WWE SmackDown Aug. 27, 2021: 3 things that went right

This past Friday’s episode of SmackDown proved that the show’s “very flawed but still more palatable than Raw” reputation. Yes, there were still things to quibble about, but the promotion got most of the big picture stuff right this week, so kudos to them.

It almost makes you wonder how WWE gets a lot of these same things wrong on Mondays, especially considering that both shows are put together by the same people. The power of having stars who can paper over your gaffes. It must be nice.

With all that said, what exactly did WWE get right on this show. To answer that, we’ll take a look at three moments from the show and discuss why each of them worked.

These are the three things WWE got right on the Aug. 27 episode of SmackDown.

Paul Heyman

Usually, putting Paul Heyman on this list would feel like cheating since the WWE creative team probably has little to do with what Roman Reigns’ special counsel does on the show. However, his performance on this week’s SmackDown deserves some recognition.

Following Brock Lesnar’s return to the company at SummerSlam, SmackDown spent some time chronicling the aftermath, particularly as it pertained to Lesnar’s former advocate, Heyman. With the story of where Heyman’s allegiances lie becoming a key component of the impending Lesnar/Reigns feud, the former ECW owner got a chance to show what makes him such an invaluable part of Reigns’ act.

Ole Paul E. ran the gamut of reactions: annoyance with Kayla Braxton, nervousness when explaining himself to The Usos, pure fear when he interacted with Reigns, and his usual confidence when addressing the fans in Little Rock, Ark.

In 2021, fans are witnessing quite the race for non-wrestler of the year between Heyman, Don Callis, and MVP. This week was Heyman’s turn to prove why he’s among the top contenders, and as usual, he didn’t disappoint.

Seth Rollins and Edge cutting post-SummerSlam promos

These promos Seth Rollins and Edge cut this past Friday didn’t take up much of the show’s runtime, but they made the most of what they were given to reinforce the importance of their SummerSlam match.

Given that he beat a former WWE and Universal Champion, Edge should have a claim to return to the title hunt. And losing such a huge match on a stage like SummerSlam should have some sort of effect on Rollins’ mindset and quest to regain the Universal Title. It may not seem like much, but things like this relay to the fans that wins and losses matter.

Now, there is some reason for concern. Rollins’ promo — which hit the right unnerving notes — seems to indicate that this feud will continue for at least another month, because WWE always has to stretch things out even if the elasticity has reached a breaking point.

We’ll have a better idea of what the direction is next week, but for now, what Rollins and Edge did here was fine.

Bianca Belair and Liv Morgan in the Fatal 4 Way match

After booking Becky Lynch to squash Bianca Belair at SummerSlam, WWE now has a lot of work to do to repair the damage they did. Fortunately, things appear to be on the right track so far.

Following an opening segment that started out strong — as most segments featuring Lynch do — before these writers leaned on the tiresome “wrestlers interrupt and ask for a title match” trope, we eventually got a Fatal 4 Way Elimination match between Belair, Liv Morgan, Zelina Vega, and Carmella, with the winner getting a title shot against “The Man”

Once the babyfaces got the goober heels out of the way, they put together an entertaining climax, which ended with Belair pinning Morgan after hitting her with the KOD. Seeing Belair win that match and hearing the crowd respond warmly to her were encouraging signs that the fans haven’t given up on her yet.

As for Morgan, it was nice to see WWE give her some mic time and a few minutes to show that she should be featured on TV more, but we’ll see if WWE comes to that conclusion.