Women's MITB Ladder Match Rematch On SD Live Next Week

[Jack-Hammer]

As we saw on tonight's episode of SmackDown Live, Daniel Bryan stripped Carmella of the MITB briefcase and declared that the women would compete in another MITB ladder match on next week's SD Live episode. Also, as of about 10 minutes or so ago on Talking Smack, Bryan ruled that James Ellsworth will be banned from ringside during said match.

So while there can't be another first women's MITB match, they have the opportunity to put on the kind of match that we were all hoping the first one was going to be next week. The fact that they showed Bryan's Tweet after the match Sunday was a good indicator that this week's SD Live would be centered around the controversy and there was some great the announcement. Carmella gave a great heel promo to start the show off with and of the other women's MITB competitors, Becky Lynch gave a great, emotional babyface promo backstage.

So with all that said, we're back to having with looks to be a pretty wide open match. Charlotte is probably still the favorite but I'd rather see Becky, Natalya or Carmella win it. Tamina is dead weight and nobody would give if she won it, Charlotte doesn't really need it as she's been the overall centerpiece of the women's division for a couple of years. Becky is one of the purest babyfaces on the roster right now, so seeing her get it would be cool. Carmella shined tonight on the mic and finally did something to make herself stand out. Natalya has been in WWE for her adult life without much to show for it in terms of greatness and I think we sometimes forget that for many years, she was one of the very few women on the roster who was a good wrestler.

 

[Navi]

I don't know what to make of all this. If you look at it from Carmela's point of view she is right, there are no rules, so Ellsworth going and getting the briefcase and giving it too her didn't break any. If you look at it from the other women's side, I can see it too, a guy who wasn't even in the match technically won the contract.

I was disappointed with the way they finished it at the PPV from a woman's prespective, but I don't think this is any better. The whole thing is a cock up from the get go. Great idea, bad execution, even worse solution.

 

[Dagger Dias]

Glad at how this has now been dealt with within kayfabe. Ellsworth ruined the original match so I had been hoping Bryan would undo Carmella's status as the briefcase holder. I thought they were going to go the route of a fatal fourway between the other four girls with the winner going on to face Carmella for the briefcase with Ellsworth banned from ringside for both the fatal fourway and the briefcase defense. This works too. We were robbed of what a historical match we should have gotten on sunday. Now with Ellsworth banned from next week's rematch we have a chance to get what we should have gotten the first time around. Even if Carmella wins again this time Ellsworth can't destroy the match. I hope Becky wins. She should have won sunday and to say she deserves it would be an understatement.

 

[shooter_mcgavin]

So all this was for a PPV to setup something on free TV? Correct me if I am wrong but shouldn't it be the other way around? Like for something in free TV to setup a PPV?

 

[The Perfect Max]

From a storyline perspective, I can get behind this. This is, I suppose, the only kayfabe way to resolve the issue. Perhaps they could have had the ladder match, but with Carmella "defending" the briefcase, since the reality is that there are no rules in a Money in the Bank ladder match and so nobody was disqualified. And even then, what happens if James Ellsworth does appear? Is Carmella disqualified, even though there are no disqualifications? It's like Finlay in the 2008 Royal Rumble entering early and being disqualified, even though in 2001, for example, Al Snow did the EXACT same thing and, well, nothing happened.

In reality though, this does seem very backwards to have such a special attraction in WWE be featured on free television. What was the point in building up the match at the MITB pay-per-view? It's all a bit dodgy to me, but at the same time, I'm looking forward to seeing the women get a second go and hopefully make a better impression. Also, you can't deny how strong the promos were last night. Carmella truly seemed to step up and I was impressed particularly with her. So, there are some great benefits that have come out of this storyline crap.

As to who wins? It's got to be Carmella again, right? But she's got to win the old-fashioned way this time. To me, the rest of the women simply don't need this briefcase. Perhaps Tamina does, but right now I'm totally not invested in Tamina because they've given us no reason to be. I'm sure that will change but I don't know if having Tamina win here would be an anti-climax. Some may argue that having Carmella win again would be pointless and void this rematch of any sense, but from a story perspective, it rids the WMITB of any controversy and for the fans who criticised the decision, it legitimises Carmella's push and puts her on a better road towards the SmackDown Women's Championship. Sure, I could see Becky Lynch, Charlotte or Natalya winning this. But I just feel like that would be incredibly random booking to not have Carmella win this again. Just my opinion though.

