Best and Worst of SmackDown: 28-year-old star finally made to look good, reason why Bray Wyatt's return is turning into a huge disappointment (February 24, 2023)
Welcome to this week's edition of the best and worst of SmackDown. It was an interesting episode as WWE continued the build-up to WrestleMania 39 - which is now only a little over a month away. It was also the final SmackDown of February, and we would argue that it delivered overall.
A brief mention of the Charlotte Flair-Rhea Ripley segment, which was just about "ok," which is why it doesn't belong in either the best or worst category.
A shoutout to The Queen, who subtly referenced her husband, AEW star Andrade on the episode tonight.
That aside, these were the ups and downs of SmackDown this week!
#3. Best: Tegan Nox being made to look good
A victorious @QoSBaszler & @RondaRousey looked to send a brutal message to @NatbyNature, but @TeganNoxWWE comes to The Queen of Harts’ aid. #SmackDown https://t.co/sLuJvrXhmF
Tegan Nox met Natalya in the doctor's room this week on SmackDown and offered to accompany her in her match against Shayna Baszler to even the odds against Ronda Rousey.
While Baszler picked up the win, Tegan Nox prevented further damage by single-handedly taking out Ronda Rousey and The Queen of Spades.
It's likely to lead to a Rousey vs. Nox match, which we expect the former to win, but as a whole, the segment did more to make Tegan Nox look good than anything else she has done since her return.
#2. Worst: Bray Wyatt and a whole lot of nothing
“If I told you a story, could you keep it secret.” #BrayWyatt #SmackDown https://t.co/dRsHs2uFrF
It's time to acknowledge that Bray Wyatt isn't the creative genius that fans hype him up to be. This current character doesn't seem misunderstood, and we have waited four months for something to play out - only to receive a whole lot of nothing.
At this point, anything he does feels like more fluff than substance, and we will need more convincing to believe otherwise. How many months have we heard Wyatt or Uncle Howdy ask us if we can keep a secret? What is the secret?
There hasn't even been any remote hint of what it could be, and to top it all off, WWE has seemingly quietly canceled Wyatt's story with Alexa Bliss.
The Uncle Howdy schtick is getting tiring quickly, and we wouldn't be surprised to see Triple H cut the chord with what's happening.
#2. Best: A banger of an opening match
IMPERIUM WIN!
@Gunther_AUT
@wwe_kaiser
@VinciWWE
#SmackDown https://t.co/tJpvaajqDR
Gunther has had ample momentum alongside Imperium as he heads into WrestleMania 39 with the Intercontinental Championship. He had a banger of an opening match on SmackDown this week as the Imperium trio defeated Ricochet, Braun Strowman, and Madcap Moss.
Drew McIntyre and Sheamus were special guests watching from afar as they teased entering the Intercontinental Title picture. Perhaps it could be a triple threat, or perhaps Ricochet and Braun Strowman's involvement could turn it into a ladder match.
Either way, everything Gunther has touched has turned to gold, and he has been one of the best Intercontinental Champions of the 21st century.
#1. Worst: LA Knight losing on SmackDown
Solid match between these two!
#SmackDown #WWE https://t.co/gHI68jR8UW
In hindsight, LA Knight should have won that Pitch Black match against Bray Wyatt. The New Day's Xavier Woods and Kofi Kingston confronted him this week on SmackDown, facing the latter in a banger of a match.
The two seem to have solid chemistry in the ring, but our only gripe with the match is that LA Knight lost when he should have been winning bouts like these to establish himself.
#1. Best: The main event segment
Tensions, tensions. #SmackDown https://t.co/eEW1LqtJIn
The main event segment of SmackDown saw tensions unfold and left us with more questions than answers. While Jimmy Uso called out his brother to come and clear the air, he got Sami Zayn instead, while Jey would appear later from the crowd watching on.
The back-and-forth between Sami Zayn and Jimmy Uso was great, with the former acknowledging that Jimmy had his back before even Jey did. The big difference, however, is that Jimmy didn't need to think twice to turn on Sami, nor did he think twice when attacking him this week.
The episode ended with Sami Zayn hitting Helluva Kick on Jimmy and running as Solo Sikoa entered the ring. There was a brief glance between Sami and Jey, which made the entire segment worthwhile for us. Tensions over-poured in a climactic ending to SmackDown this week.