Smark Out Moment

Welcome to another edition of Battle of the Brands from Smark Out Moment, where we compare this week's episodes of Raw and SmackDown and determine which one of the two was the better show.

BATTLE OF THE BRANDS:

RAW vs. SMACKDOWN

FACTOR 1: CROWD

Raw did not really stand a chance here this week because of Daniel Bryan on SmackDown and all the huge news surrounding him. With that being said, I couldn't believe the pop Roman got coming in from the crowd in the first segment of Raw. He always gets a reaction, I just couldn't believe this one was as positive as it was.

SmackDowns crowd was excited and ready for DB. They get the win here.

WINNER: SmackDown

FACTOR 2: COMMENTARY

I just do not like Byron on commentary. Coachman just outweighs him by so much on the stick, and that sucks too because Corey & Tom are great together. I'd much rather see just those two instead of Byron being in there. Make the teams Micheal and Coach on Raw, Corey and Tom on SD. That being said, Raw wins. They just have the better team here.

WINNER: Raw

FACTOR 3: MATCHES

This week wasn't great for matches. SmackDown saw Rusev and Shinsuke go one on one, I liked seeing Tye Dillinger out there even though Corbin botched the initial finish, and I always enjoy watching Harper in the ring.

Strowman beats Cesaro in a decent match. I always enjoy watching The Revival do their thing, The Balor Club wins, and of course Matt Hardy winning Ultimate Deletion. Raw wins here with just a slightly more entertaining set of matches.

WINNER: Raw

FACTOR 4: PROMOS

The promo at the beginning and the end of SmackDown were great. DB is back to in-ring action, and his promo with Sami & KO at the end was great too. The crowd BLEW UP the second he started throwing kicks. Outside of that, there wasn't much else to note.

Raw didn't have much either outside of the fun promo at the beginning with Angle and Roman and eventually Lesnar coming in for the beatdown. Oh, and a possible Cena vs. Kane now..? It was good, but not as good as SD Live.

WINNER: SmackDown

FACTOR 5: STORYLINES

Shane & DB vs. KO & Sami at 'Mania! I'm so happy to see Daniel back in the ring, and I'm even happier that it is WWE. The Usos vs. New Day vs. Bludgeon Brothers will be sneaky good. That is six excellent workers putting on a show together, and it'll be fun. The US Title situation should be fun too, but not as good as the IC Title. Why is Asuka not here if she is challenging Charlotte and still doing things on Raw? This brings me to probably my favorite match at 'Mania, and that is AJ vs. Shinsuke. They haven't done a ton to build it up yet, but I love how it is staying face vs. face for the time being. No need to make one of these guys a heel when people have just been dying to see this match for so many years on the biggest stage in the business.

I'm not a huge fan of Nia vs. Alexa, but they both deserve spots at 'Mania. Who is Brauns partner going to be? Personally, I have no idea, but I am so ready to see. I'm really hoping Kane isn't taking on Cena at WM, but it seems to point to that as of right now. I don't want to see Taker back either especially in American Badass form. I need Deadman Taker, or no Taker. The IC triple threat match will steal the show. It is stealing the build up so far with great segments and promos centered around it every week. I have also really enjoyed Roman & Lesnar so far. Reigns has stepped his game up over the last few weeks, and is carrying this alongside Heyman.

Thanks to DB essentially being added to the 'Mania card (not officially but it'll happen), SDLive wins.

WINNER: SmackDown

FACTOR 6: SCHEDULING / PACING

If you're having a trouble getting through Raw without getting angry or passing out I suggest you watch it on HULU. You don't have to deal with any commercials, and I've noticed it has made me a lot less negative towards the product. However, commercials are part of the actual shows, and Raw just has way too many.

WINNER: SmackDown

FACTOR 7: VISUAL PRESENTATION

Two words here: Ultimate Deletion. It was crazy, it was weird, and I loved it.

WINNER: Raw

EXTRA CREDIT BONUS ROUND!!!

Kudos to WWE for getting DB back in the ring, and kudos to DB for fighting to get here.

POINT ADJUSTMENTS: Raw (+0 / -0) / SmackDown (+1 / -0)


It may just be the pure excitement that Bryan is back, but I enjoyed SmackDown quite a bit. They get the win 5-3 thanks to some bonus points. DB adds something to the Shane/KO/Sami story that I think it really needed. I am looking forward to 'Mania so much with the great cards both sides are building up! 'Mania time is always a good time to be a wrestling fan.