The 2016 Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic starts with one squash and one good match, Samoa Joe ruins Dan Matha’s debut, Patrick Clark debut’s a new look when he faces Rich Swann, and Peyton Royce beats up a new girl with her friend Billie Kay by her side.
On the last stop before No Mercy, this SmackDown was packed with stuff, though it felt a lot like a glorified promo for the PPV. Which I suppose it kind of is.
This show felt like a promo for another show. There were lots of matches, but all but one were squashes.
An overstuffed show with a few really good segments.
Storylines seemed to take a backseat this week, but that allowed Cedric Alexander’s NXT debut to take center stage.
A decent episode of SmackDown that fared better in the first half of the show than the second half.
The tournament ends and a new WWE Cruiserweight champion is crowned in a fantastic conclusion to the 2016 Cruiserweight Classic.
Heath Slater officially signs with SmackDown, The Miz puts himself in the main event, the new “champ that runs the camp” has a hard time finding a friend, Swagger switches brands, and more on a show that was heavy on talk and light on action.
The best of Backlash wasn’t as good as the best of Summer Slam, but this was an enjoyable show and a good start to the brand exclusive PPVs.
This was a good episode of NXT with two very nice matches and two that were basically exhibitions.
The Usos make a statement in an okay episode of SmackDown.
The wrestling was a little lacking on this episode. A good number of matches, but the quality just wasn’t there. This episode felt like a placeholder while they start to rebuild feuds after Takeover.
A fine show made better by the return of The Headbangers!
Two new titles are revealed, a tag title tournament starts, Carmella makes people notice her, and a new number one contender for the World Title is named is a good episode of SmackDown.
The matches were short, but things are shaping up nicely for Takeover.
A pretty good show that feels like a minor curve in the road towards Summer Slam.
Hideo Itami returns to the ring, Asuka tries to mess with Bayley’s head, Bobby Roode addresses the NXT Universe, and The Revival takes on TM61 in a show that pushes NXT towards Takeover.
Ziggler wants to prove himself, American Alpha debuts, and a number one contender is decided for the IC Title in this pretty good edition of SmackDown.
Blake and Murphy bookend a solid, if not great, episode of NXT.