WWE SmackDown 04/24/18: Hablo Español
About Last Night is a quick reflection on the matches and segments, or random observations, from a wrestling show that sticks out to us the morning after we watch them. If you would like to get your comments featured, chime in below in our comments section or tweet us. You can also help support us on Patreon.
About Miz TV…
WWE advertised that SmackDown would have Daniel Bryan on Miz TV, but I’m pretty sure everyone could guess that this wasn’t going to happen. And wouldn’t you know it, that’s exactly what happened! Instead Big Cass came out to be interviewed, which led to a strange back-and-forth where I couldn’t tell who I was supposed to cheer for. Both men hate Daniel Bryan, but they also hate each other? I guess Miz was showing a bit of face tendencies, but that isn’t what he needs right now as one of the brand’s top heels.
Then when we got to the meat of the segment, Big Cass got to show off how talented he is on the microphone and cut a really good promo while seeming very comfortable talking. He laid out his motivations for hating Bryan, citing how he was cleared to return on the same day as him yet no one gave a shit. He hates smaller guys, since before he hit a growth spurt he was one and he was constantly picked on by the bigger guys. It was revealed later that Daniel Bryan was jumped backstage by Cass which is why he wasn’t on Miz TV and the two are set for a match at Backlash. And honestly, I’m pretty excited to see how it is. I remember Cass being competent in the ring, the only issue was he was saddled with some schmuck.
About The IIconics Defeating Asuka…
Remember when Asuka had a multi-year undefeated streak, and it also included tag matches so she had to win the Mixed Match Challenge? Well, that’s a thing of the past as she made her debut on SmackDown and lost a tag match because of Becky Lynch! But that’s okay, but The IIconics had cut a promo about how they’re better than Asuka because they helped the person who beat Asuka at WrestleMania lose their title (which is totally how that works, don’t question it), and now they have an actual victory over her.
This is one of the benefits of Asuka no longer having the streak. Things like this can happen where the heels can get an advantage and not look like total losers constantly failing at every turn whenever a storyline involves her. It was a problem in NXT and why Ember Moon never felt like a credible champion. It’ll be nice to see Asuka in new situations moving forward on SmackDown.
About Bringing The Bludgeon Brothers to the Floor…
An annoying trope in the WWE is someone’s music hitting in the middle of the match and it causing everyone in the ring to stop what they’re doing to stare at the entranceway. However, when it’s Naomi’s crazy neon entrance that’s happening in the middle of a match then it makes absolute perfect sense to stop and stare. That’s why the Uso’s plan was brilliant to use this to get an advantage over The Bludgeon Brothers and pick up a sneaky victory, and Rowan’s first loss of 2018. Pairing Naomi with them seems like it’s going to be really fun, and maybe it’ll help us forget about that vagina trophy that she won at WrestleMania.
About Carmella…
After a dreadful promo last week that went on way too long last week, Carmella stepped up her game before the contract signing with Charlotte Flair. She pointed out how messed up it was to have the champion introduced first (a problem I always have with the main roster WWE), and then played a video package showing off how great she is. When the crowd didn’t lose their minds after it ended, she forced it on them a second time before Charlotte interrupted.
Carmella is really lacking in the ring, so having this build based on mic work rather than wrestling is really smart. If you’re wondering how bad she is in the ring, look at the GIF above. See how her hat hits the desk well before her head. Yikes.
About Shinsuke Nakamura…
With Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson back on the same brand of AJ Styles, we got to see the reunion of The Club in the main event of SmackDown. They took on Rusev Day and Shinsuke Nakamura, who has a new theme song remix. Reactions online have been polarizing, but I am totally on board. Adding a rock element for “the rockstar” along with Japanese lyrics to cause the crowd to stop singing along is a brilliant heel move. Plus the song still kicks ass.
After Nakamura pinned Gallows off of a Kinshasa, he was back on his bullshit of uppercutting AJ Styles in the balls yet again. I’m never going to not find that funny. When he tried to follow up with a Kinshasa, Style’s buddy Anderson ran in to take the bullet because friendship in wrestling is alive. It was heartbreaking to see Styles struggling on the side as he watched Anderson receive a second Kinshasa. Turning Nakamura was the best thing WWE could have done for him, as he is such a compelling heel who using smart tactics to destroy his opponent mentally, such as killing all his friends as he looks on. I hope this feud keeps going beyond Backlash.
What did you think of this week’s SmackDown? Let us know in the comments!
