Welcome to this week’s edition of WWE which brings us a sneak peek of Smackdown. This was the second-last episode of 2022 and what a show. We will say that it had its ups and downs, and we weren’t big fans of the main event, which saw Ricochet and Braun Strowman defeat Imperium’s Ludwig Kaiser and Giovanni Vinci.
The reason was simple – it felt like a live event/dark match to please the fans in the arena, rather than a main event on SmackDown. Either way, the fans had fun in the arena, and the reactions were genuine, so it wasn’t all bad.
Starting with the opening segment, WWE gave us an update on the blue brand this week as the 2022 finale:
#5. Next week, there can be a lot of change in the tone and tone of Roman Reigns.
The last WWE match of 2022 on TV is expected to be between Roman Reigns and Sami Zayn vs Kevin Owens and John Cena next week. This would continue John Cena’s record of wrestling at least one match every year since its debut in 2002 – a staggering 20 years.
Sami Zayn was the star of the show in the opening segment of SmackDown with her incredible promo, again proving her loyalty to The Bloodline and receiving a big hug from Roman Reigns.
But what if Sami Zayn loses the match for her team next week? One, the tone of Rance will be quite different. This is his classic method of manipulation – giving and taking love whenever he wants to keep the members of his bloodline in order.
He’s likely to turn on Sami Zayn affection-wise, but the official turning point may not happen until WrestleMania 39 later in 2023.
#4. Scarlett’s Wrestling first teaser
We finally got our first tease of Scarlett wrestling on SmackDown this week. After seeing Kariann Cross and Scarlett in the crowd watching Rey Mysterio defeat Angel Garza, they went backstage before Emma saw them.
He called her out for disrespecting a legend like Rey Mysterio as well as her comments on his fiancee Mudcap Moss. Furthermore, referring to him as “Riddick” is a hint that he will again go by the name Riddick Moss.
Emma vs. Scarlett should be an interesting conflict. We hope Emma isn’t going to be a running mat for every other woman on the roster.
#3. Is Raquel Rodriguez ready to get wasted next week?
What a performance by @RaquelWWE!
Raquel will get a shot at the #SmackDown Women’s Championship against @RondaRousey next week!
While we didn’t like how WWE handled Xia Lee, Liv Morgan, Tegan Knox, Emma or Shayna Baszler. For one, it looks like WWE ruined the storyline with Lee costing Tegan Knox and Liv Morgan their title match last week.
Liv Morgan felt like a placeholder for Raquel Rodriguez, and Xia Li quickly crossed Tegan Knox. No one was handled well in this match except Rodriguez.
Even when Shayna Baszler emerged as the “final boss”, the improvised pin felt forced and didn’t fit with the story. Either way, Raquel Rodriguez is expected to lose to Ronda Rousey during the SmackDown Women’s Title match next week.
#2. WWE keeps teasing Rey Mysterio vs. Carrion Cross
Carrion Kross and Scarlett were seen watching Rey Mysterio this week as he defeated Angel Garza.
There wasn’t much to this match, but the main story here WWE is slowly building towards Kross vs. Mysterio – where the WWE legend will inevitably defeat the former NXT Champion.
#1. Bray Wyatt Is Not Uncle Howdy, But Is He Being Controlled?
Bray Wyatt attacked a cameraman on SmackDown this week after suffering a mental breakdown. It was a subtle and well done segment as Bray Wyatt lost his train of thought suggesting to the audience that they too believed he was Uncle Howdy.
Interestingly enough, the cameraman was identified as JT Energy – a graduate of Seth Rollins’ wrestling school from 2016. We also saw shades of The Fiend when Wyatt made the mandatory claw.
It was a subtle tease that while Wyatt is clearly not Uncle Howdy, the latter represents the physical manifestation of the inner demons controlling him. The character building continues!