On one hand, Monday’s Season 27 premiere of The Voice seemed like old times, what with OG coach Adam Levine back on the panel. On the other, it felt like something was missing… or rather someone. The Maroon 5 frontman’s longtime foil, Blake Shelton, retired from the enduring NBC sing-off after following Season 23.

Though the country superstar didn’t make a surprise appearance during the episode (recapped here), he did kinda make a cameo via the secret weapon that the show gave rookie coach Kelsea Ballerini: the option to press her button to play recordings of Shelton mischievously dissing his on-screen rival. In fact, it was while she and Levine were vying with John Legend and Michael Bublé to recruit the night’s first contestant, Grace-Miller Moody, that Ballerini revealed that she could cue up Shelton sound bites.

 

“Adam’s a big baby” went the first. This was followed by Gwen Stefani’s better half exclaiming on tape that “Adam won’t shut up,” “Adam’s a crappy coach” and more.

While it wasn’t quite the reunion for which fans of Shelton and Levine’s playfully competitive banter might have hoped, it was a fun nod to their history and a clever way to involve Ballerini in it. Or at least we thought so. What was your take on the “reunion”? Vote in the poll below, then hit the comments.