SmackDown Report for 12/18/20

SmackDown on Fox Episode #64 – Aired on FS1
SmackDown Episode # 1,113
Orlando, FL – The Thunderdome (Tropicana Field)
12/18/20

The show opens with a recap video that highlights the beatdown that Roman Reigns gave Kevin Owens last week.

We go into the Thunderdome and immediately Kevin Owens makes his way to the ring and he is walking with a purpose as he is less than happy after what happened last week. KO calls Reigns out to the ring but he doesn’t appear which is fine with KO as he has something he wants to get off his chest anyway. KO says that he heard the message that Reigns sent to his family last week and he wants Reigns to know that he sat his family down and told them not to watch their TLC match on Sunday, but he didn’t tell them that because he fears what Reigns may do to him on Sunday but rather he doesn’t want them to see what he is going to do to Reigns on Sunday. 

KO tries to call out Reigns again but still not a peep from the Tribal Chief so KO continues to push his buttons. KO says that he heard Reigns tell Uso that he cares how his sons look at him which is a shame because after the past few weeks Reigns’ sons are going to see him as a hypocrite because Reigns claims to be “The Head of the Table” but yet he has to resort to hitting him from behind and using his family members as pawns. KO says that he knows that when Reigns looks in the mirror he doesn’t see “The Head of the Table”, he sees a coward. 

Heyman pops up on the screen and reminds KO that Reigns does things on his own time. Heyman says he made a mistake about KO as he thought that KO was a masochist to come back after what Reigns did to him last week which would be just fine as Reigns is a sadist especially when it comes to beating down KO. Heyman says he was wrong thinking KO was a masochist because he is actually a martyr that is willing to pay any sacrifice in order to become Universal Champion and that makes KO a very dangerous man. Heyman says that since mutilation won’t stop KO then he needs to be completely eradicated. KO cuts Heyman off says he has heard enough of Heyman’s crap and since Reigns won’t come to him then he is going to Reigns. 

KO leaves the ring and heads to the back as Heyman looks on furious and that sends us to a commercial break. 

We come back from break and see KO walking toward Reigns’ locker room as Adam Pearce is desperately trying to talk some sense into him as he wants KO to wait until Sunday. KO bangs on the locker room door of Reigns but as he does we hear the music of Reigns and it turns out he has finally decided to come out to the ring. KO watches on from a monitor in the back that is conveniently set up next to Reigns’ dressing room. 

Reigns says that he doesn’t want to hurt KO or his family but KO is running around telling people he is a bad guy but that is just not true, he is just doing the things that a required in order to be recognized as “The Guy”. Reigns says that KO doesn’t understand what he is doing as it is above his pay grade so KO should stay in his lane. Reigns says he is going to prove to KO he is a good guy as he is going to give him the same opportunity that he gave Uso and that is the opportunity to acknowledge him, either KO acknowledge him or he won’t make it to TLC. KO has heard enough as he has left where he was backstage and is headed toward the ring as Reigns continues on in the ring until KO comes out from behind the curtain. KO makes a beeline towards Reigns but gets blindsided in the aisle by Jey Uso and this leads to Uso and Reigns double-teaming KO until the referees and agents come out to break it up and that sends us to a commercial break. 

We come back from break and see a recap of what happened before the break. We go to the back where Uso is pumped up about the beatdown they just gave KO and keeps saying that will teach KO and that they sent him a message tonight, but Reigns isn’t as enthused as he knows this won’t stop KO because he doesn’t listen and then Reigns tells Uso to go take KO out because he doesn’t want to see him anymore. 

I’m going to give my thoughts on everything involving Reigns and KO after the final segment between the two.  

We finally go to the first match of the night. 

Match #1: Street Profits © vs Dolph Ziggler & Robert Roode (SmackDown Tag Team Championship)
Roode and Dawkins start the match out and Dawkins feels Ziggler trying to sneak attack so he attempts to attack him first, but Ziggler is able to get away and this allows Roode to attack Dawkins from behind and then hit him with some strikes before tagging in Ziggler. Ziggler and Roode send Dawkins into the ropes but duck their heads too early and allows Dawkins to take advantage momentarily before tagging in Ford and then the Street Profits hit Ziggler and Roode with double dropkicks. Ford lands a couple of kicks to Ziggler’s ribs but then Ziggler dodges one of them and rolls Ford up in a schoolboy which Ford kicks out of instantly and then Ford hits Ziggler with a back suplex and he follows that up with a standing moonsault. Roode is out of place so Ford has to wait on him to get back on the apron just so he can knock Roode back down to the floor. 

