Did Smackdown Accomplish Anything This Week?

In terms of drawing, Smackdown obviously did what it needed to do. Ratings aren't out yet, but they hyped big matches for this week's episode. Developing angles and promoting matches and segments will lead to people being interested. But that is not what I am talking about today. The booking last night, did that accomplish anything?

First, Lana got a rematch against Naomi for the Women's Championship. It was a short match. Lana hit her finisher and Naomi just kicked out and went on to win. That doesn't really make Lana look good. A lot of people have been critical of Lana's wrestling ability. I would be one of them to some degree. But there are fans that were hoping for competitive matches in this new era. The WWE definitely could have told a different story in that match.

And is it really over? Lana has had a lot to say on Twitter.

I obviously did NOT get pined! I want a FAIR title match! Clearly the ref & all of @WWE are cheaters & favor @NaomiWWE over me! #SDLive pic.twitter.com/puUUrbWIap

— CJ (Lana) Perry (@LanaWWE) June 28, 2017

Does this lead to Lana complaining next week and getting another rematch? Should it? On one hand, it would be nice to just move on already, especially if the WWE is not planning to give Lana the title right now. On the other hand, it is at least a real possibility that the WWE continues this, especially now that fans on social media have gotten wind of Lana not having both shoulders down.

Second, the briefcase ladder match. No Ellsworth this time. Of course, he still got involved. This time, however, Carmella took the briefcase down herself. Ignoring the Ellsworth ban and it being violated, this is how the match should have ended at the PPV a few weeks ago. Ellsworth tries to cheat. He gets taken out. Carmella gets the briefcase. The whole controversy of a man grabbing the briefcase in a match that is supposed to be about the women does not exist.

Once again, is this really the end of it? There was once again a controversial finish that might lead to another segment featuring the women complaining. And they would have a point. James Ellsworth was banned. He violated the rules. Shouldn't something happen?

This is exactly like what happened last year with Seth Rollins. Rollins was getting way too many title shots. On an episode of Raw, he got a shot against Kevin Owens, with Chris Jericho banned from ringside. Jericho ended up still finding his way to ringside and he interfered. Owens ended up retaining. As much as I hated Seth Rollins getting so many title shots, isn't this a situation they created where he should have gotten a rematch? There was a rule and that rule was broken, resulting in Rollins losing the match. It just seems like bad writing.

It seems like the WWE has once again written themselves into a bad situation. They obviously should not do the ladder match for a third time, but it does seem pretty stupid that they created this rule, the rule was broken, and Carmella ended up benefiting to win the match. The previous situation with Seth Rollins was not handled in the smoothest way, and I expect this situation to not be handled in the smoothest way.

I made a point last week that there would be no reason to redo these two matches if the outcome would be the same. And it seems the outcome was exactly the same. Not only did the same woman win both matches, but both matches ended in a possibly indecisive or controversial fashion that makes you wonder if it is all over yet. That is why I would say the booking of these matches did not accomplish anything. It was just a bunch of hype for no big developments in these storylines. They could have used the situation to give the briefcase to someone new, while Carmella carried her momentum from the whole controversy into a title feud with Naomi, who could have definitively been free from Lana, who is complaining on Twitter about how the match ended.

Moving on to the men, Zack Ryder & Mojo Rawley took on The Usos. If the faces won this match, they would have gotten a shot at the tag titles. I was all for this happening. But the WWE had The Usos win. A triple threat feud also involving New Day would have been good. It would have made things more interesting.

It just feels like everything is as it was coming off Money In The Bank. The women's ladder match ended with Carmella winning and controversy involving Ellsworth. That is where we are at right now. The women's title match ended with Naomi retaining and Lana having a complaint she believes warranted a rematch. That is where we are right now. The tag title match ended in a way in which it was obvious New Day was not finished with The Usos yet. And that is where we are right now. Nothing has changed. All Smackdown accomplished last night was maintaining the status quo. It remains to be seen what direction they will go with this, but last night's Smackdown didn't serve to progress anything in a fresh direction.

Ellsworth Grabs The Briefcase

Carmella won the women's briefcase. That is not surprising. There are some complaints from fans, however. Let me talk about those.

First, I see some fans groaning that a woman that has failed to get a good reaction since debuting is suddenly getting a big push and made history. I have seen one person point out that the first man to win the briefcase was Edge, a legend and Hall-of-Famer. And Carmella being the first woman to accomplish a similar feat is just not the same. Yes, she will likely not get the storied career Edge had.

