Wednesday, May 24, 2017

WWE Backlash 2017



It's the PPV main event nobody allegedly wanted, but we got anyway... or something.

Anyway, not much to really say here. WWE is pushing someone new into the main event title picture and it's someone that not a whole lot of people care for. However, it's a new face in the main event title picture, so at least they're TRYING to push someone new, even if it's not the most popular choice. Nonetheless, Backlash has come and gone and... well...

Confession time: I only saw this a day or two ago because I was at a reception with family and friends this past Sunday. So I kept myself from watching any semblance of Smackdown.

Let's blow through this quickly.

Shinsuke Nakamura defeated Dolph Ziggler. It was a match.

Tag-team champions the Usos defeated Breezango (a.k.a. the Fashion Police or whatever they're called) to retain the titles. Breeze was dressed in different disguises throughout the match, such as a janitor, which I thought was pretty cute. JBL gets a dress thrown at him and we get a "Fire Bradshaw" chant. Compared to recent years, this is a pretty mild Chicago crowd.

Sami Zayn defeated Baron Corbin. Boy, that Sami takes a lickin' and keeps on kickin' and eventually wins with the one big move. Nothing too exciting, but pretty harmless otherwise.

Carmella, Tamina & Natalya defeated Naomi, Charlotte & Becky Lynch when Nattie makes Becky submit to the Sharpshooter. This is a match that was dangerously close to "Divas Piss Break Match" territory due to the total lack of emotional investment in regards to any of these women, but if you stick around for the match, it's not too bad of a contest.

U.S. champion Kevin Owens defeated AJ Styles to retain the title via countout when, during an outside scuffle that involved a table breaking, AJ Styles gets his foot caught in a hole that somehow keeps him from beating the ten-count. I don't mind a countout ending, but not when it's the result of this kind of stupidity. Hey, the match was alright, I guess. Didn't expect this to be a total stinker, but by that same token, I didn't expect a lame-ass ending.

Luke Harper defeated Erick Rowan in a Former Wyatt Brothers Collide "Death Slot" match that is pretty much that; a match wedged between two highly anticipated matches. In summation, it's two big guys beating the shit out of each other in a less than exciting fashion. Maybe this would've been better off as a street fight or something with weapons in it.

Jinder Mahal defeated WWE World champion Randy Orton with outside interference from the Bollywood Brunettes to win the title... Is Vince Russo writing this show? This has his fingerprints all over it... but then again, if it were Russo, Orton would be the one winning and retaining by virtue of being from America, 'cuz dat's what he wants to see, BRO.

Fun Fact: With this title win, Jinder Mahal is the 50th man in WWE history to lay claim to the WWE Championship.

Anyway, this match... was a thing that happened. And Jinder Mahal's WWE title win - something most folks didn't would happen even if the odds were in his favor - is a thing that also just happened. And you know what? I'm actually cool with this.

Look, you could try and explain the reasons why we have Jinder as champion, but I honestly don't care. The fact that the guy went from being punked out of a battle royal by some football player at the Wrestlemania pre-show to being king of the mountain might seem like a bit of a stretch, but it's not outside the realm of possibility. It reinforces the age-old adage that anything can happen in WWE - and this is one of those instances where there's some semblance of truth to that statement. And more importantly, it shows a willingness on the part of WWE to try and do something different by pushing a new guy and giving him a shot in the spotlight.

This development intrigues me. Not just in terms of the potential storylines should they give Jinder a somewhat sizable title reign, but also of the online reactions that is sure to follow. The move to give Jinder a title run could be a sign of pure brilliance on the part of WWE Creative or a sign that the creative minds have no clue whatsoever on how to do their jobs competently. Any way you slice, it's going to be an interesting ride and I'm suddenly looking forward to seeing how this whole thing plays out in the long term.

Regardless, this was an otherwise forgettable show that had a title change on it and not much else. So... that's a thing... I guess.

Welp... that's all I got.

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