Ford goes up top but gets cut off by Ziggler and then Ford steps back down to the apron where Ziggler goes for a suplex back into the ring, but Ford blocks it and hits a kick to Ziggler in order to create space so he can climb back up top but this time Roode shoves Ford off the turnbuckle and sends him crashing into the barricade and that sends us to a commercial break. 

We come back to the heels in control as Ziggler sends Ford into the corner sternum first and then tags in Roode who whips Ziggler toward Ford so that Ziggler can hit Ford with a splash and then Roode follows up with a kitchen sink and a Russian leg sweep for a 2 count. Roode works over Ford for a minute before he puts him in the heel corner and tags in Ziggler who dropkicks Ford in the gut that was injured after he slammed into the barricade earlier. Ziggler then locks on a grounded bear hug, Ford crawls over while in the hold as he tries to make the tag but Ziggler cuts him off and brings him back into the heel corner where he tags in Roode.

We get frequent tags between the heels as they continue to work over the midsection of Ford, eventually, Ford creates an opening as he backdrops Ziggler to the floor and sends Roode into the corner, and that allows him to make the hot tag to Dawkins. Dawkins comes in with some clothesline and a spinning back elbow on Roode and then a flapjack on Ziggler. Dawkins hits Roode with an exploder and then hits both opponents with spinning splashes in the corner. Dawkins ducks a clothesline attempt by Roode and hits him with the spinning butterfly suplex for a 2 count. 

Dawkins measures Roode and looks to hit him with the Sky High but Roode blocks it and tries for the Glorious DDT but Dawkins blocks that and drives Roode into the corner which allows Ziggler to make a blind tag. Roode launches Ziggler into the air and Ziggler comes down with a Fameasser for a 2 count. Ziggler goes for a superkick but Dawkins catches the foot only to be hit with a back elbow which allows Ziggler to run off the ropes but he runs into a Sky High. Dawkins tags in Ford who goes up top and hits the Frog Splash, but Ziggler gets his knees up and Ford can’t immediately cover but when he does Roode breaks up the pin with a jumping elbow to the back of Ford. Ziggler tags in Roode who tries to pick up a cheap win as he pulls the tights when he rolls Ford up in an O’Connor roll, but Ford kicks out and then he rolls Roode up in a schoolboy and he pulls Roode’s tights to pick up the win.
Winners: Street Profits via Pinfall    Match Rating: **¾ 

After the match, Roode and Ziggler get in referee Charles Robinson’s face about Roode’s tights being pulled but Robinson stands firm with his decision and threatens to have them suspended if they don’t get out of his face. 

This was a perfectly fine match but nothing too special to note other than I liked the heels working over Ford’s ribs after he crashed into the barricade and I thought Ford did a good job of selling the ribs. I also liked Roode and Ziggler rocking the Tar Heel blue gear in this match. 

We go to a recap video of last week’s match between Carmella and Sasha where Carmella smashed the champagne bottle over Sasha’s back. 

We go to the back where we see Kevin Owens walking with Adam Pearce and referee Jessika Carr trying to get him to leave the building when out of nowhere Jey Uso attacks him with a steel chair and tells him to stay down. Pearce and Carr help KO to his feet as we go to a break. 

We come back and go to an interview with Bianca Belair who is asked about what it would mean for her career to beat Bayley who is the self-proclaimed “Role Model”. Biana takes issue with Bayley referring to herself as a role model because role models are people you aspire to be while Bayley is just someone she intends to beat. Bianca says she has wanted to face Bayley ever since she came to SmackDown because Bayley is the measuring stick, however, she doesn’t like that Bayley always has her name in her mouth and tonight the EST will shine. 

The Riott Squad is in the ring for the next match and we get an inset promo where they guess who Billie’s partner might be for tonight and Liv says Beyonce or Sarah Jessica Parker because she would like to meet them. Liv then brings up Wonder Woman and Ruby agrees that it would be cool if it was Gal Gadot, but Liv stops her and tells her she meant the actual Wonder Woman, not the person who plays her in the movies. 