Something I have brought up in the past is that there are three scenarios where a person should be booked to win a major piece of history. They are either really over and deserve it, are already getting a legendary career, in which case this accolade will fit right in with their resume, or the company plans to build them to be something big, in which case this accolade is a launching point for that big career.

Carmella does not seem to fit into any of those categories. And yet, I don't have a problem with her winning. The Smackdown women's division is in a certain situation right now. They don't have any fresh, young heels to be a top credible jobber right now. Lana is not good in the ring. Tamina is neither young nor fresh. Natalya is a veteran. Carmella was just the best bet right now. They could have given Charlotte the win and turned her heel, but she just turned face a few months ago. It is too soon for her to turn again. You could also bring up Becky Lynch winning it and eventually turning heel by cashing in on a face. Whatever you want to bring up, Carmella was just the easiest option available without having to turn anyone.

And I don't even mind if she had to win in some shady way. Again, Edge won his first briefcase in a more respectable manner than Carmella did. But there is nothing wrong with a heel winning in a shady way.

Problem is, and this is the second complaint from fans, Ellsworth was the one that grabbed the briefcase and helped Carmella win it. Carmella may possibly not even keep the briefcase, but ignore that point for right now. Just stick with Ellsworth getting involved. Having Carmella win in a controversial fashion is one thing, but what do I make of James Ellsworth getting involved like this?

I think it is terrible. In an era where the WWE is trying to treat women's wrestling with more respect, this is not the kind of thing they should be doing, especially when the women's revolution has not been smooth at all and I would say is not at a truly successful place. If things were working out better, maybe then you would let some of this stuff go.

Look at TNA. They have established respectability in their women's division. They might sometimes have little things that go against that, like Velvet Sky, Maria Kanellis, and Eric Young, but these momentary angles and individuals have not strayed them from their main course. That is why it is important to establish that identity before you think about straying from it. Even if you stray, you know who you are.

The WWE has not established that identity for the women's revolution era. That identity was really still in limbo and needed a lot of work. You have had sloppiness from the writers and bookers that have hurt feuds and the development of characters. There have been some terrible botches and sloppy spots from the women last year that would make you wonder if the WWE should keep giving women so much freedom. The overall tone was sour and not entertaining. For all the fans that wanted a women's revolution and the women treated with more respect, terrible things like I just mentioned just sent many fans into the waiting arms of women like Lana and Alexa Bliss, women known for their looks and characters, not for being great wrestlers. And I see fans pointing out that Ellsworth got cheered last night, as if that justifies what the WWE did. No. Do it for the women. Help them get over and get cheered.

Something that I frequently say is that the women should be working more alongside the men in their angles. Even today, that can really help freshen things up. Moreover, the WWE can do angles there that go beyond comedy. Lita being with various men throughout her career was not just comedy angles. Same with Chyna. But when a man gets involved in the women's division, it usually is comedy. Remember Harvey Wippleman? He won the Women's Championship during the first dark age of the diva era. Remember Santino Marella? He dressed up in drag and won the Ms. Wrestlemania battle royal a couple years ago as the division was declining, stealing an honor that could have gone to a woman. There is precedence for what the WWE just did, even though Ellsworth did not actually win the briefcase. He sure got in the way and took the spotlight. Is this really the time that the WWE should be bringing men into the women's spotlight for the sake of comic relief? It was just a really stupid, crass idea.

How could the WWE have done it differently? Have Ellsworth pull Becky Lynch off the ladder. Have Becky suplex him, which she has done before. Then have Carmella take out Becky Lynch, then grab the briefcase. Ellsworth still does something out there, but the spotlight is at least more on Carmella than a man when the match ends.

I spoke before about the identity of the women's division. In a way, the problem is that the WWE cannot move away from their previous identity, the diva era. They may seem to stray from that with all this talk and hype about women's wrestling, but you still have divas around, you still have a diva being pushed as centerpiece on Raw, you have a man hurting the respectability of the division, and it just feels like a lot of the respectability is going away fast, especially on Raw. Smackdown has always had the weaker of the two women's divisions since the brand split came back. I shouldn't be too surprised by the stupid way they handled the women's ladder match last night. I heard the title match involving Lana was also not something to get women's wrestling fans excited. If the WWE had properly established a new identity that works, then these little things might be overlooked. But old habits die hard for this company. This is more than just a storyline getting in the way of respectability. This is the WWE showing more signs that they are not heading in the right direction with their women.

