Another edition of WWE Smackdown is in the books so you know what that means. This time around we’re going to be taking a look at the Summerslam Go-home episode of 2023 (Make sure to check out my WWE Summerslam predictions here). With one of the most anticipated main events of the year coming up the next day, could WWE deliver an exciting last chapter to some of their stories? Let’s find out!
LA Knight vs. Sheamus
The show opened with LA Knight making his entrance and addressing the Slim Jim Battle Royal happening at Summerslam. We finally got to see some of the other participants other than Knight which was a much-needed development. Knight continued to shine on the microphone as he addressed several of his upcoming opponents, including Sheamus.
Sheamus made his entrance and the match was underway. This was a solid bout, but nothing incredible. It did its job in getting these two guys some screentime and built the Battle Royal in the usual fashion. A bunch of people came out to ringside and distracted the competitors. The crowd was hot throughout and LA Knight was able to get the victory when he took advantage of a distraction by the Miz.
Grade: 80%
The Brawling Brutes vs. The O.C
This match wasn’t much of anything. A match to build an angle, the bout was solid and allowed the crowd to see some live action. The match was just starting to get going when the Street Profits come out of nowhere and attacked both teams causing a no-contest. Both guys looked great with their new look, and seem to be set for a bigger role on Smackdown going forward. They brought Bobby Lashley out and celebrated together on the ramp.
This is an interesting angle and should lead to some bigger developments in the future for all three men. I enjoyed seeing the rarely-shown intensity of the Street Profits
Grade: 80%
https://twitter.com/WWE/status/1687629240345264128?s=20
Paul Heyman discusses the Summerslam Main Event
Heyman came out to continue the manipulation of Jey Uso. He says all of this is Jey’s fault, including what happened to his brother, Jimmy, but what happens at Summerslam will be the Tribal Chief’s fault. As he is about to finish his “This is a spoiler, not a prediction” schtick, Jey interrupts him.
He is full of passion and fire as he describes what he is going to do to Roman Reigns, but eventually, Solo Sikoa comes out. I liked the teases of Heyman not being able to control Sikoa which eventually leads to a superkick from Jey. It’s easy to see why Sikoa continually falls in line because whenever he refuses to listen, things end up poorly for him. Jey seems to be getting better on the microphone and this was just another solid chapter in the Bloodline story.
Grade: 85%
Austin Theory vs. Cameron Grimes
This was a quick, back-and-forth matchup in which Theory scraped by with the win. Unfortunately for him, though, he fell victim to an attack from Santos Escobar. It’s nice to see Escobar get some revenge for an attack that happened in the opening contest, but this development didn’t do much for me. This feud lacks a serious personal issue for me to truly be invested. I really hope Escobar picks up the win to help resuscitate this title. Smackdown has a lot of great wrestlers to utilize, but neither guy feels like one of them. It’s not their fault, but there needs to be a little more thought put into this championship’s segments.
Grade: 75%
Grayson Waller Effect with Bayley and Iyo Sky
God, I hate talk-show segments in wrestling. This one wasn’t even particularly funny or interesting either. Shotzi’s laugh played in the arena and Bayley pretended to be terrified (Why?). Shotzi eventually came out and attacked her from behind. Bayley high-tailed it out through the crowd with Shotzi on the chase. Not great, but not abysmal either.
Grade: 75%
Iyo Sky vs. Zelina Vega
This match was already underway when the show came back from the commercial for some reason. Sometimes it feels like WWE says they care about their Women’s division more than they actually show it. Short and simple, this match felt like it was designed to build Bayley vs. Shotzi rather than have a women’s match on the show. Speaking of those two, they came out on the ramp which distracted Iyo Sky. Vega was able to get the victory. This story is all over the place and no one comes out looking more credible after the match or the segment that proceeded it.
Grade: 70%
Jey Uso vs Solo Sikoa
Finally, it’s time for the main event. This match was able to help Jey look more credible heading into Summerslam after last week’s show which was much needed. Jey picked up the W after playing some mind games of his own when he utilized Roman Reigns’s spear. It’s always nice to see the babyface look clever when the heels have consistently outsmarted him. This feels like something WWE should revisit in a bigger capacity than a random smackdown.
The two continued to fight after the match with Jey getting the upper hand. He looked great closing the show and picked up some momentum. Summerslam will undoubtedly be the biggest match of Jey’s career so it’ll be interesting to see how he performs.
Grade: 85%
Overall thoughts
This was a weaker show than the past few weeks which is surprising considering the proximity to Summerslam. The go-home show should feel like every feud is firing on all cylinders, but unfortunately, this was not the case. A lot of stuff just didn’t hit for me. The US championship feud and the women’s angle were both pretty weak compared to other storylines going on. The Bloodline continues to be the main draw for Smackdown, but what are they going to do once that ends? Be sure to check out my Summerslam predictions and follow me on X (Twitter) @Wewanttablez. Thanks for reading!