Billie Kay comes out and tells Mr. Gregory (Greg Hamilton) she will take over his duties as ring announcer since she is a seasoned ring announcer as you can see on her resume. Billie Kay then introduces her partner which is Tamina Snuka.

Match #2: Riott Squad vs Billie Kay & Tamina
Tamina and Liv start the match and Tamina powers Liv into the corner and then she biels her across the ring. Tamina puts the boots to Liv in the corner and then goes for an avalanche in the corner, but Liv rolls out of the way and tags in Ruby. Riott Squad hit Tamina with a running back elbow and a kick to the back of Tamina’s head while she is in the corner and then Ruby rolls Tamina up with a schoolgirl for a 2 count. 

Ruby tries to take control of the arm but Tamina sends her into the ropes and takes her down with a clothesline. Ruby tries to fight back but Tamina takes her down with a headbutt. Ruby continues to try her best to fight back but Tamina stays in control and hits her with the Samoan drop, but Billie blind tags herself in so the pinfall Tamina goes for doesn’t count. Billie goes for the cover but Liv breaks it up which leads to Billie having some words for the referee. Billie goes for a slam on Ruby but she slides out the back and makes a tag to Liv, the Riott Squad duck a double clothesline attempt from Billie and then knock Tamina off the apron with a double dropkick. The Riott Squad then hit Billie with a flatliner and missile dropkick combo to pick up the win.
Winners: Riott Squad via Pinfall    Match Rating: **

While I hope that it doesn’t lead to Liv’s character being turned into an airhead I did think the inset promo was funny with her making wild guesses about who Billie’s partner could be. The match itself was nothing special just like last week but I did like the finisher that Riott Squad used to win the match. I am intrigued where this Billie Kay mystery partner thing goes as I would imagine it leads to her eventually finding a partner that is a true surprise and leads to her finally getting a victory over The Riott Squad, I just wonder who that partner could end up being. 

We go backstage where we see Carmella and her sommelier getting ready to come out to the ring after the break. 

We come back and get another recap video of what happened last week between Sasha and Carmella and after it ends Carmella comes to the ring. Once she is in the ring we see that her sommelier has set up a table with many different champagne bottles and Carmella says she wants to toast her impending victory at TLC. 

Carmella does the typical I’m better than you promo and says the cost of the champagne has more digits than a phone number. Carmella says that while Sasha has everything it takes physically to be a champion she is weak mentally. Carmella says that Sasha is so far over her head and is in uncharted waters because this is the longest she has ever held a championship. Carmella says that Sasha is drowning under the pressure of her own expectations and that is why she is lashing out and last week when Sasha felt like that championship may be slipping through her hands she decided to get herself disqualified. 

Carmella says that Sasha’s entire existence is based on being the boss, the blueprint, and the standard and that is why she has to prove that she is better than Carmella and that is why Sasha can’t get disqualified again because she must prove she is better than Carmella. At TLC Sasha is going to have to mentally fight her instincts not to tear Carmella apart while at the same time she will be facing Carmella physically and that is a fight that Sasha can’t win. Carmella says that when she beats Sasha on Sunday it will send Sasha into a deep and dark turmoil that will make Sasha break. Carmella then asks who Sasha Banks is if she isn’t “The Boss and then says that is a question that not even Sasha Banks herself can answer. Carmella then says she needs a glass of champagne to cheer up but when she takes a drink of it she doesn’t like the taste as she says it tastes cheap and frantic just like Sasha Banks. 

Sasha Banks music plays and Carmella sends the sommelier up the ramp to cut her off, but Sasha comes in from behind and takes a drink of the champagne before throwing it in Carmella’s face and taking her down and locks in the Bank Statement, but the sommelier has come back to the ring and pulls Sasha off of Carmella. Sasha slaps the sommelier and looks to hit him with the backstabber again but the distraction allows Carmella to smash another champagne glass over the back of Sasha and the segment ends with Carmella standing tall. 

I have to be honest that I did not like this Carmella promo for the most part as I felt like Carmella was trying way too hard and was too over the top with the character. The promo itself was too long and was a bit all over the place although I did like the line where she asked who Sasha is if she isn’t “The Boss”. I did think the segment got better once Sasha came out as she can do no wrong right now as she is at the top of her game and she totally saved this segment from becoming the worst thing on this episode of SmackDown. 

