The Smackers Thread

[Chili]

I'd love to see some good Nick Aldis matches because he was a real life El Generico without the mask, talent, orphanage.

A genuinely awful, bad wrestler has far more entertainment value than Nick Aldis.

[Jazzy G]

On 7/14/2026 at 2:35 PM, Lion_of_the_Midlands said:

I can't believe you've snubbed Xander Clax like that. A great physique from playing tight end at the University of Central Tennessee and has really shown some real fire in his promos. 

Didn't he do a few dark match jobs as Alex Clagnuts before they settled on Xander Clax? Somebody really liked their 8 bit puzzle games and knew it'd be a sneaky reference for the mums and dads. 

Edited July 25 by Jazzy G

[Supremo]

Good episode of Smackdown. Going back down to two hours, carried by the red hot Aldis/Gunther angle, Cody and Punk finally delivering the goods and Sami continuing to be the best character in pro-wrestling.

Most interesting part was Cody saying he needed to beat Punk. Need to, Cody? More than any of us could ever imagine?

The clues are there if you look closely. The numbers spell disaster for CM Punk at Summerslam. Heel turn incoming!

 

Edited July 25 by Supremo

[Chili]

9 minutes ago, Supremo said:

Good episode of Smackdown. Going back down to two hours, carried by the red hot Aldis/Gunther angle, Cody and Punk finally delivering the goods and Sami continuing to be the best character in pro-wrestling.

Most interesting part was Cody saying he needed to beat Punk. Need to, Cody? More than any of us could ever imagine?

The clues are there if you look closely. The numbers spell disaster for CM Punk at Summerslam. Heel turn incoming!

 

I don't watch but I desperately want to will this into existence because The Rock and his batshit ego crisis era is absolutely amazing stuff. Has he claimed he actually came up with Hulkamania when he was 9 and his dad off hand mentioned it to Vince McMahon yet? The Rock going a bit fucking mental is one of my favourite wrestling things.

[Supremo]

One of the best things about CM Punk is how much thought and effort he puts into his gear and looks. You can look back at any photograph or clip from his career and immediately recognise when it was and what was going on with him at the time.

Shaved head, Primark hoodie - locked in, record breaking WWE Champion.

Mutton chops - miserable, sulky bastard, looking for a way out of WWE.

Long boi tights - delivering some of his best work in AEW, but makes it clear he neither respects the booker nor takes this company as serious as he does WWE.

Beavis and Butthead Bouffant - the “Eat shit, get rich” Era.

With that in mind, I’m convinced there’s some type of meta, snide message being sent by him and Cody wearing their winter coats in the middle of Summer.

“How was the Summerslam build in 2026, when they finally pulled the trigger on their biggest match available?”

”Surprisingly chilly.”

Edited August 1 by Supremo

[d-d-d-dAz]

4 minutes ago, Supremo said:

One of the best things about CM Punk is how much thought and effort he puts into his gear and looks. You can look back at any photograph or clip from his career and immediately recognise when it was and what was going on with him at the time.

Shaved head, Primark hoodie - locked in, record breaking WWE Champion.

Mutton chops - miserable, sulky bastard, looking for a way out of WWE.

Long boi tights - delivering some of his best work in AEW, but makes it clear he neither respects the booker nor takes this company as serious as he does WWE.

Beavis and Butthead Bouffant - the “Eat shit, get rich” Era.

With that in mind, I’m convinced there’s some type of meta, snide message being sent by him and Cody wearing their winter coats in the middle of Summer.

“How was the Summerslam build in 2026, when they finally pulled the trigger on their biggest match available?”

”Surprisingly chilly.”

You have to wear jackets if the only way you can signify things are getting serious in your underbaked story is by 'THE JACKETS ARE COMING OFF!'

[Callum1993]

Never mind the rest of Smackdown. The real star is back. 
 

 

[d-d-d-dAz]

There is a worrying trend of Cody's feuds all being quite disappointing, unless the person opposite is Roman Reigns.

That's not to say it's his fault, necessarily, but he's proving he doesn't belong in that bracket of talent who can make anything work.

Match should be good, though.

[DavidB6937]

3 hours ago, d-d-d-dAz said:

There is a worrying trend of Cody's feuds all being quite disappointing, unless the person opposite is Roman Reigns.

That's not to say it's his fault, necessarily, but he's proving he doesn't belong in that bracket of talent who can make anything work.

Match should be good, though.

I definitely think they've struggled to book strong heels at that level which is essential to making a strong babyface champion. It's a problem they've come across time and time again. The chase is always more interesting than once they become champion.

How many actual top tier heels do they have? Gunther? You've got a much longer list of ones no one cares about .. Logan Paul? Baron Corbin? Austin Theory?

Anyone and everyone involved in the Bloodline stuff is all over the place now.

Guys like Dom, Bron, Lesnar, Orton etc still get cheered even against the biggest faces depending on what mood the crowd is in.

It's probably a bit of column A and a bit of column B, but they've definitely got an issue with creating genuine heel heat and not just go away/apathy heat.

 

[RIDDUM_N_STYLE]

Show’s an instant 10/10 for having Haku on it, hope he’s staying around for a bit as a manager/mentor role for his boys

[LaGoosh]

8 hours ago, d-d-d-dAz said:

There is a worrying trend of Cody's feuds all being quite disappointing

It's because Cody Rhodes is not very good.

[d-d-d-dAz]

26 minutes ago, LaGoosh said:

It's because Cody Rhodes is not very good.

I wouldn't go this far, but I do think he's proving to not be an elite talent who can, to some degree, make anything work. He's a slave to the material he's given.

In fact, i'd probably go a bit further and say 'Cody Rhodes is not a very good character.'

He's got a decent look, is great in the ring, can cut a decent promo with the right material... but his character doesn't flex well to different situations. He's a firey babyface with a good 20-30 minute match in him. He's not someone who makes any story interesting just by being part of it.

If you'd asked me a few years ago, i'd have said he was in the same tier as Roman or Punk from the current crop of top stars. I actually think, the more he's worked with others, he's a level below that.

[TheScarlettChad]

He's incredibly boring. But that's a WWE face for you. He's firey but his character is weak. 

[HarmonicGenerator]

Is this not a similar general conclusion that people were coming to at the tail end of the Codyverse in AEW? Maybe he just has a limited shelf life before he has to disappear off for a while and come back feeling new and refreshed.

[TheScarlettChad]

Maybe he should go back to AEW for a while, WIn the title there. Finish THAT story!