WWE left no stone unturned in making the Raw after Survivor Series a memorable fallout show with the return of Paige, two main roster debuts in Sonya Deville and Mandy Rose and the unexpected crowning of Roman Reigns as the new Intercontinental Champion.
The spotlight was no on SmackDown to deliver the goods as their next PPV, Clash of Champions approaches closer. So did team blue live to the hype? They tried to emulate their counterparts in red, almost identical at times, in a show that saw debuts, a title match and a much-anticipated return.
Opening segment
The lone survivor for team SmackDown, Shane Mcmahon opened this week's show to address the events from Survivor Series. The commissioner welcomed the fans in Houston and spoke about how close they were to winning the battle for brand supremacy.
He said that the brand proved, even in defeat, that it is the real a show. He praised the roster for bringing it to the Survivor Series and said that the stars do what they do in the ring with pride and for the fans. He singled out Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn for being disloyal to their brand and called the best friends out.
Zayn and KO didn't look intimidated by Shane O'Mac as they made their way to the ring. KO took the mic and asks which version of Shane were they in for today -- the death-defying Super Shane or the authority figure that is out to screw the duo.
Zayn demanded Shane to man up and apologise for his wrongdoings. Owens claimed that McMahon had made a fatal error by leaving them out of team blue's star-studded team. They boldly claimed that they would have beaten the entire Raw team by themselves and also Brock Lesnar if need be.
Shane reminds KO that he was speaking to the commissioner and wanted nothing but respect for himself and the talents backstage. He teased firing KO and Zayn before Owens cut him off by saying that they can't be fired as everyone in the business adores them. Zayn said that he was in the presence of two future WWE Hall of Famers.
Shane branded Owens and Zayn as delusional for thinking they were the top two stars of the WWE. He said that they were living under a rock as the locker room doesn't like the two and completely hate their guts. Just when he was about to say those two magic words made famous by his father, Daniel Bryan interrupted the proceedings.
Zayn seemed ecstatic at the sight of Bryan and began to praise the SmackDown GM. The pretentious words were cut short by Bryan, who said that the New Day was annoyed by being left high and dry by the duo on the go-home episode of SmackDown for Survivor Series.
Zayn tried to interrupt again and Bryan replied with an over-enthusiastic 'shut up'. He announced that the hated duo will face the New Day in a Lumberjack match tonight, with the entire roster surrounding the ring.
Jey Uso vs. Shelton Benjamin
The Gold Standard wrestled his first singles match in over 7 years as he took on Jey Uso. Jey looked focussed on the task at hand as he starred Benjamin down before their match and bounced around with Jimmy to their theme song.
The two kicked off the match with Benjamin getting the better of the power struggle. Jey took control of the match with a back elbow but got sent to the corner. He smacked Benjamin in the face, went up to the top rope but couldn't be sent crashing to the outside with an insane flying knee to the face as a commercial break followed. Great impact!
Back to the match, Jey dominated the offence as he executed a perfect running hip attack in the corner. Benjamin nearly caught Jey off guard with a roll-up for a 2-count. Jey didn't let Shelton rally as he stunned him with a superkick. 1...2...KICKOUT! Benjamin got his shoulder up in the nick of time. He got up, foiled Jey's plan of finishing the match with the Frog Splash, and took him out with the Playdirt.
Result: Shelton Benjamin def. Jey Uso
KO and Zayn were shown frantically searching for stars who they could convince into helping them in the Lumberjack match for the night. Both Baron Corbin and Bobby Roode shot down their requests and they weren't polite, to say the least.
So did the duo get anyone on their side?
#3. Sarah Logan, Liv Morgan and Ruby Riot debut
In what came like an RKO Outta Nowhere, three NXT Superstars made their main roster debuts as part of a new stable. Naomi was seen talking about Survivor Series backstage when Ruby Riot interrupted her and introduced herself, Logan and Morgan.
The NXT trio then began to administer a brutal beatdown on the former Women's Champion. Becky Lynch appeared to make the save but got overpowered by the numbers game.
Both the former SmackDown Women's Champions get laid out by the new faction, which seems to be led by Ruby Riot. Quite a bold move from the WWE after Paige pulled off a similar feat on RAW. What stranger are the similarities between Paige and Riot, the leaders od their respective factions.
The Women's division just got a lot more interesting.
The Bludgeon Brothers vs. The Hype Bros
Luke Harper and Erick Rowan finally returned and debuted their new gimmick against the Hype Bros. While the gimmick may have seemed off the mark, we must say that their new entrance theme sounded pretty good.
