WWE SmackDown Review - November 19, 2015

Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose come face-to-face.

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

The Miz Hosted 'Miz TV' with Intercontinental Champion Kevin Owens, United States Champion Alberto Del Rio, Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns

'Miz TV' tends to be hit or miss more often than not, but I enjoyed this segment for what it was worth. It didn't tease any tension between Reigns and Ambrose like I thought it would; in fact, it wasn't successful in doing much when it came to Survivor Series build. That said, Owens' mic work was strong and Reigns was actually pretty good here. He's so much more effective on the mic when his lines don't feel forced. If nothing else, this built toward the tag team match in the main event later in the evening.


Cesaro def. The Miz

I was shocked by how short this match was, but it was probably for the better. When Cesaro was announced as Miz's opponent, the ending outcome was never in doubt. Thus, why not give Cesaro the quick win here? Miz is a glorified enhancement talent at the moment, but I wish they were doing more with him. As for Cesaro, my thoughts on his current place on the card are well-established: push this man!

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Cesaro forces The Miz to tap out.

Neville and The Dudley Boyz def. The Cosmic Wasteland

This was basically an extension of The Dudley Boyz' squash against The Ascension on Raw Monday night. Neville was able to score a rare win, but that was about it as both him, The Dudley Boyz and The Cosmic Wasteland are still as directionless as ever. If I had to guess, this might have been a small preview of what we'll see at Survivor Series if these two trios are involved in the traditional elimination tag team match that has yet to be officially announced.


Tyler Breeze def. Zack Ryder

While I'm glad Breeze and Dolph Ziggler are apparently feuding again, it would have been better if WWE was more consistent with it. I realize the tournament wasn't originally a part of their plans, but they could have kept their program going by having Breeze cost Ziggler his match against Dean Ambrose on Raw. As for the match, it was a standard squash for Breeze as it should have been and Ryder was the perfect opponent for him to beat.


The Brothers of Destruction Interrupted The Wyatt Family

I'm not a fan of all the hocus pocus we've been seeing lately, but I guess it works for this feud. I'm also happy we've seen The Undertaker on WWE TV far more than we did during his initial rivalry with Bray Wyatt earlier this year. The mic work from everyone involved was well done and was an effective way of teasing which two Wyatt Family members might be taking part in the tag team match on Sunday.


Divas Champion Charlotte def. Brie Bella (Non-title)

I think many fans were reeling from the controversial contract signing between Charlotte and Paige and didn't pay too much attention to this match, but it was decent. Charlotte and Brie worked just fine together and it gave Charlotte a last minute momentum boost before she defends her Divas Championship at Survivor Series. As talented of a worker as Charlotte is, I still feel she'd be better suited as a heel because she simply isn't connecting yet as a babyface.


WWE Tag Team Champion Big E def. Kalisto

Well, Kalisto's mini-push was fun while it lasted. He was disposed of by Big E within minutes and barely got any offense in. In that case, why bother booking the bout at all? Big E and Kalisto aren't even feuding at the moment unless this will be building to a multi-man elimination tag team match of some sort on Sunday, which would explain why Ryback came to his aid afterward. Regardless, this was bizarre booking.


Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose vs. Intercontinental Champion Kevin Owens and United States Champion Alberto Del Rio Ended in a Double Count-out

This was akin to the Fatal 4-Way we saw a few weeks ago on Raw, just with Ambrose replacing Dolph Ziggler. The in-ring action was entertaining and everyone worked well together. After all four competitors hit their signature spots toward the end, all hell broke loose and the match abruptly ended, but I didn't mind it much as no one should have been beaten. That said, more could have been done to plant the seeds for the inevitable match between Reigns and Ambrose in the finals. 


​Overall Show

In addition to doing nothing to help or hinder my excitement for Survivor Series, this was a fairly mediocre edition of SmackDown on the whole. There was nothing horrendous about it, mind you, but that doesn't necessarily mean it was a quality show. In fact, most of the matches were meaningless and had very little to do with the pending pay-per-view with the exception of the main event and the women's match. At the very least, the main event and appearance from The Undertaker saved this show from being completely worthless.

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