 

[Y 2 Jake]

I don't understand why they would book the first female MITB match to have such a cheap finish anyway.

The only uninspiring choice to win is Carmella, and she won the first one.

 

[Fire Marshall Bill]

If Santina Marella can win the Diva's Championship, a guy can grab the briefcase and give it to his girlfriend.

Anyone other than Carmella or Becky winning this is a bad choice imo.

 

[Deoxyribonucleic A.C.I.D.]

They always point out that Elsworth, a man, grabbed the briefcase. So, would anyone like to bet that a woman interferes and gives the briefcase again to Carmella?

Plus, maybe they thought that ending the first in such a controversial manner, would result into more eyes looking at the second and thus the division as a whole. But obviously, I can't think of anyone else other than Carmella or Becky winning. It's interesting to see where they are going with this.

 

[enviousdominous]

I'm wondering if this is meant to be a setup for Lana as a surprise participant, and if that plays out then I expect her to win the match.

I like that the WWE decided to go a more controversial route with this. Everyone is being validated in their kayfabe roles. Daniel Bryan was able to return with an agenda, as opposed to just coming back and saying "Hi, I'm back. That is all."

In spite of the shifty finish, I thought that the match at MITB was awesome. I'm excited to tune in to Smackdown because I think that the women are going to pull out all the stops, and it'll be cool to see an entire episode of Smackdown revolve around the women's division. Given how stagnant Jinder's status as champion has been, the women will likely close the show and leave an indelible mark on our impression of them.

I'm having a tough time imagining a face winning while Naomi is still champion. I'm thinking that Charlotte will use some kind of nefarious tactic to win the match, possibly involving her Dad to build heat for being a vocal critic of James not being licensed to compete in the last ladder match.

 

[OYDK]

First of all, last night sold me on the fact that Tamina is probably the biggest waste of space in WWE history. There is absolutely nothing appealing about her at all, she's been in the business for 7 years now and has progressively gotten worse. I don't think I've ever heard a wrestler insult another wrestler with the EXACT SAME INSULT that was used by said wrestler. They need to get rid of her. Ok, first rant's over, on to the second one.

I think redoing the match is stuhpit. They had something good with Carmella, the fans were booing her out of the building on Smackdown and it seemed like they finally had a worthwhile heel in the SD women's division. I don't know if this was the original plan or what but I'm pretty much assuming that they bowed down to the sensitivity police on this one. So now, not only do they completely cut Carmella's momentum off at the knees, but they guarantee that the impactfulness of the new Miss MITB is heavily reduced, even if Carmella wins it again.

If you're going to make a decision, stick to it. Otherwise more often than naught, the whole thing turns into a clusterfuck.

 

[Kodo Sawaki]

Cant help to wonder if backlash from original ending caused them to book another match. Because from some point of view what Elsworth did, even though most people didnt like it, was completely legal in terms of gimmick. There is always some interference to set up some match. Bray screwed Roman his chance, Heyman screwed Punk his and set up Brock/Punk at Summerslam. Elsworth just kick it up a notch and grab briefcase and gave it to Carmella. Which is not illegal, just douchy. Which goes nicely to heel gimmick and made them from cringy NJ douches nobody cared about to relevant heels. But I can see why you shouldnt do that in a match that is billed "First ever Women MITB match". They really did not think that through a lot.

Anyway, fully expect Carmella to win it again unless they somehow blame her for backlash so they decide to go with Becky or Charlotte.

 

[George Steele's Barber]

Clearly this whole idea of giving women a chance to compete in a MitB ladder match is just a set up for Daniel Bryan to have a one time return and face Ellsworth at Mania.

I don't see the point of doing this again other than giving the SD fans something to get excited for next week. I liked how the original match played out and what it does for Carmella. MitB is a stupid yet highly entertaining match. Climbing a ladder is no great feat. Wrestling legends like Swagger and Sandow have done it. The way it played out was fine before but I'm happy that we will get to see it again. I just feel like it kills some of Carmella's momentum. Then again they could do something good with the encore.

