WWE SmackDown Live Review - December 5, 2017

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Randy Orton Attacked Kevin Owens

Owens and Zayn took the obvious route of explaining how Zayn was able to interfere in last week's main event despite being barred from ringside, but hey, at least it was entertaining and got to the point quicker than the opening segment from Monday's Raw. Owens and Zayn continue to be a golden duo and I'm glad they've been featured prominently on the program as of late, but I'm ready for their rivalry with SmackDown's authority figures to culminate if it isn't leading anywhere important (or is it?).

Rusev and Aiden English def. The New DAy

Pairing up with Rusev was the best thing to ever happen to English because they work so damn well together. How dare New Day interrupt the 12 Days of Rusev song he was singing! In all seriousness, this was a decent tag team affair merely designed to give the heels a victory and earn them a spot in the SmackDown Tag Team Championship match at Clash of Champions. It could be a fun match, but I really wish we'd get back to having focused feuds and not multi-man matches.

The Bludgeon Brothers def. Adam Jones and Josh Carr

It isn't often WWE uses local athletes these days, but this was the perfect place for them to return because they made The Bludgeon Brothers looks like total badasses here. The match didn't last longer than a minute and The Bludgeon Brothers picked up yet another dominant victory. At this point, I wouldn't be shocked if they were added to the aforementioned tag title match at the pay-per-view. Might as well make it a Tag Team Turmoil match while they're at it. On the bright side, SmackDown has plenty of quality tandems.

Bobby Roode def. United States Champion Baron Corbin by Disqualification (Non-title)

Nothing I saw here overly excited me, so the United States Championship match at Clash of Champions might be better off with Dolph Ziggler in the mix after all. Then again, prior to tonight, the guy hadn't made a meaningful appearance on SmackDown since Halloween, yet he said he will be included in the Triple Threat because he's a former world champion. Ugh. This match never left first gear before Ziggler attacked both men and caused the contest to be thrown out.

SmackDown Women's Champion Charlotte Flair def. Tamina (Non-title)

It was rumored last week that this was supposed to be the next scheduled feud over the SmackDown Women's Championship before The Riott Squad debuted. Thank the lord plans changed because that would have been atrocious. As expected, this was a nothing match and an easy win for Charlotte. If nothing else, it was meant to serve as a preview of the Lumberjack (Lumberjill?) title match, which also makes no sense. The last Charlotte vs. Natalya match ended in a no contest because of The Riott Squad, and now they will be ringside. Okay, then.

Randy Orton def. Sami Zayn

Although Owens was handcuffed to the ring rope, you had to know he would break free at some point, and that was exactly what happened. SmackDown has a running theme of featuring entertaining main events that are overbooked beyond belief, but at least they're telling a story with Owens and Zayn making life hell for the top babyfaces on the blue brand and, more specifically, Daniel Bryan and Shane McMahon. Shinsuke Nakamura was a logical partner for Orton at the event given their recent history and how directionless he is at the moment.

Overall Show

Within a matter of weeks, WWE has quickly put a solid card together for Clash of Champions, but I can't say any of the advertised matches pique my interest any, with the possible exception of Owens and Zayn vs. Orton and Nakamura. I enjoyed the main event on this show, but everything else sort of existed and nothing more. Here's hoping the event can exceed expectations, though.