Lastly, what do you do with Ellsworth? Everyone was fine when Becky Lynch was knocking him around all over the place. When he takes the attention away from the women with the controversial finish, a lot of these same fans are annoyed. And there is no good place to put him. He was a hindrance in the main-event scene. Only thing he was good for was getting squashed by AJ Styles. Creative has not had anything for him since. Sticking him with Carmella just put him out of the way. But he is now in the way of women's angles, and at a time when the WWE needs to improve how these women are being handled. He becomes a distraction. If they cannot find a way to push him in the midcard in the men's division, he should be released. Sadly, the WWE does not typically do mass releases anymore, and you cannot expect him to do anything that will get him fired. He will continue to be in the way somewhere.

Carmella & Ellsworth

I have been saying for a while that the WWE needs to make better use of periphery angles with the women. They can talk about a revolution and empowering women all they want, but they just cannot sustain a proper women's division without going beyond just wrestling, especially with the brand split. But this angle with Carmella and James Ellsworth is not what I had in mind.

Let's make it clear from the start, this is more for Ellsworth, not Carmella. Carmella would have something to do no matter what. Even if she wasn't involved with Nikki Bella for a while now, with the poor depth in the division, Carmella would still be used somewhere, whether it be in tag matches or being used to put over someone else that is being pushed.

What does Ellsworth have to do? AJ Styles knocked him off a few weeks ago and has moved on to John Cena. Dean Ambrose has also moved on from Ellsworth, recently even winning the Intercontinental Championship. Ellsworth is the one that really had no long-term creative direction. It might make you wonder if the WWE should have bothered signing this guy.

Why not continue his angle with Dean Ambrose? Did they feel it might make Ambrose look like a heel to continue to target Ellsworth, although Ellsworth did screw him? Did they not want Ellsworth to turn heel? Whatever it is, the WWE pretty much booked themselves into a corner. I don't think the angle between Ambrose and Ellsworth got a proper finish.

What about Ambrose moving on to beating Miz for the Intercontinental Championship? Ambrose did not need another title reign so soon. A year ago, most people might have said that Ambrose was treated the worst of The Shield members. He had not yet won a World Championship. He was used to put over Lesnar. Since then, he has done pretty well for himself. They could have continued his angle with Ellsworth. The Royal Rumble is coming up. This is a time of year where a lot of feuds mix. You have 30 guys that will be facing each other for a title shot at Wrestlemania. What is wrong for various guys in the match to interact? If they wanted him to feud with Miz for a few weeks during this time, okay, but no title change was needed. And if you are going to put the title on someone else, how about someone who was not a former World Champion? Ambrose held a World Championship before. Miz did. Ziggler did. How about building the midcard with the midcard title? I see a lot of fans loving that the Intercontinental Championship has grown in importance. Problem is, the WWE is treating it like it is too important for common midcarders to have.

Back to Ellsworth, what I really dislike is that there are other guys on the roster that lack an angle. A periphery angle like this can help increase the interest in a worker. Does Ellsworth really deserve it? This time last year, he was on no one's radar. Now, he is being treated as a priority just because of his awkwardness. And I just get the feeling that the writers do not even know what to do with him. I pointed out that the angle between Ambrose and Ellsworth did not really get a proper finish. His angle with AJ Styles was also tossed aside rather easily. Carmella really doesn't need him. How seriously can you push a guy like him? What do you do with a guy like him? Meanwhile, other guys are not getting what he has gotten. I just don't like it.

Previewing The TLC 2016 Main Event

AJ Styles will defend the WWE Championship against Dean Ambrose in a TLC match this Sunday. But the wildcard will be James Ellsworth. He has been involved with these two for the last few weeks.

This can go one of two ways. Either Ellsworth will purposely cost Dean Ambrose the title or he will inadvertently cost Dean Ambrose the title. If it is the latter, you have to start wondering if this will lead to Ambrose eventually turning heel or Ellsworth snapping and turning heel later on. Either way you slice it, AJ Styles is retaining the title, and hopefully moving on to a fresher feud than this one with Ambrose.

