WrestleRant
  • Home
  • Columnist Corner
  • Reviews
  • Interviews
  • Audio
  • Videos
  • Store
  • About
  • Contact
Picture

Friday Night SmackDown Review - April 14, 2023

4/14/2023

0 Comments

 
Picture
By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Matt Riddle Helped Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens Fend Off The Bloodline

Owens and Zayn went back and forth with The Usos about the usual stuff, but it was a solid segment designed to further their feud and set up Solo Sikoa vs. Riddle in the main event. Zayn brought up the looming downfall of The Bloodline again, so that's clearly the direction they're still headed in. It's just more a matter of when and not if it's going to happen, but they appear to be taking their time with it and that it won't be imminent.

Xavier Woods def. LA Knight

This was set up in a backstage segment last week when Knight broke Woods' videogame controller. Listen, Edge and Booker T once feuded over a shampoo bottle commercial going into WrestleMania 18, so why not? This was a rematch from last month when Woods inexplicably beat Knight clean in a matter of minutes. I thought Knight would get his win back here, but I'm fine with Woods winning now that he'll be challenging Gunther for the Intercontinental Championship next week. I hate that Knight continues to lose and he desperately needs direction, but maybe he's headed to Raw in the Draft. This was a good match, though.

Damian Priest def. Santos Escobar

Escobar and the rest of LWO/Legado del Fantasma are definitely benefiting from their alliance with Rey Mysterio, but man, Escobar just can't buy a win at this point. If this isn't leading to him snapping on Rey eventually and going back to being a heel, then I question this booking. On the bright side, Priest is being built up for the likely tag team match pitting him and Dominik Mysterio against Rey and Bad Bunny at Backlash, so there was a reason why Priest won. This was the quality contest you'd expect from these two.

Sonya Deville and Chelsea Green Challenged WWE Women's Tag Team Champions Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez

Morgan and Rodriguez just became champions a few days ago on Raw, and considering they came off like afterthoughts due to Trish Stratus' heel turn, this was a necessary segment to establish that their reign won't be completely irrelevant like reigns most teams have had in the last four years. It was a basic segment with Deville and Green stepping up as their first challengers, but I appreciated the simple setup for their tag title match on next week's SmackDown.

Shinsuke Nakamura def. Madcap Moss

We haven't seen Nakamura on WWE TV since November, and I don't believe he was hurt because he had that one match against The Great Muta in Japan back on New Year's Day. I just assume WWE had nothing for him creatively, but he's still super popular and I'm glad he's back. He straight-up squashed Moss and you'll get no complaints out of me because Moss is boring as a babyface. Post-match, Karrion Kross was teased as Nakamura's next rival, which I think is a good use of both guys.

Solo Sikoa def. Matt Riddle

I'm surprised this was given away on SmackDown since I felt this could have been the Backlash match, but with Paul Heyman announcing before this bout that The Usos will get an Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship rematch with Zayn and Owens in two weeks on SmackDown, it looks like they're doing the six-man tag team match at the pay-per-view instead and that's fine by me. This was an enjoyable and well-worked main event. I expected at least a non-finish given this was Riddle's first matchup back, but I guess they really want to protect Sikoa and put more heat on The Bloodline.

Overall Show

We now know that the Draft will kick off in two weeks on SmackDown and resume that Monday on Raw. It's clear both brands are in a holding pattern until after it's over (along with Backlash), but I appreciated that they set up several matches for next week's show, including two title matches. This was another entertaining effort from the blue brand on the whole with everything serving a purpose and holding my interest.
SEE MORE: SmackDown Reviews
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.


    Categories

    All
    #AskGSM
    Battle Of The Belts
    Cruiserweight Classic
    Halftime Heat
    Hidden Gems
    Interviews
    Lists/Rankings
    Mae Young Classic
    Mixed Match Challenge
    News
    NJPW
    NWA Shockwave
    NXT PLEs
    Opinion
    Previews
    Retro Reviews
    Reviews
    RJ's Two Cents
    Satire
    Slammy Awards
    SNME
    SummerSlam Recall
    The Deadly Draw
    The World Is A Vampire
    Tribute To The Troops
    Women's Eliminator
    Worlds Collide
    WrestleMania Recall
    WWE Draft
    WWE Network Specials
    WWE PLEs
    WWE Starrcade


    Archives

    June 2025
    May 2025
    April 2025
    March 2025
    February 2025
    January 2025
    December 2024
    November 2024
    October 2024
    September 2024
    August 2024
    July 2024
    June 2024
    May 2024
    April 2024
    March 2024
    February 2024
    January 2024
    December 2023
    November 2023
    October 2023
    September 2023
    August 2023
    July 2023
    June 2023
    May 2023
    April 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    April 2011
    March 2011
    February 2011
    January 2011
    December 2010
    November 2010

    RSS Feed

©2025 WrestleRant. All Rights Reserved.
  • Home
  • Columnist Corner
  • Reviews
  • Interviews
  • Audio
  • Videos
  • Store
  • About
  • Contact