I really hope the point is not to have a face win so that becomes a ready made feud between Carmella and said face.

 

[JoeFromTomsRiver]

It's hilarious that people think the MITB rematch is being done in response to the SJW outrage at the finish of the match on Sunday. In purely Kayfabe sense, it is appropriate that the GM of the show would be pissed that the person who "won" the match is not the person who actually climbed the ladder to retrieve the briefcase, and would respond by over-riding the result and ordering a re-match.

 

[OYDK]

It's hilarious that people think the MITB rematch is being done in response to the SJW outrage at the finish of the match on Sunday. In purely Kayfabe sense, it is appropriate that the GM of the show would be pissed that the person who "won" the match is not the person who actually climbed the ladder to retrieve the briefcase, and would respond by over-riding the result and ordering a re-match.

Yeah. Because WWE never bows down to perceived "bad publicity." Especially when it comes to their women...

If the original plan was to book a second Women's MITB match two weeks after the original, that's ridiculously ridiculous.

 

[enviousdominous]

Just wanted to add a few thoughts.

I still think that the WWE planned for all of this to happen. I think this was mainly a way to set up Daniel Bryan as a stern leader.

I think that James climbing the ladder and ruining the result for fans of the other women in the match was fun for that night and worked well for his and Carmella's characters. I also think that when writing that result, the WWE knew that they'd have to appear to do something drastic after the fact so as to not undermine the point of having a ladder match.

I know that JBL has been screaming "YOU CAN'T BREAK A RULE THAT DOESN'T EXIST", but I think he's wrong in applying that to what happened at MITB. It's my understanding that the winner is the first person to climb the ladder and retrieve the briefcase. I realize that "no disqualification" is what the entire match is predicated on, but you still have to win in a specific manner. If Carmella was allowed to keep the briefcase without any repercussions, then it would set a precedent for ladder matches that the winner doesn't even need to use a damn ladder.

I like where the whole thing is going, and I don't think that this aftermath is a spontaneous reaction to angry fans.

 

[ShinChan]

Don't let anyone except Carmella win now. That's all I want now. I didn't like the finish but I was supposed to dislike it so can't really judge properly. For a "First" something, it wasn't something well worth to do it.

Don't change the plans and let Carmella win again.

I did think that she might even cash-in on recent Smackdown even before the controversy was resolved. But didn't think that it'll be repeated in two weeks itself.

 

[Aeon Mathix]

Yeah the whole reason this is happening again was because the first match was pretty shit and the ending was almost universally panned. Though I remember reading many of us myself included predicted James Ellsworth would grab the case for Carmella. Wasn't the right ending and to just redo it as petty as it sounds is the right call at this point.

Becky Lynch is my personal favorite out of the four horsewomen and being biased I would love to see her win. She always gets a good reaction and can have great matches. I wouldn't mind seeing Natalya winning it as people seem to forget that she basically kick started the women's revolution with her match against Charlotte at one of the first Takeovers. There is a case to be made that that match is what got people interested in watching the women wrestlers in NXT. At least it did for me. She's also been one of the most consistent performers in the division even in the dark ages when Eve Torres and Kelly Kelly dominated the division.

I have a feeling it's just going to be Carmella winning it on her own again. She was the obvious winner the first time and out of all the competitors it just seemed to suit her the most. There's nothing that interests me about her, but her character screams money in the bank holder. Maybe WWE throws a curveball and gives it to someone else or maybe they just stick with the original plan but without so much of a backlash. Though I'm sure everyone will complain about what was the point in redoing the match with the same ending? If we get a great match and not that pitiful excuse of a ladder match at MITB then I am all for it.

 

[#tamale]

If the original plan was to book a second Women's MITB match two weeks after the original, that's ridiculously ridiculous.

It's not that far fetched. The WWE is no longer in the PPV era so they can experiment with an idea of how to build heat for a wrestler. Like Ellsworth literally handing the MiTB briefcase to Carmella. Now we get another MiTB match on Smackdown with more interest than the first, and should Carmella capture the briefcase again it will add more heat to her character.

 

[thebigbadfox]

Lets see James Ellsworth pull a Santino and become Jasmine Ellsworth (ala Santina)
Seriously do love the gender roll reversal of a man serving as manager/valet/ distraction for the female competitor versus the normal female valet (ala Maryse) so they should let James do his thing again... just not touch the briefcase this time.

