Let’s see if the second episode of WWE SmackDown is any better than the first. This second episode actually marks the official start of SmackDown as a running series.
Low-Tier
I can’t say I actually care about Mr. Ass or Jeff Jarrett at this period. I’m still waiting for him to jump to WCW so we can enjoy that Jeff Jarrett ASCENDED EXTRA PUSH.
Someone backstage in WWE really wanted to dedicate a minute to a T&A match. I mean, technically it shouldn’t be rated but it’s taking up TV time and it’s considered a match.
Big whomp to the evening gown match between Ivory and Tori.
Mid-Tier
If that Tag Team title match was PPV it would’ve been an indication of what kind of party this show was going to be. A bad one with nothing going on.
However, on TV having The Unholy Alliance defend their belts against Kane & X-Pac and the APA on the first proper WWE SmackDown works here.
This was a team that brought destruction. Technically they shouldn’t have had the belts because a team of equal or better star power is the only reasonable choice to uncrown them.
But here we are and we got a decent TV match from it.
I shouldn’t have enjoyed this scant Hardcore Championship match between Big Bossman and champion Al Snow as much as I did but oh well.
When hardcore matches became these brief, unexpected brawls they became my favorite part of WWE television. It was like “Oh, you found your Cruiserweight division, I see.”
Road Dogg picks up the win over Jericho via DQ. What can I say? It was decent at best but had that pace that WCW Nitro presented when it debuted.
It didn’t bog down the show since it wasn’t that long to begin with but it wasn’t exactly a throwaway bout in the context of the rest of the show.
We’re not getting show-stealer Shane O’ Mac here but his match against Mankind was enjoyable. Or rather, it was exciting and fit the vibe of the show.
It didn’t stick out as stinking horribly or shine, it was the kind of action expected from rookie year SmackDown.
Exotic-Tier
The World Championship match saw The Rock challenge Triple H for the belt. This was actually pretty good as a match but compared to the action on the rest of the card, this was very entertaining.
For a first official show, holding a major title match—even if it isn’t a big match PPV quality outing—is a great idea. It introduces the champion and another major star in action to a potentially new demographic.
You never know when someone will be flipping through the channels and fall on the show so you need that big match just in case.
The main event was great for that and just for WWE fans who wanted a match with a good amount of both sizzle and steak.
WWE SmackDown #2 Verdict: Mid-Tier (6/10)
Huh. So, it was better than the first episode—or episode zero. As the proper debut of WWE SmackDown as an episodic show, this was pretty good.
We had some more good promos and segments to get the storylines over but from a match standpoint, it was above average. If you watch this as a complete package, this was one of the best show debuts WWE ever had.
Plus, for this period in wrestling the matches weren’t bad for a A-show. Some of these matches could’ve done with a few more minutes or should’ve just been on HeAT but I actually enjoyed the whole show.
As a rule of thumb, you shouldn’t give away PPV matches on free TV but you should at least give strong B-matches. This show had a few going for it.
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