Let's say Ellsworth was not a factor and this whole story was just between Styles and Ambrose. Is there a reason to give Ambrose back the title now? I don't think so. I would have waited a little longer to give Styles the title, but he has it now and there is no reason to give it back to the man he beat for the title a few months ago. Styles can move back to his feud with John Cena, when he eventually returns. The WWE might have The Undertaker get a title shot. They might just come up with some filler feud until Styles is ready for something better. Whatever they do, Dean Ambrose doesn't seem to need the title heading into Wrestlemania season. In this new smark-friendly era, the WWE might want to keep the title on Styles a little longer into the new year. Both Styles and Ambrose are favorites of smarks, but Styles is much more a favorite.

Let me do an aside. I recently tried to once again have a discussion with wrestling fans about the career of Mickie James in the WWE. You can see my failed attempt here. I remember one time trying to talk about it on another message board years ago and literally getting a headache trying to get through to "smart" fans. I am trying to have an objective, analytical discussion based on how the women are pushed in relation to each other and over time, and all people can do is repeat the same things people have said in dirtsheet reports and backstage rumors. People ignore what is going on right in front of them. I am not even going to bother trying again.

I started blogging in 2008. I do not plan to be blogging in 2018. I'll stop some time next year. Until then, I still have at least a few more months to go.

Is James Ellsworth Helping Or Hurting?

James Ellsworth has a contract with the WWE and is still very much involved in Smackdown matters. Is the WWE handling him right? How far will he go? A few things to look at.

I do see some fans getting annoyed by him. Some are happy for him. But, much like virtually everyone, he does have his critics. Do his critics have a point? Some people have complained that this Ellsworth stuff has ruined the title push AJ Styles has been getting. I have seen some fans say they should just put Styles out of his misery and take the title off him. The issue isn't that AJ Styles is flopping as WWE Champion. The issue, as far as these fans go, is that Ellsworth's awkwardness and looking good at the expense of AJ Styles on occasion is just not good for Styles. I would agree that Styles could be pushed better. A heel Champion does not need to be protected too much and all that, and AJ Styles has been pushed very well in his rookie year in the WWE, but the WWE should provide a better storyline than this. James Ellsworth does not need to be involved in the main-event scene.

Go back to Zack Ryder. When that guy got over and fans wanted to see him get pushed, no one said it absolutely had to be a main-event push. I never said that. I honestly cannot recall any fans I have seen say that. A proper midcard push would have been enough. Of course, the WWE acted like that was as bad as pulling teeth. You can also throw Santino into the conversation. He got over with a comedy gimmick. He got a lot of midcard title success. No one ever said he needed to win a World title. I saw some fans saying it would be nice if he won it during the last few years of his career, but it is no tragedy that he did not.

James Ellsworth just became a thing in the WWE a few months ago. Why is he already involved in a top-tier storyline on Smackdown? And how does his overness really compare to that of Zack Ryder and Santino Marella? People were going crazy for Zack Ryder to get a push. I don't think anyone was going crazy for Ellsworth in the same way. People were just laughing at his awkwardness on the Internet and the WWE has ran with it. It doesn't really mean that he is popular. It just means he is some kind of fad.

I have seen some fans unhappy that certain guys on Smackdown have nothing important to do, like Jack Swagger and Apollo Crews. I have seen some fans roll their eyes at Ellsworth main-eventing, while guys like Neville and Sami Zayn are not. There are definitely guys on both brands that have been with the company a lot longer than Ellsworth that are being underutilized. People used to say that Smackdown was better than Raw in featuring talent. They would wish certain guys being mistreated on Raw could go to Smackdown. Even I might have recommended that for certain guys. But people on Smackdown are taking a backseat to this guy, and that isn't really right.

The WWE is obviously going for a storyline that has some shock value. An oddity like James Ellsworth is causing all this buzz. A local jobber with no chin is shooting up the ranks. People are talking about it. But it obviously is not drawing. The WWE is just pandering to a fanbase that already has so much to talk about. And it is coming at the expense of other guys not getting proper opportunities, like I just pointed out. This is just not a good investment.

How far will he go? I doubt the WWE will be dumb enough to put the WWE Championship on James Ellsworth. Miz, a heel, is once again Intercontinental Champion. I can imagine Ellsworth winning that title in the kind of upset you would expect Santino to have back in the day. But I even question if he really deserves that much. He will be a lower-midcarder in time. Meanwhile, guys that worked their way through development and have been not pushed anywhere near the level Ellsworth has are just there.