SmackDown Steps It Up to a Jog to WrestleMania....

How’s It Going, Enthusiasts?

Happy Friday! We made it, yet again. As for the Wrestling World, there isn’t much to report but we have a few things we can chat about. Are you up for it? Let’s go.

We’ll stop in the Realm of AEW for a brief minute as Jon Moxley was at it again. Not alone so much this time but he definitely ramped up the stakes for his match against Swerve Strickland for the Dynasty PPV set for Sunday. He teamed with Marina Shafir for a Mixed Tag match against Strickland and the adorable Willow Nightingale. This is why Mox’s actions are so “shocking”. 

Now, things aren’t as “malicious” as they may seem if you’ve seen clips out of context. Towards the end of the match, Strickland accidentally took out Shafir so Nightingale cleared the ring by knocking Mox off the apron. As she was innocently celebrating the win with Strickland, Mox slipped her into a faceplant onto the mat, to everyone’s horror! How could he! She's so cute! 

Well, it’s easy to see Mox felt “justified” since Strickland took out Shafir but this is one of those “foul balls” I was talking about. Here we go, kids. If Mox’s enemies are savvy, they should be taking notes. This is another “incident” that could support the argument that Mox is “unwell”, in the head that is. Nightingale did a great job of playing the victim and is just generally charming. She may not have the best skill-set but she knows how to be endearing and have fun out there. It’s good enough for me. Regardless, this all bodes well for the Future. Continue to proceed.

But the real “kicker” came at the end of the show when The Death Riders ganged up on Strickland and power-bombed him onto some “glass” spilt on the mat. Now, for the young ones out there, I’m sure you’ve figured it wasn’t real glass. There’s sugar glass that’s been in use for ages on stage and screen. Ever notice how glass bottles break when you bust them on someone’s head on TV. You’d just give someone a concussion in real life. Yet, death would be possible if you whop them hard enough. That’s not the effect directors are going for so enter, sugar glass. 

Nevertheless, this dramatic turn did not stop Strickland. He rose with shards in his back and all to give a passionate promo stating, more or less, how a thing like this only makes him stronger. Think long and hard if you want to put a guy like Strickland in this place. People will get hurt! To be honest, something about his delivery reminded me of Bray Wyatt. Many commenters thought he was bordering on Booker T. but Booker isn’t that kind of eloquent. I don’t know what it was. Maybe it’s just the dreads but he came off like Wyatt’s less fun Black cousin for a few moments while he contemplated all the ways this “pain” will color what’s to come. 

I feel I should also mention the plot twist of Strickland conceding to Hangman Page backstage earlier in the show as well. This leads many to think that Page may be a factor in this upcoming match because of it. Well, the rules of the WWE Universe can seep into other territories. Generally speaking, it’s akin to how all groups break-up only to be reunited. Well, enemies will often become allies and vice versa over time if it suits the action. We’ll see if this is where AEW’s head is at. Just remember what didn’t work. Keep this physical and practical. That should make for a solid match either way. Good luck to them!

In the WWE Universe, the WrestleMania plans for Kevin Owens may be up in the air. There is speculation circulating that he’s injured. With what is being kept under wraps, if true at all, but that leaves the door open for alternatives. Looks like it’s a time for that Bingo Wheel. But in a case like this, I would use it to pick someone else to feud with Orton. Off the top of the head, I think of Sami Zayn just ‘cause of the Owens affiliation but there’s plenty of viable contenders around. Either they can #1 Contender it with a round of matches to single out an opponent or someone else can just start up some beef. 

Though Orton has inadvertently Face turned of late, he’s got a long history of being a sonofabitch. Someone can easily start gnawing on some old shit to fill the void. They can and should figure it out if they need to. Not gonna worry about it. A few years ago, maybe but not these days.

And so, that brings us to tonight’s SmackDown. They’re in Illinois tonight so it might as well be Chicago, so CM Punk will definitely get some face time alongside Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins. We’ll see Rey Fenix aka Yoshi-Libre in action for the first time for WWE. B-Fab will see if she can cut some of Naomi’s saltiness. And Braun Strowman and Jacob Fatu will go around again. This time for a shot at the US Championship.

We’re basically 2 weeks out from WrestleMania so what we see from here on out should definitely matter. We’ll see how WWE whets our appetites. The Unofficial Watch Party will begin at 8pm PDT. Feel free to drop by if you prefer your Friday nights at home. 

See You in a Bit,

-Nicole Alexis (^_~)