This was a straightforward squash match as the former Wyatt Family members dismantled the Hype Bros within minutes. They hit their new double-team finisher -- a double team variation of the powerbomb -- on Mojo Rawley for the win.
A solid 'SmackDown Debut' for the towering duo, despite the lack of reaction from the live audience.
Result: The Bludgeon Brothers def. The Hype Bros
AJ Styles vs. Jinder Mahal confirmed for Clash of Champions
If you had any doubts about how over AJ Styles was, the deafening chants during the WWE Champion's entrance would have silenced them all. The Phenomenal One spoke about almost coming out on top against the Beast Incarnate. He was grateful for fans calling him the real-life Rocky and for Paul Heyman's words of praise.
Styles shifted to the fact that SmackDown Live was the house A...J...Styles...Built!
He called Jinder Mahal out to the ring but the Modern Day Maharaja instead, showed up on the titantron with the Indian flag in the background. Mahal claimed he would have beaten Brock Lesnar and been the Beast Master had it not been for Styles screwing him over during the UK tour.
Styles said that Mahal sounded stupid and that he should come out here and showed how refreshed he was since he didn't wrestle at Survivor Series.
Mahal challenged Styles to a match at Clash of Champions. A devilish laugh echoed around the arena before Styles was blindsided by the Singh Brothers. Mahal's stooges, for all their troubles, were laid out by the Phenomenal One.
Charlotte vs. Natalya (SmackDown Women's Championship Match)
The Queen of Harts went up against the Queen of WWE in the only title match of the night. Natalya looked to regain her lost title against Charlotte, who had all the momentum on her side after defeating Alexa Bliss at Survivor Series.
It's no secret that Flair and Natalya have some flawless chemistry and they showed glimpses of it right from the opening bell before the show cut to a commercial break.
Back from the break, Flair was busy clobbering Natalya with rights and lefts in the corner. Natalya countered by lifting her up in the air and powerbombing into the mat for a 2-count.
Let's to Charlotte chants broke out as Natalya successfully locked in the Sharpshooter. Flair fought her way to the bottom rope and forced the ref to break the hold. Charlotte put her body on the line by going for the moonsault from the top rope. Natalya had her well scouted as he got her knees up at the right time.
The match came to an abrupt end after Riot, Morgan and Logan came through the crowd, inspired by the Shield, and attacked both Natalya and Charlotte, ending the match in DQ.
Riot hit her finisher, The Riot Kick, on Charlotte and ended the segment over the lifeless body of the champion.
Result: Natalya def. Charlotte via DQ, however, Flair retained her title
New Day vs. Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn (Tag Team Lumberjack Main Event)
The Lumberjacks were first to make their way to the ring followed by the New Day and last but not the least, KO and Zayn.
Owens and Big E kicked things off as the Lumberjacks waisted for their opportunity to get their hands on the Canadian BFFs. Owens seemed frustrated at the bias shown by the Lumberjacks as they didn't manhandle Kofi Kingston when he stumbled outside the ring.
Owens tagged Zayn in, who came in and looked to keep Kofi down only to be taken out with a forearm. Kofi forced Zayn to come out of the ring and all hell broke loose from there on!
The entire roster began to make Zayn pay and even stopped him from running away. They got him up on their shoulders and deposited him into the ring.
Kofi and Big E stomped a mudhole into KO's chest after SmackDown returned from the break. Kofi continued to work on Owens as Xavier Woods kicked off a New Day Rocks chant. Owens, though, regained control and isolated Kofi in the corner.
Owens got tagged in and he resumed the punishment on Kofi with a scoop slam. He looked for the senton but landed on Kofi's knees. Kingston dragged himself to his corner and made the hot tag to Big E. E came in hot and set Zayn up for the Big Ending.
Owens got involved in the action and saved his buddy from getting destroyed by Big E. Owens and Big E then crashed into each other as they both went for the clothesline.
Pandemonium ensued after Corbin attacked Roode after a brief misunderstanding. All the Lumberjacks got into the ring and a large-scale brawl broke out. Zayn took advantage of the chaos and rolled up a clueless Kofi for the win.
Result: Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn def. The New Day
Owens and Zayn looked to wipe out the New Day after the match but things took a turn for the worse as Zayn somehow found himself stranded alone in the middle of the ring with all three members around him. The Unicorns finished him off with the Midnight Hour.
Owens was seen begging to backstage Daniel Bryan. He was forced down to his knees in order to save his job. Owens played the role of a desperate man who was on the cusp of getting fired to perfection.
Bryan said that he was never going to fire the duo in the first place and that he sees the potential in them. He announced KO vs. Randy Orton for next week as the show came to a close. Owens hesitated for a minute but eventually accepted the GM dictate.
