Friday Night SmackDown Review - October 15, 2021

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Edge Addressed Seth Rollins

Edge is one of the best talkers in the entire company and you can't convince me otherwise. This was fantastic stuff. He recapped their whole rivalry but specifically honed in how Rollins invaded his home and he isn't going to stand for that. I love whenever Edge sits down in a chair for his promos and talks right into the camera with intensity. If you weren't excited for his Hell in a Cell match with Rollins at Crown Jewel after watching this, I don't know what to tell you.

Finn Balor def. Sami Zayn in a King of the Ring Semifinal Match

I think a lot of people are aware that Zayn has yet to compete on a show in Saudi Arabia and probably never will for whatever reason, so there was no doubt that Balor was winning here. Despite that, he and Balor had an entertaining affair and were given plenty of time. Xavier Woods is my personal pick to win the whole thing because I think it'd be cool, but assuming Jinder Mahal advances instead, Balor makes more sense to become the new king.

Sonya Deville and Shayna Baszler def. Naomi in a 2-on-1 Handicap Match

Deville vs. Naomi one-on-one was advertised coming into this show, but you had to know that wouldn't stick. I'm actually not upset over the change because it should be saved for later down the line, possibly on pay-per-view. This technically marked Deville's first taste of in-ring action since SummerSlam 2020, even though she didn't do much. Naomi attempted to battle back, but she fell short to the dominant Baszler. This was what it needed to be to progress the feud and keep Baszler looking strong.

Seth Rollins Addressed Edge

This version of Rollins isn't for everyone, especially on the mic, but I'm in the minority of people that hasn't minded most of what he's been doing. In fact, I thought this was one of his better promos in recent memory, responding to Edge's comments from earlier in the evening and mentioning that he'll have the advantage at Crown Jewel because he has more experience inside Hell in a Cell. Edge and Rollins did an excellent job of hyping up what should be the payoff to their rivalry.

Zelina Vega def. Carmella in a Queen's Crown Semifinal Match

These Queen's Crown tournament matches have been a complete embarrassment and this was no exception. I don't blame the wrestlers but rather WWE for putting them in a position to have two-minute matches. I can't say I was clamoring for Carmella and Vega to have a 15-minute mat classic, but this was still pretty boring in the time allotted and shouldn't have been booked in the first place. The distraction roll-up finish made it that much worse.

Intercontinental Champion Shinsuke Nakamura and Rick Boogs Interrupted Happy Corbin and Madcap Moss on Happy Talk

I'm torn on what was a bigger waste of time: this segment or last week's with Kevin Owens getting laid out for the millionth time. Seriously, this was pointless as hell. I've been a supporter of the Happy Corbin character, but if he and Moss are only ever to tell bad jokes and laugh at them, their pairing is doomed. I truly hope Nakamura interrupting Corbin doesn't mean they're about to feud again because I have less than zero interest in that.

SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos def. The Street Profits in a Street Fight

It's virtually impossible for these teams to have a bad match together. I have no idea what Street Profits did to earn another shot at the SmackDown Tag Team Championship after losing clean at Extreme Rules, but I assume this was done to firmly blow off their rivalry before Street Profits return to Raw. They utilized the stipulation well and had the usual awesome affair. I knew for a fact Usos were winning and yet Street Profits nearly had me convinced they would win with some of those nearfalls. That's impressive.

Sasha Banks def. SmackDown Women's Champion Becky Lynch (Non-Title)

Much like Street Profits and The Usos, Banks and Lynch have always had quality chemistry together dating back to their many battles in 2015 as well as in 2019. Yes, they're both heel at the moment, but they're popular enough that the live crowd didn't seem to mind. The fact this was commercial-free made it even better. The distraction finish was lazy, but everything else about this was a treat and I loved that they got as much time as they did.

Universal Champion Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar Signed the Contract for Their Match at Crown Jewel

This was only a few minutes long yet it exactly what it needed to be. Reigns and Heyman played their roles well while the short-and-sweet mic work we got from Lesnar was perfect as he further drove a wedge between Reigns and Heyman. I would have liked to see this last a little longer, but I can't complain about what we got. I appreciated that we didn't get any physicality between them, instead saving it for Crown Jewel.

Overall Show

WWE billed this as a "super-sized" SmackDown with the extra half hour on FS1, going up against Rampage in the process. All wrestling fans benefited. All in all, this was a thumbs-up show. The Happy Talk crap was stupid and Carmella vs. Vega was mediocre, but everything else on this show delivered and I was left satisfied. There was plenty of above-average action as well as successful build for Crown Jewel next Thursday. Let's hope it's better than the Saudi Arabia shows we usually get from WWE.

SEE MORE: SmackDown Reviews