WWE SmackDown Live – May 28, 2019 (Review)

The Best of SmackDown Live

The KO Who Cried Wolf

One of the negatives from last week’s show was the purpose behind the offscreen attack on Big E. Or rather, the apparent lack of any such purpose. On the same night that Big E made his triumphant return, he was supposedly taken out backstage by Kevin Owens. Except we never saw the attack. And the only reason we were given to suspect that Owens was the perpetrator, was the word of Big E.

This week, KO started the show by presenting his version of events. And they were quite simple: he wasn’t responsible for the attack on E. Because he’s a good person.

Here comes KO! @FightOwensFight #SDLive pic.twitter.com/BcvygUp2Sy

— WWE (@WWE) May 29, 2019

Now I know the natural inclination is to assume that Owens is lying (an accusation immediately levelled by Kofi Kingston when he interrupted this promo)… but what if he isn’t? What if there’s another man responsible for taking out members of the New Day, just lurking in the shadows? Even worse, what if Big E is lying? What if he was never jumped at all?

Don’t get me wrong, I have no desire to see a Big E heel turn leading to the breakup of the New Day. I’m also not typically a conspiracy theorist either. But there was something about the bizarre circumstances of last week’s angle, as well as KO’s denial last night, that just has my spidey senses tingling. Watch this space.

A Sequel Better Than the Original

Kofi and Owens had a pretty good encounter at Money in the Bank. But the pair’s rematch on last night’s SmackDown may have outstripped the original.

Owens took most of the match, leaving just enough room for Kofi to play the plucky underdog. That is to say that there were moments when I caught myself entertaining the thought that KO might actually pull out the win. Most notably when he landed a massive Senton off the top rope.

INCOMING! @FightOwensFight @TrueKofi #SDLive pic.twitter.com/BErNYgIlSd

— WWE Universe (@WWEUniverse) May 29, 2019

Ultimately though, sanity prevailed as Kofi was able to dodge an Owens attack in order to hit the Trouble in Paradise. Presumably this result puts the Kingston / Owens feud on ice for a while. But with matches like this, the prospect of the two again crossing paths in the future is pretty exciting.

The Planet’s Champion Faces Mr Steaks and Weights

In a pairing ripped straight from our collective dreams, Daniel Bryan and Otis finally came face-to-face.

https://www.instagram.com/p/ByBtnTnhFkr/

Bryan and Rowan berated the prevalence of fracking in the barbaric, ignorant state of Oklahoma, prompting the decidedly less refined Heavy Machinery to come out to confront the tag team champions. The former pairing issued a challenge to Bryan and Rowan, which the tag champs accepted… just not in the vile, cretinous state of Oklahoma.

So we know who the tag champs next opponents are, but not when the match will go down. We know it won’t be Super ShowDown though, as Bryan has decided not to travel to that particular beautiful, progressive city.

Shane’s Mid-Card of Evil

My evaluation of Shane McMahon is as wildly inconsistent as his promo work has been. But when Shane introduces an overly dramatic video hype piece showcasing the last 20-plus years of his career, and then immediately congratulates the “very talented” Kevin Dunn for putting it together, I’m going to praise the man. This was expert-level trolling, particularly when he chastised the fans for booing Dunn.

Shane McMahon Appreciation Night was rudely interrupted by R-Truth and Drake Maverick in their continued beef over the 24/7 Title. R-Truth quickly dispatched Maverick before getting absolutely wrecked by Elias and McIntyre, allowing Elias to take advantage of the 24/7 Rule and claim R-Truth’s Championship.

https://www.instagram.com/p/ByBxKjohCI7/

Shane then immediately booked a tag match between Elias & McIntyre and R-Truth & Roman Reigns, in the process suspending the 24/7 Rule until the conclusion of that match. Presumably so that Roman can pin Elias without becoming the 24/7 Champion. Because that belt should never be allowed to escape of the undercard vortex! But we’d have to wait until later in the night to find out whether my prediction became reality.

A ‘Big Dog’ Running Wild

With R-Truth in poor condition after being flattened by Elias and McIntyre, the impetus fell on Roman Reigns to take on Shane McMahon’s two flunkies.

This match adhered to WWE’s tried-and-tested method of tag team wrestling. The heels were in the ascendency for most of the bout, isolating R-Truth and slowly wearing him down. But once Roman got the hot tag, the match finally shifted into a higher gear.

He came in with fire in his belly, hitting Superman punches, clotheslines and drive-bys. He even grabbed McMahon at ringside, only letting him go to dodge a flying McIntyre, who sailed across the announce table. Reigns then got into the ring, avoided a clothesline from Elias before hitting a spear on the smooth-voiced hipster. This was enough to pick up the win for the team.

Oh, and after the match, Roman landed another spear on Elias, allowing R-Truth to crawl into the cover and reclaim his 24/7 Championship. Nobody saw that coming!

https://www.instagram.com/p/ByB2-uuhOpd/

As an aside, the unending bickering between Byron Saxton and Corey Graves on commentary surrounding the methods and motivations of Shane McMahon was unbearable. They really need to put a cork in that before I lose my mind completely.

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