WWE: Ranking Every PPV from 2016

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8. TLC

One thing SmackDown has really excelled at is making their PPVs feel like a big deal. So often PPVs are criticized for feeling like a glorified episode of Raw or something to that effect. But since the brand split, all of the blue brand’s exclusive PPVs have felt worthy of being designated as a PPV.

TLC was no different. It started with Bray Wyatt not only getting a victory on a PPV, something he has rarely done in the past, but capturing championship gold on top of it. With Randy Orton by his side, the duo defeated Heath Slater and Rhyno for the SmackDown tag team championships. So if nothing else, Backlash can be remembered as the night where Bray Wyatt accomplished something he deserved to accomplish a long time ago.

But that isn’t all it will be remembered for. Another title changed hands that night as Alexa Bliss not only captured the Women’s championship from Becky Lynch, but did so in a tables match, another example of the women’s division on both Raw and SmackDown making important strides. Bliss is largely similar to Wyatt in that she was an underrated talent who inexplicably had never held a championship prior to Backlash, so it was nice to see that change.

And of course, who could forget one of the most shocking moments of the entire year, James Ellsworth’s interference in the main event. He turned on his only friend in WWE, Dean Ambrose, by pushing him off the ladder and sending him through multiple tables, leading to an AJ Styles victory. Seeing Ellsworth finally execute the semi-heel turn we all assumed was coming was a great moment, putting a fitting end to a very solid PPV from Team Blue.