 

[Snugglebites]

This is it. It's finally happening. Eva Marie's time to return.

 

[Vanilla Midget]

I doubt redoing the MITB match is based purely on fan reaction. The would have had some plan of how the fallout from Ellsworth stealing the match.

Now they get to say that the women had the first ever live Money in the Bank ladder match on live television. I would have expected the match on last night's SDL, but now they get to advertise the match for a week.

Say what you will about firsts, but this is kind of a big deal. Remember the first televised TLC back in 2001? That was a big deal at the time. This is the right booking, and the right way to deal with the controversy in kayfabe.

I still believe Carmella finds a way to come out on top. Maybe Ellsworth's music hits while a face is about to win, maybe he interferes wearing a disguise, maybe she just comes out on top. I don't see them doubling back any being like, ok it's Becky or ok it's Charlotte.

I see Carmella stealing the match from a particular babyface, setting up a feud between that face (either Charlotte or Becky, most likely the latter) with the briefcase being defended at the next SDL PPV.

 

[LBGetBack]

Yeah. Because WWE never bows down to perceived "bad publicity." Especially when it comes to their women...

If the original plan was to book a second Women's MITB match two weeks after the original, that's ridiculously ridiculous.

I mean.....didn't Carmella make a point of saying she doesn't care about the women's revolution in her promo? That's the point. That's who she is. She cares about herself, and will take any shortcut she can and couldn't care less about the other women......gotta find a way to get heel heat in these days and she/they found it.

 

[Spidey Revivey]

What WWE hyped up to be a great deal for us to pay for they're now giving away for free.

I don't believe that was their plan all along. It doesn't seem like the best business decision. Then again, having a guy retrieve the women's briefcase wasn't the most sound choice either, so who knows what it is they're doing. The controversy should give SD a nice little blip for ratings. But if that was the point all along, it's a fucking weird way to go about it. At least they're trying to save face, kayfabe or not.

 

[LBGetBack]

What WWE hyped up to be a great deal for us to pay for they're now giving away for free.

I don't believe that was their plan all along. It doesn't seem like the best business decision. Then again, having a guy retrieve the women's briefcase wasn't the most sound choice either, so who knows what it is they're doing. The controversy should give SD a nice little blip for ratings. But if that was the point all along, it's a fucking weird way to go about it. At least they're trying to save face, kayfabe or not.

So were they planning on the tournament at Wrestlemania 4? Or was that backlash to Andre winning the belt with a crooked refs help and selling it to Dibiase?

It's like y'all are so caught up in the Indy era of dueling "let's go_____" chants and "this is awesome" chants and the "quality of the match"(usually determined by how long it goes, how many false finishes, and how many cool moves the guys hit) matters more than the result....that screwy finishes with heels winning by cheating are legit pissing you off. I'm cracking up. It's like they figured out how to get the pure reactions out of y'all that you used to give when you were a little kid, with this one.

 

[Spidey Revivey]

So were they planning on the tournament at Wrestlemania 4? Or was that backlash to Andre winning the belt with a crooked refs help and selling it to Dibiase?

It's like y'all are so caught up in the Indy dueling "let's go_____" chants and "this is awesome" chants that screwy finishes with heels winning are legit pissing you off. I'm cracking up. It's like they figured out how to get the pure reactions out of y'all that you used to give when you were a little kid, with this one.

Hooray for logical fallacies.

What happened almost 30 years ago has no relevance today. At all. WWE is a publicly traded company now that has a strong social media presence via Twitter, Facebook, Youtube, etc. They are connected to their audience on a scale they would have never dreamed of back then. But all that is still besides the point since you're comparing a screwy finish to a shitty finish. I didn't outright say this wasn't their intention, though I don't believe it completely. I already said kayfabewise or other this was a weird way to go about it. It made sense for Randy Savage to fight Ted Dibiase to determine who the champion will be. A guy getting involved in the first ever super hyped women's MITB match in this day and age? Eh...

WWE writers are geniuses. They can turn in absolute rubbish and people will defend it as long as they give said rubbish to the guys we're not supposed to like.