We go to the back where Kevin Owens is getting checked out in the trainer’s room which leads to Jey Uso attacking him once again and this time he puts KO through a table as we go to a commercial. 

We come back from the break and go straight to our next match. 

Match #3: Otis w/ Chad Gable vs Shinsuke Nakamura w/ Cesaro
Otis charges toward Nakamura but he ducks behind and tries for a waistlock takedown but Otis reverses and grabs control of Nakamura’s arm but Nakamura cartwheels out of the hold so Otis slams him to the mat and then Otis runs off the ropes and hits Nakamura with a falling headbutt for a 2 count. Nakamura rolls out to the apron and when Otis reaches out to grab him he is hit with a kick to the head, Nakamura follows this up by hitting Otis with a running knee as he is draped halfway out of the ring. 

Nakamura drives his knee into Otis’ neck and then he starts to kick him but Otis is starting to fire up as the kicks aren’t affecting him. Otis finally explodes with a clothesline, a flapjack, and a running discus clothesline, Nakamura staggers over to the corner and Otis hits him with an avalanche. Otis looks to hit the Caterpillar but Chad Gable gets up on the apron and tells him to forget the Caterpillar and suplex Nakamura instead. Otis goes over to grab Nakamura but gets rolled up in an inside cradle which gets a 2 count. Nakamura goes for a kick but Otis catches him and hits him with an exploder that sends Nakamura across the ring, Otis goes up and hits Nakamura with the Vader Bomb to pick up the win.
Winner: Otis via Pinfall   Match Rating: *¾

Yep, this was a match and that is all I have to say about it.

We go to the back where Sami Zayn is all dressed up as he is preparing for the 1st Annual Sami Awards. Zayn starts berating a crew member because he didn’t polish the awards, Zayn walks away to go polish the awards and then Big E walks up and is dressed up as well and he starts laughing as he has the envelopes that contain the Sami Award winners listed. 

We then get a stupid video where members of the WWE roster beat up a CGI monster named 2020 (who has Braun Strowman’s voice) and the commercial ends with a superhero CGI named 2021 saving the day. We then go to a commercial break.

We come back and go to Otis and Gable in the back who are talking about how good Otis was in his match, but then Gable asks Otis why he didn’t do the Caterpillar and Otis said that he thought it was a test, Gable said it was a test and then he tells Otis to always do what he means and not what he says. Otis is confused but Gable tells him he will get it eventually and then tells him to hydrate because training resumes tomorrow. 

We go to the stage where it’s time for the Sami Awards.

Sami Zayn comes out and talks about how the Slammy Awards have gone downhill ever since Jack Tunney stopped being in charge of it and these days it’s been focussed on highlighting the corporate favorites, but the Sami Awards are for the people. Before he gets to the awards Zayn wants to show a video highlighting everything that has happened in 2020 and that leads to a video solely showcasing Zayn’s top moments of the year. 

It’s time to get to the awards and surprisingly Zayn wins the awards for Comeback of the Year and Match of the Year. It’s time for Sami to reveal Superstar of the Year and that award goes to… Big E! Big E comes out to accept his award but Zayn keeps interfering so Big E keeps shoving him away but then Zayn shoves him and that leads to Big E punching him in the gut and then smashing his face into the table and then Big E sends Zayn rolling down the ramp. Big E then smashes one of the Sami awards and walks to the back to end the segment. 

This was a fun little segment to further the feud between Zayn and Big E while also promoting the Slammy Awards which will be airing on Wednesday on the WWE Network. I got a laugh out of Zayn sliding all the way down the ramp when Big E threw him down it. 

We go to the back for an interview with Bayley where she is asked her thoughts on what Bianca said earlier in the night about Bayley being a measuring stick but not a role model, Bayley says it was nice and refreshing to hear someone say something nice about her but she hopes that Bianca doesn’t think she is going to take it easy on her. Bayley talks about how Bianca is always gloating about how great she is and Bayley says she did some of the same stuff Bianca did as she was on the track and cross country teams in college and was also captain of her basketball team but she doesn’t go around bragging about everything she has done. Bayley says that Bianca has all the potential in the world but she should be a bit more humble and instead of picking a fight with her she would pick her brain. Bayley says that tonight she will put Bianca on da map. 

I really liked this promo from Bayley as not only did it make a lot of sense but I felt the tone of the promo was more fun and whimsical than most promos between rivals which was a nice change of pace after all of the super-serious promos we got earlier in the night between Reigns and KO. I like how both women put their opponent over in their promos tonight. 

