WWE Power Moves August: The Miz Gets Angry, Bayley Teams With New Day, and More

Every month, WWE provides its fans with hours upon hours of entertainment between Raw, Smackdown, NXT, a monthly PPV, pre and post shows for almost every event, and tons of online content from the company. That is a lot for any fan, whether casual or hardcore, to devote their time to.

Luckily, we've sifted through the past month and found some of the most entertaining moments from the past month, from whole matches and promos, to one particular moment that got the wrestling world talking this past month.

Let's check out the 8 most entertaining moments from August that evoked an emotional response from the fanbase. Plus, a few videos in case you missed those moments. Note: Aside from WWE's reality programming, we're skipping out on the Cruiserweight Classic. Yes, it's awesome, but it will not be included.

8. Smackdown and Raw FINALLY Feel Like Separate Shows

Raw and Smackdown are WWE's premiere, weekly shows. For years, the entire WWE roster appeared on both shows, every week. In addition, Smackdown became more of a recap of what happened on Raw the past week, rather than its own weekly show. It had no identity.

Since the draft and split of the shows on July 18 & 19, Smackdown had the challenge of becoming a unique show. August is the first full month since the change, and it's proving to be a success. While Raw may have the stronger roster, there are still a lot of stars that have drawing power on Smackdown, like AJ Styles, John Cena, The Miz, and more. Many fans of WWE were skeptical of how this would all play out, but after watching Smackdown in August, it's easy to say it's been a success.

7. Ember Moon's Debut

During the past year, NXT has lost a giant chunk of its women's roster: Charlotte, Sasha Banks, Becky Lynch, Alexa Bliss, Dana Brooke, Eva Marie, Nia Jax, Carmella, and most recently, Bayley. Asuka is still holding down the fort, but it feels like there's a bit of a void in the Women's Division, and there haven't been any real standouts as of late.

That all changed during NXT Takeover: Brooklyn II when Ember Moon debuted. Not to take anything away from her opponent, Billie Kay, who is a powerhouse, but Moon was exciting to watch, once the match got on the right track. Aside from a few sloppy spots early on, Moon wowed the crowd with a springboard crossbody. Her finisher got a huge reaction from the crowd, too. From the top rope, she flipped over Kay and delivered a Stunner. Both Moon and Kay are something to get excited about in NXT.

6. Bayley Teaming With The New Day

Bayley leaving NXT was quite the bummer. However, on the August 29 episode of Raw, Bayley found herself making three new best friends to hug, while walking backstage: The New Day. What happened next was nothing short of the most delightful moment in WWE television in months, as they chatted it up, then got into it with Dana Brooke, leading to a mixed tag match with Brooke, Gallows, and Anderson.

Bringing the charismatic and overtly-optimistic Bayley onto Raw could have been a bit of a challenge, as many fans that watch Raw have no clue who she is. However, WWE made the wonderful move of having her team up with The New Day. Personality-wise, she's a perfect fit, and there are probably lots of fans that would love to see her be part of this group, week-to-week.

5. Chris Jericho and Kevin Owens

During the past month, Kevin Owens and Chris Jericho started teaming up. At the time, the only thing they really had in common was they were both Canadian. However, as the month as rolled on, the two worked well off of each other, and the promos they've been cutting are giving fans a lot more insight into who their characters are right now.

At first, this whole team-up didn't make sense, but it's really been fun to watch these two play off of each other. They're great on the mic, and they're great in the ring. Just check out their interview after SummerSlam (above). More than anything else, this new angle breathed new life into both of these stars.

4. Anderson and Gallows’ New Gimmick

Before the brand split, both Gallows and Anderson were AJ Styles' lackeys, trying to recapture the magic of when they were all in the Bullet Club together in New Japan Pro Wrestling. It worked, but when Styles went to Smackdown and Gallows and Anderson went to Raw, something had to change. So, they became doctors, of sorts, cutting promos about "ringpostitus," which you contract when you take a ringpost to the crotch.

What makes this gimmick work is how straight-faced these two are when they deliver their lines. It's two guys, coming into their own, but delivering some funny stuff, seriously. Where this angle shines is the fact they're in a rivalry with The New Day, who are easily the most humorous group currently in the company. This duo could continue to go the "tough guy" route but letting their personalities shine is what gets these two on the list.

3. Eva Marie’s Angle Works

Eva Marie is the Total Diva people seem to love to hate. Over the past year, we've heard the chants of "You can't wrestle" week after week on NXT, as she developed her character. Now that she's on Smackdown, she's got a whole new gimmick. Marie's entrance has her own announcer talks about how great she is, and she takes her time getting to the ring, too. However, that's not all. During August, she has fought a total of zero times because of injuries, wardrobe malfunctions, and being on vacation during SummerSlam, even though we all know she was suspended.

This whole new gimmick of coming up with reasons not to wrestle is hilarious. It's giving Smackdown the much-needed entertainment value to make it a standalone show. Sure, she isn't wrestling at all, but the over-the-top attitude and constant refusal to wrestle is funny and interesting. It's getting people talking about the show and the character.

2. NXT Takeover: Brooklyn II

One of WWE's premiere PPVs, SummerSlam, took place in Brooklyn this year. It had some high and low points, but the best part of SummerSlam weekend was NXT Takeover: Brooklyn II. Following up last year's Takeover event, which was also at the Barclay's Center, Takeover highlighted new and old talent from WWE's developmental program.

We've already focused on one aspect of the event, and the rest of it was exactly what WWE fans are looking for. We saw the debut of Bobby Roode, who had the most glorious entrance in recent memory (video above, for obvious reasons). Additionally, there were three great championship matches. Once again, NXT put on a memorable summer event that you'll want to watch again and again. In addition, Shinsuke Nakamura and Samoa Joe put on one hell of a match, worthy of the main event.

1. The Miz’s Breakdown on Talking Smack

Normally, when people talk about The Miz, it's about what they don't like about the character, which is bizarre because he's so awesome. During one of WWE's post-shows, Talking Smack, Smackdown GM Daniel Bryan told The Miz he wrestles like a coward, like someone who is afraid to get hit. The Miz took offense and went off on Bryan. The whole video segment is above, and it's something you need to watch.

There was nothing else during August that had this big of an emotional impact on the viewer. It was the most talked about moment, followed by the Orton/Lesnar finish, for good reason. It seems there's a lot of real emotion behind Miz's passionate speech, as tears welled up in his eyes. Miz's rant against Bryan had a lot of eye-opening points, including telling Bryan, in so many words, that he doesn't have the same passion for being in ring as Bryan says he does. Again, watch the video.

That's all for this month's WWE Power Moves. Let us know what you thought were the most entertaining moments in August, and we'll see you next month.