The Squared Circle

Bron Breakker was more fun to watch as one half of the Wolf Dogs than he’s been in The Vision.

Him and Corbin were wrecking tag teams together and it looked natural. In The Vision, it feels like Bron is constantly trying to prove something instead of just being himself.

Corbin just returned to SmackDown this week going after the US Title. If WWE moves him to Raw, a Wolf Dogs reunion could be exactly what gets Bron over on the main roster.

Bring the Dogs back together?

CM Punk vs Cody Rhodes is being sold as "18 years in the making" but let's be real, these two only fought twice, both back in 2008.

Punk wasn't even supposed to be in this match. He subbed in after Cody got hurt, won the title, then Cody pitched the dream match himself the next week.

Great matchup on paper. Just don't buy the "years in the making" story, this one came together in about seven days.

Yall buying the hype or nah?

Unpopular opinion but I'm saying it anyway: Liv Morgan's title reign has been a disaster and it's not really her fault, it's the booking.

She won the belt back in April. April. We're now closing in on SummerSlam and she still hasn't had a real defense. That's not "protecting the champion," that's just leaving the title in a drawer for three months while the roster sits there stacked with people who could be having actual matches for it.

And I know some of yall will say "well she was in Queen of the Ring, she was busy." Sure, but being busy in a tournament isn't the same as defending YOUR championship. Those are two different things and WWE is treating them like they cancel each other out.

Then you look over at the other brand and Rhea's out hurt, so now we've got both women's titles basically frozen at the same time. Two champions, zero defenses between them for weeks. On a roster this deep. That's wild to me.

I'm not even mad at Liv as a competitor, I just think the character has felt stuck the past couple years, and sitting on a title without using it isn't helping that at all.

Somebody explain the plan to me because right now it just looks like nobody has one.

Agree or nah?

I really like that WWE brought Royce Keys into the Bloodline story because of his real-life friendship with Jacob Fatu. It makes his role feel much more authentic instead of feeling like he's just another name thrown into the storyline.

I wasn't a fan of Royce losing to Jimmy Uso, but the finish gives him a legitimate reason to point the finger at the Bloodline. With Jacob and Solo distracting him during the match, it's easy to tell the story that they cost him the biggest opportunity of his career.

What I liked even more was Jacob attacking Royce after the match. It kept the story moving instead of ending it there.

I could definitely see this leading to Royce Keys vs. Jacob Fatu at SummerSlam, which would be a massive opportunity for Royce. Another option I'd enjoy is LA Knight, Royce Keys, and Solo Sikoa vs. Jacob Fatu and The Usos in a six-man tag. That sounds like a really fun SummerSlam match too.

The biggest thing keeping me invested, though, is Solo Sikoa. The whole "Will Solo rejoin the Bloodline or stand against them?" story has me hooked. It's easily the most interesting he's been in a long time, and I'm genuinely looking forward to seeing where WWE takes it next.

I loved the way SmackDown ended.

Seeing GUNTHER choke out Nick Aldis instantly made the story feel important, and it's exactly the kind of ruthless edge I think GUNTHER needed to get back.

One thing I still don't agree with, though, is putting GUNTHER in a feud with Cody Rhodes when it never felt like he was actually going to win the title.

This is the same guy who retired John Cena, retired AJ Styles, and beat Seth Rollins at WrestleMania. After a run like that, he shouldn't have been put into a program where the outcome felt so predictable.

If this angle leads to Nick Aldis stepping back into the ring, I'm completely on board.

Aldis is a much better wrestler than a lot of people give him credit for. If he delivers at SummerSlam, I honestly wouldn't be surprised if WWE keeps using him as an active competitor.

He could become another credible main event player for the roster.

Maybe it's just a coincidence, but I've started noticing a funny pattern.

It almost feels like Triple H and Tony Khan are having their own little competition to see who can create the next multiple-time world champion.

Cody Rhodes loses the title, then wins it back.

MJF loses the title, then wins it back.

The booking has been surprisingly similar.

I'm not saying it's intentional, but the timing definitely caught my attention.

Really hurts to hear about Rhea Ripley’s meniscus injury.

From everything I’ve seen, the recovery timeline is usually around 4 to 8 weeks, and she’s already about a month into rehab.

That probably explains why WWE hasn’t had her vacate the championship. They’re likely hoping she’ll be cleared in time for SummerSlam, and if her recovery stays on track, I don’t think they’ll need to.

Hopefully she’s back sooner rather than later.

SmackDown just isn’t the same without Rhea.

One episode.

That's all it took for CM Punk to make SmackDown feel different.

I liked that he wasn't just the guy opening the show with the title. He was involved throughout the night.

He named wrestlers he wanted to defend the championship against, crossed paths with Finn Bálor backstage, and even gave Johnny Gargano and Candice LeRae a reality check by telling them to get back to what made them great. Calling him "Johnny Wrestling" was a nice touch too.

Little moments like that make the world feel more connected.

This is exactly why I was excited about Punk moving to SmackDown. His presence naturally ties different parts of the show together, and the champion actually feels like the centerpiece of the brand.

If this is what one episode looked like, I'm looking forward to seeing where SmackDown goes from here.

Maybe I'm in the minority here, but Cody Rhodes vs. CM Punk isn't hitting me the way I expected it to.

Don't get me wrong, it's still a huge match and I'm interested to see where the story goes.

I just always imagined their first major feud would feel bigger than this.

I think part of it is that Cody has been in the Undisputed Championship picture for so long that it doesn't feel as fresh anymore.

With Saturday Night's Main Event still coming up, I also have a feeling there's another twist before SummerSlam. A Triple Threat, a Fatal 4-Way, or GUNTHER finding his way back into the story wouldn't surprise me at all.

Right now, it just feels like WWE might be pulling the trigger on Cody vs. Punk a little too early.

I’m so confused by this.

Last week, GUNTHER attacked Cody Rhodes.

This week, Cody comes out, challenges CM Punk for the WWE Championship at SummerSlam, and Punk accepts.

Meanwhile…

GUNTHER is nowhere to be seen.

Sami Zayn, who literally just lost the title to Punk, is nowhere to be seen either.

It feels like two major pieces of the story just disappeared.