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: MATCHES

Raw = Cool to see Shelton Benjamin back in action. That Nia Jax and Natalya thing was stupid. I enjoyed the Falls Count Anywhere match, but nothing on this show was particularly "good" for what it was worth.

SmackDown = SmackDown wasn't so amazing on matches, either. They were fine, but just a few hours later and I can't remember anything specific about any of them other than the finishes.

WINNER: Raw ties SmackDown

FACTOR 2: PROMOS

Raw = Nothing was great and some things were flat out bad. I grow tired of things like Paul Heyman saying the same old stuff, and I really didn't like the Triple H and Batista promo.

SmackDown = I did absolutely love the Randy Orton and AJ Styles promo from Tuesday night, though. I was a fan of the Kofi Kingston and Vince McMahon segment, too, but the Orton/Styles one really sold me.

WINNER: SmackDown

FACTOR 3: STORYLINES

Raw = Interesting to see the Intercontinental Championship change hands. Other than that, it was pretty standard stuff.

SmackDown = Furthering the Orton/Styles thing, the Kofi Kingston story, and...actually, that's pretty much it. Everything else was run of the mill. Still, SmackDown wins.

WINNER: SmackDown

FACTOR 4: SCHEDULING / PACING

Raw = I can't help but feel like the show would have been better off with a few things shuffled around. They went off the air in a kind of chaotic way (whether that was planned or not) and I don't know if such a promo-heavy episode should have had a match like Jax and Natalya happen after 3 non-wrestling segments and before two more promos.

SmackDown = Simply put, SmackDown was better.

WINNER: SmackDown

EXTRA CREDIT BONUS ROUND!!!

Raw gains a point for allowing Apollo Crews to wrestle Kurt Angle.

SmackDown gains points for bringing back the B+ player idea and some of the particular jabs in the Orton/Styles promo, but loses a point for Rey Mysterio's outfit and another for advertising a United States title match even while heading into the show just to change it to a tag team match instead.

POINT ADJUSTMENTS: Raw (+1 / -0) / SmackDown (+2 / -2)