Blog Archives
Notes In Observance – WWE SmackDown Live 1/31/17: Chamber Music
Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 1/31/17)
Chamber Music
– Given that the Royal Rumble was won by a SmackDown guy (that’s Randy Orton, The Wyatt Family-Friendly version in case you didn’t know), the opening video gladly reminded us of all that jazz. WWE took it upon themselves to quote various media outlets with the most generic sentences on planet Earth. We’ll give an example. “That was a Rumble!” – Forbes. No kidding. You’d also be crazy if they didn’t sprinkle in footage of the epic rematch between WWE World Heavyweight Champion John Cena and AJ Styles where history was made and such. However, the Rumble madness is over and thanks to WWE’s killer Pay-Per-View schedule, we’ve got Elimination Chamber in a mere two weeks.
WWE Royal Rumble 2017 Reaction
Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
While January begins with a countdown from ten to one, wrestling fans most associate the month with the same countdown towards another festivity – the Royal Rumble.
Given the “Big Four” treatment, equivalent in 2017 to a NXT TakeOver event the day before, a two-hour pre-show and a five-and-a-half-hour Pay-Per-View, it was treated as a huge deal.
It probably also helped that it emanated from San Antonio’s Alamodome, with a house count of 52,020. It was practically WrestleMania without being it.
Given the Rumble’s star power of Brock Lesnar, Braun Strowman, The Big Show, Goldberg and The Undertaker, there was an unpredictability headed in that severely lacked the previous few years.
Notes In Observance – WWE SmackDown Live 1/24/17: Brother Vs. Brother
Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 1/24/17)
Brother Vs. Brother
– The General Manager Daniel Bryan/Miz/Maryse backstage segment was another perfect example of chemistry done right. For months, Miz had been at his boss’ head ever since he was criticized in that infamous Talking Smack promo. There was no better way to set up a Lumberjack Match than have Miz boldly claim he “paid all of the locker room’s salaries with star power.” Bryan, apple aside, was all wits, as he used Miz’s statements against him to give him a WWE Intercontinental Championship rematch, but under his rules to prevent outside interference. Welcome to the world of logic. None of that on Raw.
Notes In Observance – WWE 205 Live 1/17/17: Formal Forfeiting
Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 1/17/17)
Formal Forfeiting
– The opening video highlighted the entire feud between “The Extraordinary Gentleman” Jack Gallagher and Ariya Daivari that began when Gallagher soundly defeated Daivari in his 205 Live debut. Daivari then labeled Gallagher a “scoundrel,” which made Gallagher call for a duel where he embarrassed Daivari with an umbrella of all things. Daivari got revenge with a savage attack after a fake handshake, which led Gallagher to invite him for a parley – an agreement to face each other in an “I Forfeit” match that’d take place on this episode. The music made things feel more dramatic than they actually were, given that this was a feud about duels, parlays, scoundrels and umbrellas. However, the part that covered their recent physicality matched what they went for.
Notes In Observance – WWE SmackDown Live 1/10/17: End Of Attitudes
Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 1/10/17)
End Of Attitudes
– The opening video highlighted the latest developments in the WWE Intercontinental Champion Dean Ambrose-Miz feud, that began when Miz “outed” Renee Young’s relationship with the Champ. Ambrose got revenge as he attacked Miz dressed as a security guard, although Young was slapped by Maryse backstage. The ultimate last laugh came when Ambrose outsmarted Miz to take his Title and that’s where things were now.
Notes In Observance – WWE SmackDown Live 1/3/17: Dirty Deeds Leads
Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 1/3/17)
Dirty Deeds Leads
– The WWE Intercontinental Champion The Miz/Maryse/Dean Ambrose in-ring segment greatly setup their IC Title main event match while they had Miz on the mic to credit himself/Maryse as the “it” couple and “ratings spike.” It’s like Edge and Lita all over again. A good followup to last week, when Ambrose/Renee Young got one over on him, as Ambrose pretended to be a security guard to attack the Champ from the side when Miz only requested to be interviewed by Young. Also like the real-life edge that’s thrown in there as they used Young/Ambrose’s relationship as a way to draw more heat for Miz. Maryse also gets to shine as the angry wife who can slap whom she pleases. They also fit in the new year’s resolution stuff, as Miz promised to be “more forgiving” and wanted an apology from Young for her slap. The Miz/Ambrose interaction was solid, as he hid behind his wife when confronted and backed out of the ring. Maryse slapped Ambrose hard too. Easy way to stir up drama. Who’s better than Miz right now?
Notes In Observance – WWE SmackDown Live 12/20/16: Straight Shooter
Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 12/20/16)
Straight Shooter
– The WWE World Heavyweight Championship match between Champion AJ Styles and James Ellsworth felt overdue, but this was probably their way to finally silence Ellsworth’s surprising push. The fans obviously would side with Styles here since Ellsworth isolated himself when he betrayed Dean Ambrose at TLC. The awkward heel-heel dynamic didn’t last, because Styles laid him out with a martial arts array of strikes. Bam, three-count. Now, post-match was where things bettered. It seemed they looked to get heat on Styles as he annihilated Ellsworth with attacks that used the ring frame, barricade and steel steps. Styles’ promo afterwards set up the main event, as he looked towards 2017, but Dolph Ziggler interrupted him to remind him he had a shot next week with him. The Ziggler-Styles exchange was solid, as Styles pushed that Ziggler was known for losing, while Ziggler mentioned that Styles needed four tries to defeat Ellsworth. Baron Corbin also fit here as he claimed he should’ve had the Title match and not Ziggler. Eventually, Corbin laid Ziggler out with the End Of Days.
WWE Tribute To The Troops 2016 Reaction
Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
Genrally, WWE’s annual “Tribute To The Troops” is holiday filler with little storyline impact.
2016’s was somewhat different, as they took advantage of Raw’s Roadblock: End Of The Line Pay-Per-View four days away and shaped the main event around it, also in a way that allowed the “patriotic faithful” theme to stay relevant.
Did it need to be two hours though? Add to that Raw’s three hours, SmackDown Live’s two hours and 205 Live’s one hour just two days before, that was a lot to watch.
Either scenario, no going back now.
Notes In Observance – WWE SmackDown Live 12/13/16: Legendary Contendership
Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 12/13/16)
Legendary Contendership
– The General Manager Daniel Bryan/Commissioner Shane McMahon/James Ellsworth opening backstage segment was good and bad news. We saw Ellsworth “sick” and it left Bryan/Shane no choice but to postpone his World Title shot and search for a new #1 Contender. Ellsworth was also reprimanded for his interference in last week’s WWE Intercontinental Championship match.
WWE TLC 2016 Reaction
Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
Two weeks after Survivor Series and two days after Ring Of Honor’s Final Battle, it was easy to view WWE’s TLC with Pay-Per-View fatigue.
Honestly, such is the story of 2016.
Thanks to the “Land Of Opportunity” mindset and the ability to make the most of the little things, the SmackDown Live brand took the TLC branding to a “new extreme,” if you will.
