WWE SmackDown Live: 5 things we learned from this week's episode (January 8, 2019)
SmackDown Live kicked off in emphatic fashion on Tuesday night and ended even higher than most expected.
Daniel Bryan started the night to trash talk the crowd before the first match of the night. Later on, we saw a really good mid-card non-title match, which has become relatively rare since the past few months, as Mustafa Ali and Rey Mysterio took on Almas and Samoa Joe.
The fallout of the match could see a rivalry develop between Mysterio and Joe, and Ali and Almas, which could both become extremely good.
To slow things down, Rusev cut an emotional promo which was interrupted by Nakamura on the screen who continued to develop into a top heel amongst superstars like Samoa Joe and Randy Orton.
The highlight of the night saw three top women compete for the number one contender’s spot for the Smackdown Women's Championship at the Royal Rumble which turned out to be the match of the week.
Overall, SmackDown again delivered a solid show and we learned quite a few things from it. Check out the five things we learned from this week’s episode of the blue show.
#5 Nakamura needs something more
Shinsuke Nakamura did well in becoming a heel after WrestleMania 34 and has continued his character well since then. He did not manage to win the WWE Championship, but he did get his hands on the United States Championship, which he won not so convincingly.
Since he has lost his championship to Rusev, he has been doing well to further his character as a heel, and he will get a rematch for the title.
Nakamura is one man who can actually turn into one of the best heels as he seems like an outsider and a different character than anyone else on the roster, but WWE should work on giving him a more convincing storyline and convincing wins to support that.
He should not only work on his actions and promos to become a dangerous heel but also perform well in matches to become one.