Bianca Belair makes her way to the ring and then we go to a commercial break.

We come back and go into our final match of the night. 

Match #4: Bayley vs Bianca Belair
We get a lockup and Bianca looks to slam Bayley right away, but Bayley slides out the back and tries to roll Bianca up in a schoolgirl but Bianca doesn’t go down, instead, she backflips away from Bayley. Bianca blows a kiss at Bayley and tells her to bring it so Bayley stomps on her foot and then Bianca steps on Bayley’s foot. Bayley shoves Bianca into the ropes and grabs control of her arm which she ties up in the ropes until she is forced to break the hold. 

Bianca charges at Bayley who passes her into the ropes and Bianca comes back with a shoulder block to Bayley. Bayley charges at Bianca but she gets passed into the ropes and Bianca leapfrogs over her but instead of coming back off the ropes Bayley escapes out to the apron and when Bianca charges toward Bayley she is caught and dropped throat first across the top rope. Bayley takes her focus off of Bianca and that allows Bianca to sweep the leg of Bayley sending her crashing down on the apron which results in a 2 count. 

Bayley reverses a whip into the corner but Bianca jumps up and over Bayley and then handsprings back to the opposite corner where she jumps up on the middle turnbuckle and smacks her ass telling Bayley to kiss it, Bayley charges at her but Bianca backflips over her and then takes her down with a dropkick. Bianca is on fire as she attempts a handspring move onto a grounded Bayley but Bayley sees it coming as she blocks the move by grabbing Bianca’s arm and then she rolls to the outside so that she can smash Bianca’s arm into the ring apron. Bianca rolls off the apron holding her arm so Bayley hammerlocks it and drives it into the barricade and that sends us to a commercial break. 

We come back in time to see Bayley throws Bianca out of the ring and she goes out to get her but Bianca shoves Bayley into the steel steps and slides back into the ring and Bayley joins her moments later as she gets in the ring at the count of 8. Both women are thinking about hitting a forearm but end up colliding with each other which knocks them out momentarily, both women slowly get back to their feet, and then Bianca fires away with a flurry of forearms and shoulder attacks on Bayley in the corner and then she hits Bayley with a delayed vertical suplex. 

Bianca tells Bayley to kiss her ass once again and then starts working over the arm with some arm wrenches and an arm wringer. Bianca hits the handspring moonsault she was looking for earlier which gets her a 2 count. Bayley rolls out to the apron in order to lure Bianca in and when she comes over Bayley slides under the bottom rope as well as under Bianca’s legs and then she runs off the ropes only to be caught with a backbreaker followed by a rib breaker by Bianca for another 2 count. Bianca drags Bayley into position and then goes up top only to be cut off by Bayley who looks to perhaps hit a draping suplex on Bianca but she takes up too much time mocking Bianca as she does a couple of squats and this allows Bianca to come back and hit a suplex of her own. 

Bayley is in severe pain as she walks over to the corner but when Bianca charges toward her she is able to flapjack her face-first into the top turnbuckle, moments later Bayley charges toward Bianca in the corner and ends up getting the exact same thing done to her. Bianca hits Bayley with a spinebuster and then stacks her up as she goes for a pin but Bayley still kicks out. Bayley walks over to the corner and hits Bianca with a kick when she gets close and then she takes her down and tries to pick up a win by pinning Bianca while using the ropes as leverage, but the referee catches her and stops the count and then Bianca reverses into a pin attempt of her own but only gets a 2 count. 

Bayley tries for the Bayley to Belly but Bianca blocks it so Bayley tries for a schoolgirl but Bianca rolls through and then she tries for a schoolgirl on Bayley which she looked to turn into a deadlift powerbomb, but Bayley rakes her eyes and then hits her with the Rose Plant for the win.
Winner: Bayley via Pinfall   Match Rating: ***¼ 

This match was just as good as I expected it to be and the best part about it is that I don’t even think this is close to the best we could see from these two as Bianca could eventually join Sasha at the top of the list of Bayley’s top opponents. I really hope this feud with Bayley is enough to put away any doubt that Vince McMahon and others in charge may have about Bianca being one of their top women wrestlers and hopefully, it will lead to a Rumble win next month and a showdown between the EST of WWE and the Boss of WWE at WrestleMania. Great job by both ladies as they hands down put on the match of the night. 

