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 = The matches this week were largely exciting, and outside of 2 poor matches, they were also some of the best wrestling on Raw in quite a long time. The United States Championship number 1 contenders match was a thrilling gauntlet, in which everyone was given an opportunity to shine. Ricochet's star shone brightest as he won, and reminded fans just how special he is as a wrestler.

Alexa Bliss vs Becky Lynch was an interesting match, with both wrestlers coming away with enhanced reputations. Bliss continues to show just how underrated she is, whilst Lynch continues to show she is one of the most consistent wrestlers in the company.

The match of the night however was the Raw Tag Team Championship match between The Revival, The Usos and The OC members Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson. All 3 teams worked hard to ensure they had a great match, with Gallows and Anderson showing that as part of The OC, they mean business. Their characters have been rehabilitated to the point where capturing the championships does not feel unwarranted. Their match was fun, interesting and exciting.

SmackDown = The match quality on SmackDown hit the highs that Raw did, however the issue was the higher amount of dud matches. Dolph Ziggler vs Finn Balor was less of a match and more of an angle advancement, whilst Ali vs Shinsuke Nakamura was too short to enjoy.

Thankfully, Kofi Kingston vs AJ Styles was an incredible match, and one which Kofi deservedly won. Champion vs champion matches tend to finish in a DQ finish, however to have Kofi win cleanly was the perfect manner to prepare him for his match with Randy Orton at SummerSlam.

WINNER: Raw

FACTOR 2: PROMOS

Raw = Raw was low on promos this week, however the Samoan Summit was entertaining. Samoa Joe continues to excel on the microphone, and it led to a great segment. A Moment of Bliss was fun, with Alexa Bliss expertly goading Becky Lynch. A longer feud between the two would be interesting, if only for the quality of the promos they would have.

Unfortunately, there was an extended promo segment devoted to Maria Kanellis and Mike Kanellis. Not only was it hard to watch, it made me want to change the channel. There was no redeeming feature about their segment, and each week the storyline gets even worse.

SmackDown = Aside from the Charlotte and Trish Stratus promo segment, SmackDown had the better promos this week by a country mile. Kevin Owens continues to excel on the microphone, and Aleister Black produced another intelligent promo. However, the best use of promo time this week was the Randy Orton video package, which was well performed by Orton and increased the interest in his match with Kofi Kingston at SummerSlam.

WINNER: SmackDown

FACTOR 3: STORYLINES

Raw = Brock Lesnar furthered his feud with Seth Rollins by absolutely decimating him. Lesnar took Rollins out with multiple chair shots and F5's which led to Rollins being stretchered into an ambulance, but Lesnar continued the assault and destroyed him with another F5. This feud was in danger of becoming stale, however Lesnar's sheer destruction of Rollins allows for him to come across as the beast he is, whilst Rollins is able to garner sympathy and support. Their SummerSlam match may not be great, however the build has been superb so far.

The OC continue to strengthen week after week, and through capturing the Raw Tag Team Championships, all 3 members now have championship gold around their waists. The OC is slowly becoming as dangerous as Evolution were in the early 00's, and it is compelling viewing to see them succeed as a unit.

SmackDown = Kevin Owens defeated Drew McIntyre to further his feud with Shane McMahon whilst Ali defeated Shinsuke Nakamura to set up their SummerSlam match, however the storylines on SmackDown pale in comparison to those on Raw. This is compounded by the fact that there was little advancement this week for Finn Balor and Bray Wyatt, whilst Sami Zayn challenging Aleister Black comes off as a poor last minute decision. The same can be said of Charlotte vs Trish Stratus, which is a match of great interest and should have received more than 2 weeks build.

WINNER: Raw

FACTOR 4: SCHEDULING / PACING

Raw = Pacing has been an issue for Raw since they moved to 3 hours, however this week's show felt easier to digest. The gauntlet match flew by as it was so entertaining, and the Raw Tag Team Championship match was easy to watch. Nothing on the show felt out of place, although the 24/7 Championship shenanigans continue to be a blight on the scheduling, and Raw as a whole.

SmackDown = SmackDown felt as fresh as it usually does, with no match or segment impacting on the quality of the show. There was a good mix of matches and promo segments, however to end the show with Roman Reigns narrowly escaping serious injury was a strange moment, which meant SmackDown ended on a rather flat moment.

WINNER: Raw

EXTRA CREDIT BONUS ROUND!!!

Raw gains points for hosting an exciting title change. The Raw Tag Team Championship was showcased in fine fashion, and having a non 24/7 Championship title change on Raw is always a positive action, especially when it means so much to the winners. This could be yet another way to legitimise The OC, and there are so many routes WWE can take the stable down. The next few months will be compelling viewing for The OC.

Raw also gains an extra point for using footage of Becky Lynch taking out Natalya prior to the show. Not only did this look different to the usual WWE presentation, but it legitimised their feud. This has been the best part of the build to Lynch vs Natalya at SummerSlam, and credit must go to WWE creative for trying to present something different.

Raw loses points for destroying what little integrity the 24/7 Championship had. Maria Kanellis winning the championship whilst pregnant was a bad idea, as wrestlers are reluctant to challenge a pregnant woman. It is clear the only way she will drop the title is through some convoluted and unexciting method, which is why she mentioned she would be at her medical appointment on Thursday. The whole Mike Kanellis being downtrodden by Maria storyline is of poor taste, and each week the storyline seems to get even worse.

SmackDown gains points for enhancing the supernatural nature of The Fiend. When The Undertaker retires, WWE may have a natural replacement with Bray Wyatt's dark alter ego.

SmackDown loses points for having Ember Moon take the pinfall in her match. Moon needs as much credibility as she can gain for her match with Bayley at SummerSlam, therefore losing here provides doubts for her ability to win the SmackDown Women's Championship. This was a clear mistake.

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


With a score of 4-1, Raw is the clear winner this week. That is not to say that SmackDown wasn't a good show as it was entertaining, however everything clicked into place for Raw this week which made it the better show. Raw had a better emphasis on good matches and strong storyline advancement. If SmackDown can focus on better storyline advancement next week it can easily be the better show, but ultimately this was a great week for WWE as their 2 primary shows delivered. Keep it up WWE!