Last night's SmackDown opened with The Bloodline 2.0's Solo Sikoa promising to dominate Roman Reigns' four-man faction at Survivor Series: WarGames later this month.
Backstage, the OTC scoffed at Solo's demand that his Bloodline surrender as he, the Usos, and Sami Zayn discussed who their fifth man could be. Reigns had little interest in another team-up with Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes and was similarly unimpressed by Zayn's suggestion of Seth Rollins.
In the main event segment, both Bloodlines met for a showdown but Solo claimed he wasn't there to fight. Instead, he suggested they should join forces and take control of WWE. He argued that surrender was the only option, especially as the babyfaces are a man down and have no Wiseman.
With that, Paul Heyman's all-too-familiar voice boomed through the arena. Five months after the heels took him out, Heyman confirmed he'd found the fifth man for Reigns and introduced his former client, a returning CM Punk!
A brawl ensued and Reigns and Punk were left to stare each other down as SmackDown went off the air (WWE has also shared some footage of what happened after that).
We'd expected Heyman to return with a fifth man after Rollins' refusal to get involved, and Punk is an exciting surprise who promises to add a new element to The Bloodline heading into WarGames.
Other talking points in the show included another tense exchange between Rhodes and Kevin Owens along with an attack on Bianca Belair backstage which left her bloodied and laid out on a car windshield. Nia Jax, however, denied being responsible.
Check out some highlights from SmackDown in the X posts below.