The Miz vs. Apollo Crews
With the WWE Intercontinental Championship on the line to kick off Smackdown Live, Apollo Crews was able to get rolling early and often. He showcased his athleticism and strength, hitting a standing moonsault, followed by a beautiful delayed release German Suplex. Maryse tries to get involved, but she is tossed from ringside. Crews sets up a back body drop, but Miz escapes and grazes the referee. As the referee is distracted, Miz pokes Crews in the eye, hits Skull Crushing Finale and retains the championship. After the match, Renee Young asks The Miz why he has been obsessed with Dean Ambrose as of late. Miz responds with Renee being obsessed because she sleeps with him. Renee slaps him in the face and leaves.
Later in the night, Dean Ambrose took on Luke Harper of the Wyatt Family. A solid contest that gave Ambrose the win, but Wyatt’s attacked after. The Miz would come down and pick the bones, hitting his finisher and standing tall.
What tonight tells me is that WWE is moving full steam ahead with The Miz vs. Dean Ambrose. I think this is exactly where Ambrose belongs on the Smackdown Live card. Let him battle one of the best heels, his wife and add some personal conflict as well. We never have gotten to personally know or understand Dean Ambrose. He has never had depth in his character. All we know him by is a lunatic that dresses in a tank top and jeans. This is a very positive step forward for a mid card feud with two main event caliber guys.
Speaking of main event caliber guys, how good is Apollo Crews? Too bad he was rushed way too fast on the main roster and now might never be able to reach his fullest potential. They really dropped the ball on making him dominant, exciting and captivating. It is still early, but this was a mistake on bringing him up so soon.
Natayla Drops Some Truth
Natalya comes out and tries to explain that she did not attack Nikki Bella. Carmella comes out and talks about comments Nattie said to her, which Nattie says are true. She finally admits to attacking Nikki and it is based on jealously. She talks about not using her looks to be successful, not marrying John Cena and that she should have gotten a Total Divas spin-off. She calls her a b*tch a few times and then Nikki looks upset in the ring.
I thought Natalya did a good job tonight blurring the lines of real life and fake television. Total Bellas or Total Divas is somewhat scripted, but her actions and words made for a dramatic scene. The tone was perfect, but I do wonder if they should have given this “whodunit” type of storyline more time. I also think Eva Marie would have been better suited to be revealed as the attacker. Either way you book it, WWE continues to bring real life relationships into their stories and I am good with that.
