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SmackDown Live featured a tall task being compared to a hot Raw this week, and it was not going to live up to that challenge. Still, WWE could have done better on Tuesday night as the episode was relatively formulaic with little that happened on the show actually mattering in the long run.

Shinsuke Nakamura improved to 4-0 on Tuesday after pinning Kevin Owens for the third time in as many weeks. Commissioner Shane McMahon also debuted the new Money in the Bank briefcase for the women's match, a segment which also saw the return of Lana with her brand new gimmick.

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WWE SmackDown results

In the ring -- Shane McMahon, the women's division and Lana returns: McMahon introduced each of the five women competing in the Money in the Bank ladder match and unveiled the new briefcase (see below). The women then took turns delivering a line about why they will win. That brought out women's champion Naomi, who said she wishes she could compete in the match. Lana then made her return to WWE in an evening gown and suggested being added to the MITB match. While the crowd chanted "Yes," the women in the ring laughed at her, Naomi more than anyone. The women's champion pointed out Lana had not even participated in a singles match in her career and certainly was not deserving or capable of winning a title match or ladder match. McMahon agreed and Lana stormed off while frustratingly speaking Russian.

Tamina Snuka, Natalya & Carmella def. Naomi, Charlotte Flair & Becky Lynch via pinfall: Lana returned to rinside near the end of the match to confront Naomi; when the champion's back was turned, Naomi swept her leg and dropped her on the ring apron. Snuka capitalized with a superkick for the victory.

Though in-ring segments like the above are often boring, the unveiling of the briefcase and return of Lana made it worthwhile. The crowd really popped for her. It was also smart to have the women snicker and laugh at Lana due to the fact that she's never wrestled in a meaningful way before and was suddenly demanding a lot. It seems like she will wind up facing Naomi in a non-title match at Money in the Bank.

Backstage -- Shane McMahon and Mojo Rawley: Pulling McMahon aside, Rawley made it clear that he would not be ignored and was deserving of opportunities. He asked for a spot in the MITB ladder match, and McMahon said he would add him to the fold if he could defeat WWE champion Jinder Mahal, who he beat twice in and around WrestleMania 33.

Rawley is one of a few -- Luke Harper, Tye Dillinger, among others -- who have recently been ignored on SmackDown, so it was nice to see him get some face time and an opportunity. I was wondering when it would be brought up that Rawley has owned the champ in every head-to-head match.

AJ Styles def. Dolph Ziggler via pinfall: Another enjoyable match between two terrific workers. In a repeat of last week, Ziggler attempted to knock Styles off the rope as he attempted the Phenomenal Forearm. Ziggler failed, and Styles attempted to pin Ziggler with a jackknife hold. Styles realized that was not going to work, so he quickly transitioned it into a Styles Clash for the 1-2-3. An expected 50-50 booking move after Ziggler beat Styles in his hometown of Atlanta last week.

"Fashion Files" with the New Day: Back with a film noir-style vignette, Fandango discovered the smell at the crime scene last week was not the Colons' cologne. He and Tyler Breeze had fun with this for a while, until the New Day entered and immediately turned black and white. New Day asked for help with a case and presented RompHims as an attempt to pay the Fashion Police for their services. Fandango slammed one to the ground in disgust. "I may like dancing, and I may like dirty dancing, but I'm not a dirty dancer," Fandango said. "We don't take bribes. We're not those type of cops, OK? We're the Fashion Police, and we don't sell out." By the time Fandango finished his rant, Breeze appeared and put over the RompHim, which Fandango appreciated. New Day asked for intelligence on The Usos, so Breezango handed them three boxes of apparel and chanted, telepathically, "new - case rocks."

Jinder Mahal def. Mojo Rawley via pinfall in a non-title match: Mahal debuted an updated entrance (same music), and a rug was placed in the ring before he stepped into it. Rawley took it to the champion and had the upper hand until one of the Singh Brothers distracted him. When Rawley took over again, Mahal raked his eyes, threw him through the turnbuckles into the post and hit the Khallas for the victory. After the match, Mahal said he was the antidote to Randy Orton and then spoke in Punjabi.

Backstage -- Randy Orton: Mahal can run his mouth all he wants because Orton believes actions speak louder than words. "Jinder Mahal's gonna hear me just fine," he said. 

Fashion Files bounced back a bit. Nothing was surprising in the Mahal-Rawley match, though it's clear he still needs to drastically improve on the mic. All the stuff about being a cure and the antidote for Orton was boring and out of character, and this rematch has no juice because no one believes Orton will win the title back.

The New Day def. The Colons via pinfall: The Colons did the J-O-B, as per usual. Xavier Woods and Big E hit the Midnight Hour for the win. The Usos showed up after the match and made fun of each of the New Day members, picking on Kofi Kingston's pigtails and crop top, Big E's name being his bra size, and Woods' wicked witch shoes.

Backstage -- Sami Zayn and Baron Corbin: After saying he watched footage of all the MITB participants, Zayn put over Shinsuke Nakamura by noting that he has been completely unable to figure him out. Corbin then showed up, sucker punched Zayn, rammed a small ladder into him, picked him up by the ear, threw him into two more ladders and told Zayn that he should be worried about Corbin, not Nakamura.

Backstage -- Shane McMahon and Naomi: Telling the SmackDown commissioner that she was so infuriated with Lana that she needed to face her at Money in the Bank, Naomi offered to put her title on the line in the match without McMahon even suggesting that would be necessary. He agreed and made the match.

Shinsuke Nakamura def. Kevin Owens via pinfall in a non-title match: Owens looked to be ready to put Nakamura away following a cannonball, but Nakamura blocked the Pop-Up Powerbomb attempt, hit a spinning heel kick to Owens' head and followed that with an exploder suplex. He then nailed Owens with Kinshasa for the third time in as many weeks, earning the 1-2-3 victory over the United States champion. After the match, Corbin ran into the ring and hit Nakamura with End of Days, the first adversity Nakamura has faced in his run on the main roster.

SmackDown is now introducing him as "The Artist Known as Shinsuke Nakamura" during his ring entrance. Yuck. Nakamura is now 4-0 on television with three straight pinfall victories over Owens. It sure seems like they're setting up a title match between the two following Money in the Bank, doesn't it?