Smark Out Moment

Welcome to another edition of Cheap Pop and Cheap Heat from Smark Out Moment! Each week, we break down the world of professional wrestling and examine two of the polar opposite ends of the spectrum: one thing that was by far the worst thing (Cheap Heat) and the best thing (Cheap Pop) to happen over the past 7 days in sports entertainment. So, what went down this week that we loved and hated about the business?



Talk shows are are an increasingly redundant concept in wrestling, but it must be said that A Moment of Bliss really managed to deliver this past week on SmackDown. A nice surprise as, despite being one of the best on promos, it is fair to say that Alexa's talk show often leans closer to miss than it does hit.

This latest one with Nicky Cross and Bayley was succinct, well delivered, and did not feel overly scripted. In fact, some are even calling it Alexa's pipe bomb moment. While I would not go that far, there were some very interesting takeaways, and there is speculation that this was not just Alexa making stuff up in character.

Bliss has fabricated things in the past for comedic effect, such as Trish Stratus refusing her 7-year old self an autograph, or Nia Jax eating all the food in Disneyland, but Bliss talking about Bayley's treatment of her in NXT did not feel like something being played for laughs.

Also, the accusation that Bayley peaked in NXT? That is fighting talk! Overall, the segment managed to piqué my interest for their match at Stomping Ground which, as I describe in the heat column, is a little bereft of big draws…



Between rehashing most of the lackluster Super ShowDown card, and few gripping stories, I have to say that Stomping Ground is looking like the least anticipated pay-per-views of the year so far.

Of course, WWE has been known to turn seemingly insignificant events into big deals through last-minute changes, but this one's overall excitement is largely hinging on the what if factor.

What if Brock Lesnar turns up? What if Bray Wyatt makes his return? What if the special guest referee for Baron Corbin and Seth Rollins is someone super exciting?

While these do make for a good reason to tune in, these should be herb seasonings of the card, not the meal itself. If the card was good on its own, we would not need to concern ourselves so much with these additional hypothetical scenarios.


So there you have it, my two choices for the week. What do YOU think are the Cheap Pop and Cheap Heat this week in professional wrestling? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!