The three men that finally defeated The Shield. Photo credit: WWE.com
The always entertaining Daniel Bryan kicked off the show by first amusingly boasting about his accomplishments in the WWE and how he wasn't surprised he'd achieved them, and then called out his soon to be ex-tag partner Kane. After reminding him that at Payback he'll be challenging for the tag title with Orton, Bryan officially ended Team Hell No and broke up with Kane.
Bryan also went on to claim that he believes he and Orton could do what Team Hell No couldn't in beating The Shield, insinuating that Kane was the "weak link" of their unit. As an upset Kane grabbed his former tag partner by the throat, Randy Orton warned Kane that he couldn't stand back and let him attack his tag partner.
As arguments ensued between the three men, their rivals The Shield (Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns) appeared on the big screen and expressed their amusement at the their frustration and anger, putting it down to them maybe finally realising that after months of defeating various teams The Shield are an unstoppable force in WWE. They also claimed that that night was going to be like every other in that they'll fall to them in the ring. It was one of the best openings to a SmackDown in a long, long time, with strong mic work from all involved, and it was simply fun and engaging to watch.
Sheamus pinned Antonio Cesaro in a decent back and fourth contest. Both participants gave solid efforts here, and it was enjoyable enough. Unfortunately for me I felt it was lacking that little bit of extra excitement to make it a memorable or great match up.
Before the match Sheamus' Payback Kickoff opponent Damien Sandow bragged about outdoing the Irishman both mentally and physically in the recent weeks, and claimed that he will do the same Sunday. After the bout Sandow also blindsided Sheamus from behind. It's nice to see the 'Intellectual Saviour' with a more substantial feud, and hopefully he'll gain the much needed win at Payback, he could use it a lot more than the 'Celtic Warrior'.
Heath Slater bested The Great Khali in a mediocre outing. The wrestling was average, which tends to be the trend with the very limited Khali.
Alberto Del Rio and Chris Jericho defeated Dolph Ziggler and Big E Langston in an enjoyable tag bout. Admittedly it didn't contain any of the four men's finest ever performance, or even great ones, but it was still entertaining for the most part.
Kaitlyn versus Aksana ended in a no contest after the enraged Divas Champion slapped the referee and chased away her opponent after mauling her. Kaitlyn was still reeling from her humiliating set up by AJ Lee on this week's Raw when she duped her into believing that Big E was her secret admirer. I'm not expecting anything special in their title match but I can appreciate some thought finally going into a Divas feud, it's been a long time.
Before their following match up, Wade Barrett tried to convince Curtis Axel to cancel their bout and reduce the risk of picking up an injury before their Triple Threat this Sunday for the Intercontinental Title. But the third man involved in said contest The Miz reminded the two that the fans came to see a fight, which convinced them to carry on.
Curtis Axel pinned Wade Barrett in a brief and forgettable affair. Both men looked decent, but they didn't have enough time to make a real impression, which was unfortunate. During the encounter Axel accidentally struck Miz at ringside, so afterwards he applied a Skull Crushing Finale on Curtis as retribution.
Daniel Bryan, Kane and Randy Orton defeated The Shield (Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns) in a thrilling six-man tag main event. The first two thirds of the contest were stellar, with worthy efforts from ever man, but it was the final few blistering minutes that really turned it up and delivered a memorable end to the show, The Shield had finally lost a six-man tag team match.
The fast pace only heightened the intensity at the end as Kane managed to take out both Ambrose and Reigns on the outside, allowing him to then deliver Rollins into Orton for an RKO and then into No lock by Bryan where he tapped out. Terrific televised outing, and one that adds intrigue to the two title bouts that Shield will compete in at Payback, are they so unstoppable now? I still see them retaining but it does add a little question mark.
Overall it was an enjoyable show for the most part, and above the usual standard for the blue brand this year. My highlights were the opening segment, Del Rio and Jericho versus Ziggler and Big E and the exciting main event. I almost feel worried that I may start taking The Shield and Bryan for granted with the standard of matches they deliver every week. Like Raw the show also delivered a strong ending to go into Payback with, which isn't always the case with WWE with shows before pay-per-views.
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