The announcers hype up TLC and then we get the entrance of the “Tribal Chief” Roman Reigns along with Jey Uso and Paul Heyman and this takes us to a commercial. 

We come back to Reigns in the ring and he has a mic in his hand. Reign says that he has been racking his brain trying to understand why someone who has a chance to be in the ring with him, to be on the island of relevancy, to be in the main event of a PPV, and to be in a championship match would blow it because this is an opportunity that Kevin Owens’ great great great great great grandchildren will be talking about and an opportunity that will elevate Owens’ career to the next level. Before Reigns can say anymore we hear the music of Kevin Owens who limps down the ramp. 

KO grabs a chair as he meets Uso in the aisle and uses it to take Uso out of the picture momentarily. KO slides the chair in the ring and as Reigns bends down to pick it up KO starts firing away at him with punches and then goes for the Stunner, but gets pushed into a Superkick from Uso (who has recovered from the chair shots) and then is hit with a Spear from Reigns. Uso slides out of the ring and grabs a couple of tables and some chairs and then he sets up the tables and while all of this is happening Reigns continues to punish Uso with the steel chair. Reigns throws KO into Uso who puts KO through one of the tables with a spinebuster and then moments later Reigns puts KO through the other table with a Samoan drop. 

Reigns and Uso bury KO under the tables, ladders, and chairs set up around the ring and once Reigns is satisfied they walk to the back, We follow Reigns and Uso to the back and once they reach gorilla position they are approached by Kayla Braxton for an interview but they quickly get distracted as they see on a nearby monitor that KO is somehow still moving as he sits in one of the chairs he was buried under. Reigns, Uso, and Heyman walk off in disgust as KO gets on the mic and tells Reigns that there is nothing that Reigns or his family can do to keep him down and at TLC he is going to take Reigns’ Universal Championship or he is going to die trying and that is how the show comes to a close. 

Just a warning for this next couple of paragraphs I may jump around with my thoughts because I am on cloud nine about everything that happened with Reigns and KO tonight and because of that my mind is scattered which tends to happen when I get this hyped about something. 

Despite how much I liked or didn’t like everything else on the show there is no doubt that this episode of SmackDown was the Roman Reigns, Kevin Owens, and Jey Uso show as they were all over it for the entire night and although this feud has been good from the start after tonight’s show there is no doubt that this is the world title match that I am most looking forward to watching on Sunday with all due respect to AJ Styles and Drew McIntyre. If they built up every match the way they did for this Reigns vs KO match tonight then this company would be on fire. 

People these days say that WWE has forgotten how to book babyfaces and while that has been proven to be true for quite a long time I have to say that tonight a Christmas miracle happened because Kevin Owens came off as the biggest babyface you could ever want to root for. KO taking all of the punishment that Reigns and Uso dished out to him and still getting up was fantastic, especially in the closing moments of the show when he is still making threats towards Reigns.

It is so cool how in 2020 Roman Reigns has perfected the Jake Roberts style for his promos as he is way more scary and menacing when he just quietly and calmly talks rather than screaming at the top of his lungs. If they wanted to take Paul Heyman away from Reigns he would still be able to succeed in this role because he is that damn good at the promos but the fact that he does have Heyman by his side is just the cherry on the fantastic promo sundae. 

I could go on and on about how much I loved what they did tonight with Reigns and KO but I know people don’t want to read too much of my ramblings because they have better things to do, so I will stop here and just say that everyone should go watch everything involving Reigns and Uso from this show. 

Overall I thought this episode of SmackDown was really good as there were a lot of good things happening including everything with Reigns and KO as well as the stuff with Bayley and Bianca. I would definitely recommend this episode of SmackDown as there was nothing that was outright atrocious on the show although there were a few meh moments, but even those moments were quick. 

That’s it for me for this week, I’m not sure if I will do a review next week or not given that it will be Christmas and the show is going to be taped earlier in the week but I will wait and see if there is anything worth writing about from the show given that it will have some of the TLC fallout, although I expect them to save most of the fallout for the New Year’s day episode and let the Christmas episode be a lot more fun and light-hearted. If you see my report next week then obviously I decided to write it, but if not then I will be back to cover the 1/1/21 show.

I wish you all a Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Kwanzaa, and a Happy Festivus.