SmackDown this week was very enjoyable all around. Everything just clicked. We had two matches, one that was advertised that was pleasantly entertaining and also a “Fast Times” video featuring Mandy Rose and her boo Otis. Let’s discuss the advertised match first which was Sonya Deville vs. Lacey Evans.
This match brewed from a social media encounter. Deville basically stated that Mandy Rose gets opportunities because she is a pretty blonde which Evans had a few things to say about. Prior to the match, Deville was cutting a promo backstage and Evans approached her and knocked her down prior to the match starting.
Once the two got into the ring it was a lot of storytelling surrounding it. A lot of banter back and forth between the two. It worked well for both women, the booking of Sonya continues to be a joy to watch. This was really the first one-on-one match outside of the break-up of Fire & Desire for her other than facing Mandy and it just all worked. For Evans, it elevates her booking as well.
The ending of the encounter started when the action spilled to the outside. Lacey had Sonya caught in the ring apron and she eventually crawled out from under it. A Woman’s Right was brewing from Lacey, but she was caught and taken down. The two would continue to brawl ending in a double count-out as the official made the 10 count.
The two continued their fight as Lacey was bounced off the announce table. She got back in the ring and demanded her opponent to get back in the ring, however, Sonya had other plans. She grabbed a headset at commentary and said she will continue this fight on her terms.
The second match of the night was an impromptu match when Sasha Banks and SmackDown Women’s Champion Bayley crashed A Moment of Bliss. This sparked an old rivalry between them and tag champions Alexa Bliss & Nikki Cross. After a remark from Bliss saying that Sasha was the only one in the ring (The New Day was present) without championship gold, it struck a nerve.
Bayley and Sasha wanted to make a challenge for the tag titles which was later confirmed for next week. This week though, Bayley yet again volunteered Sasha to a match. This time against Alexa.
The two would put on a quality match. It is to be expected as these two tend to do just that as their history shows. As the match concludes, Banks is launched into the corner and Bliss follows it up with a hard right that laid out The Boss. Bliss would attempt to put her away with Twisted Bliss as she climbs to the top. Bayley then rushed to the ring apron from commentary to distract Bliss. Cross would join Bayley and the two would fight on the apron resulting in Cross being pushed into Bliss. This caused Sasha to be able to pick up the win by getting the pin.
Lastly, a very entertaining video with Mandy Rose and Otis rounded out this week’s SmackDown for the women. The video was the couple sitting by the pool. After sharing a toast of champagne, Otis wanted to go for a dip in the pool. He asked Mandy to join him but she wanted to take a nap. During the nap, she had a comical “Fast Times” dream of her and Otis. She was awoken from the nap as Otis did a cannonball into the pool which drenched her.
After he apologized for waking her up, she joined him in the water to finish the segment.
Let’s get into the Winners & Losers of the week:
WINNER: Sasha Banks
Finally, The Boss is back in the win column. She needed this win as she has not won a match since March and that was alongside Bayley in a tag team match. Ironically it was against Alexa and Nikki as well. Big shout out to her for wearing a Hana Kimura armband and also that The New Day was wearing one for Shad.
Her win solidified the tag title match for next week. Although I rarely doubt they will win the titles, it may set up for at most a Triple Threat to include The IIconics at Backlash. That event is quickly approaching and Bayley doesn’t have a challenger for her title in sight. Might as well include them. It will provide a great match.
WINNER: Sonya Deville
Her booking continues to be amazing. She is shining as a singles competitor all around. I am kind of surprised that she may be moving on from Mandy at this point, I expected at least one more match. If their feud is over though then Sonya came out on top which may be the best for her right now. I would love to see her and Lacey continue what they started tonight. They bring out something enjoyable to watch.
As for the losers this week, none of the women on this week’s show had a bad night. The only thing I don’t like is when potential storylines fall through the cracks. For instance, Naomi who kept losing her matches. Perhaps her turning heel? Also, Dana Brooke who was picking up wins with a potential to go after Bayley. Nothing.
What did you think of SmackDown this week? Who were your Winners & Losers? Leave your thoughts in the comment section below.
