[ad_1]
0 out of 5
Credit: WWE.com
With the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view coming on February 21, this week’s show was all about the creation of the event and the feuds that will make up the card.
Roman Reigns promised us a big Universal Title announcement this week, but after Kevin Owens surprised him with a Stunner last week, The Tribal Chief had to keep his eyes peeled.
This week also marked Seth Rollins’ return to the blue mark for the first time since Survivor Series following his appearance in the Royal Rumble men’s match.
What did Reigns have to say about the Universal Championship? What does the Messiah have planned now that he’s back? Did Edge or Bianca Belair choose their WrestleMania opponent?
Let’s take a look at everything that happened on this week’s episode of SmackDown.
Updates will start after the first segment / game. Be sure to refresh this page for the live results.
1 of 5
Reigns, Paul Heyman and Jey Uso came out on top of the series. Adam Pearce was waiting in the ring with a satchel. Reigns told Pearce he had no authority over the champion and was just there to wait for him.
The tribal chief has said he will retire Edge again if they end up fighting at WrestleMania. He vowed to keep the title for as long as he wanted before asking about Elimination Chamber.
Pearce told him he had a contract that saw Reigns defend the Universal Championship inside the elimination chamber. Heyman took over and said Pearce Reigns would only defend the title at the PPV but would not do so inside the chamber.
Pearce has said he will think about it, but until then, Uso and Owens will be in qualifying matches for a place in the chamber. Reigns entered Pearce’s face but ended up leaving without doing anything violent.
Classroom: B-
Analysis
It was a solid segment but it didn’t reveal anything we didn’t already know. We knew there would be qualifying matches and we knew Reigns would defend the title somehow at the PPV.
The tribal leader is excellent in this role, but this segment borders on repetition. We’ve seen him assert his authority at Pearce before, so it didn’t work on new ground.
The Uso twist that perhaps won a spot inside the chamber was the most interesting thing to come out of it. Heyman, Reigns and Pearce were all good but this segment was almost useless.
2 of 5
Sonya Deville turned a tag team match with Sami Zayn and Baron Corbin taking on Rey and Dominik Mysterio into a chamber qualifier for both members of the winning squad.
Zayn did a promo before the game which ended with his father and son withdrawing. The referee called for the bell and the King began to fight Rey. Zayn tripped Rey, so Dom hit him with a suicide dive that almost ended with the young Superstar crashing into the announcement table.
We came back from a break to see Rey trying to fight Corbin. Dom and Zayn got tagged and young Mysterio hit a beautiful DDT tornado for a near crash.
Corbin took the 619 from both opponents but Zayn ended up hitting Dom with a Helluva Kick for the pin and the win.
Classroom: B-
Analysis
Seeing a dad and son team up in a WWE ring is always fun, but when it comes to that feud, WWE has to put a fork in it because it should have been done by now.
Corbin has fought both Mysterios in singles and tag matches with no significant storyline behind them so many times that it’s almost too obvious that no one knows what to do with the Mysterios now.
Zayn’s pre-game promotion was as good as expected. It’s amazing to pass off a draw as a main event because he’s so passionate about his performance.
As far as the fight goes, the four guys did a decent job. Zayn and Corbin’s victory was also the right decision. Dominik is not ready for a game like the bedroom.
3 out of 5
Big E was in the ring to throw an open challenge for the IC title when Apollo Crews showed up. The champ told him he didn’t get another hit after failing so many times, so Shinsuke Nakamura got the hit instead.
The crews stayed at ringside to watch Big E take control after the break. He hit Nakamura with a few forearms and a splash on the apron. The crews stepped onto the apron for a distraction and Nakamura took advantage with a kick to the head.
The Rockstar hit a flying knee off the middle rope for a two count. Big E planted a urinagi in her for another near-fall. As Big E prepared to strike his finisher, Crews threw a dropkick to cause a disqualification.
Classroom: C +
Analysis
It was a short game, so none of the Superstar involved had enough time to make it anything other than an average encounter. What mattered was what came next.
Crews teased a heel turn for weeks, but it finally happened on Friday when he hit Big E with that dropkick. Now Crews must prove that he can be a compelling villain.
Big E and Crews have great chemistry but they’ve already made five title matches in 2021. If this feud continues, it must end soon.
4 out of 5
The entire SmackDown roster was at ringside for the Rollins comeback promotion. He explained how becoming a father had changed him in ways he hadn’t expected.
He said he now realizes he’s the great leader SmackDown needs to be successful. It was then that the entire list started to drift away. The lights went on and he realized that the only person left was Cesaro, but even he eventually walked away.
Rollins cut Cesaro’s knee as he went up the ramp and started beating him. Daniel Bryan and some officials came to make the stop.
Classroom: VS
Analysis
Rollins said he was changed by the birth of his baby, but then spat the same nonsense about being a savior. Nothing has really changed.
It would have been a perfect opportunity for him to let go of the Messiah stuff, but it seemed more like he was doubling down. We’ll see where it goes but for now it looks like Rollins is the same man he was last year.
The promo he gave was good but it won’t be one of his most memorable. The roster joining him didn’t have the impact it should have, but that’s because it didn’t make sense for everyone to be there in the first place.
5 out of 5
Liv Morgan came out of the gate with a dropkick as soon as the ref called the bell. Bayley hit a back elbow before Morgan sent him down the middle rope and hit a dropkick in the back of his head.
The role model stepped out of the ring and when Morgan tried to dive into her Bayley ducked and sent her into the barricade.
Morgan recovered and hit a facebuster for a two-way count. Bayley knocked him off the middle rope and hit a shoulder breaker that made Morgan scream in pain. Morgan hit an enziguiri out of nowhere.
Billie Kay came to speak to Ruby Riott at ringside and the distraction led Bayley to hit Morgan with his finisher for the win.
Classroom: C +
Analysis
Morgan and Bayley looked good in this fight but the finish looked too much like anything we’ve seen with Kay and The Riott Squad.
Kay is a funny character but WWE is treading water with her character. She needs to either join the Riott Squad or make it clear that they don’t want her.
[ad_2]
Source link
