose being the referee. Styles will certainly get his revenge on Ambrose in the next coming weeks.
Randy Orton had a discussion with Kane backstage. Orton stated that in his world there is just pain and agony. Orton asked Kane if he wanted to come along for the ride and Kane said he was in. Kane then said that Orton has issues. Randy smiles and walked away.
AJ Styles was screaming at Shane McMahon and Daniel Bryan backstage. Shane McMahon then stated that Styles should be mad at himself for naming Ellsworth as his opponent. Styles then stated that he was going to have to take matters into his own hands from now on and walked away. Daniel Bryan then told Shane that he had a plan for James Ellsworth on next week’s episode of Smackdown.
Bray Wyatt & Luke Harper vs Randy Orton & Kane
Harper and Wyatt cut a promo before the match. Harper stated that this world has put him to sleep but now he has seen the light and is fully awake. Wyatt then referred to himself and Harper as gods. Wyatt told Orton to bring on his monster so that he and Harper could destroy them both. Smackdown then went to another commercial.
When Smackdown returned, Orton and Kane still hadn’t made their entrance. They finally did and the match started off with Wyatt and Kane. Wyatt had control early but Kane hit him with a big boot. Wyatt rolled to the outside of the ring and Orton hit him with a couple of punches. Wyatt got back into the ring and Kane went for Chokeslam but Wyatt was able to block it. Wyatt rolled outside of the ring again and amazingly Smackdown went to another commercial break.
Kane fought back and hit Harper with a DDT. Orton and Wyatt were then tagged in and Orton hit Bray with a Powerslam. The action spilled outside the ring and Orton sent Harper flying over the announce table. Orton then slammed Wyatt into the steel steps outside the ring. Wyatt and Orton got back into the ring and Wyatt begged for mercy. Orton hit the DDT on Wyatt while he was hanging from the second rope. Randy geared up for the RKO but became distracted by Harper and Kane fighting outside the ring. Orton went for the RKO but Wyatt shoved him into a Superkick from Harper.
Wyatt went for another Senton but Orton rolled out of the way. Orton went to tag in Kane but the lights went out. When the lights came back on Kane disappeared and Harper was standing where Kane was. Orton turned around and walked directly into a Sister Abigail. The show went off air with the announcers wondering what happened to Kane.
Winners: Bray Wyatt & Luke Harper
Reaction: The mind games continue between Orton and Wyatt. Bray Wyatt has now won two matches in a row. I can’t believe it. Overall, this was another good episode of Smackdown. I’ve come to expect Smackdown to be good every week. I cannot say the same for Raw. Smackdown may not be great every single week but at the very least everything that happens on the show makes sense. In my opinion, Smackdown is consistently entertaining and tonight’s show was just another example of that.
What did you think of this week’s episode of Smackdown? Let us know in the comments below.