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 = Raw featured a number of intriguing matches, starting the show off with a United States Championship match between Apollo Crews and MVP. Both Crews and MVP put on a spectacular effort, with Crews winning to underline just how much of a force he can be within WWE.

Unfortunately, a number of the matches were extremely poor, with the 24/7 Championship match severely underwhelming. The Riott Squad vs The IIconics was just rubbish, whilst Sasha Banks vs Shayna Baszler was brain numbingly stupid, as the match ended early due to an attack on a non competing Bayley. You cannot make this up!

SmackDown = Match quality was poor this week on SmackDown, with 60% of the matches featuring either a DQ or a no contest finish. Despite there being a storyline reason for two of these matches, it came off as poor choice. Sheamus vs King Corbin was simply ok, whilst Cesaro vs Lince Dorado was thankfully a fun little romp.

The main event was the worst offender though, as Heavy Machinery vs The Miz and John Morrison was declared a no contest due to Mandy Rose attacking Sonya Deville. Similarly to Sasha Banks vs Shayna Baszler, this was declared a no contest when a non competitor was attacked. Just shameful. Absolutely shameful, especially considering the adequate nature of the match up to that point.

WINNER: Raw

FACTOR 2: PROMOS

Raw = There was a decent mix of promos this week on Raw, with Shayna Baszler and Sasha Banks working well together on the microphone. As ever, it was Seth Rollins who stole the show with his Monday Night Messiah gimmick. His promo was as elegant and intriguing as ever.

SmackDown = Braun Strowman gave a simple but effective promo against Bray Wyatt, informing him of his transformation to the the dark side. He cast aside his loyalty to Alexa Bliss and declared The Fiend his next victim. Strowman has slowly improved on the microphone, with this promo hitting all of the right notes.

WINNER: SmackDown

FACTOR 3: STORYLINES

Raw = Some storylines were advanced this week as we moved towards SummerSlam, however a lot of attention was given to Raw Underground. It appears this is a concept that will continue each week, therefore it can act as a solid vehicle to give certain wrestlers more attention than they would have otherwise received.

The Hurt Business lost all of their matches this week, which caused MVP to take over Raw Underground, at least for one night. Despite losing, they continued to be pushed heavily on Raw, which indicates something special is on the horizon.

SmackDown = Little was explained about The Fiend's attack on Alexa Bliss last week, other than it being clear he was using Bliss to get to Braun Strowman. The Fiend attempted a repeat of the attack, only for Bliss to stop him with a sign of affection. There are more questions than answers with this storyline, but it remains an intriguing highlight as we traverse the road to SummerSlam.

RETRIBUTION made their SmackDown debut by scaring off WWE personnel and destroying the ring area. It came off as unexpected, if not slightly hokey, as this was executed better a decade ago by The Nexus. It did leave fans questioning who the mysterious members were and why no SmackDown wrestler came down to the ring to stop them.

WINNER: Raw

FACTOR 4: SCHEDULING / PACING

Raw = Raw was quite the show this week, as it felt a million miles away from last week's offering. The show felt different, for better or for worse. It was gripping, but this was because it felt like car crash television. It wasn't a good or bad show, as fans at least had something to say.

SmackDown = SmackDown wasn't a great show as it felt extremely rushed and disjointed. The match finishes were an egregious mistake, whilst the lack of a competent build to some matches at SummerSlam is unforgivable. At least the attack by RETRIBUTION was something new and unexpected.

WINNER: Raw

EXTRA CREDIT BONUS ROUND!!!

Raw gains points for trying something new. Yes, Raw Underground seemed hokey, but it is different. It is WWE attempting something new, and until it can be fully established as a negative or a positive change, it can't be fully judged.

Raw also gains points for clarifying the United States Championship picture. Having Apollo Crews as the undisputed champion is a great development as he can now work towards cementing his reign as something meaningful.

Raw loses points for not really following up with RETRIBUTION's attack on WWE production equipment. It felt tacked on rather than feeling like a real development.

Raw also loses points for the terrible storyline of having Montez Ford be posioned. He seemed to have suffered a seizure of some sort, therefore his behaviour was not befitting that of a poisoning victim.

SmackDown gains points for pulling off the attack by RETRIBUTION well. Although not perfect, it was highly effective at creating a buzz.

SmackDown also gains points for trying to keep it's upper midcard relevant.

SmackDown loses points for the unforgivable amount of indecisive match finishes.

SmackDown also loses points for the Stephanie McMahon conference call. She could have really torn into Bayley and Sasha Banks, but her insipid delivery came off poorly.

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


With a score of 3 to 1, Raw wins this week's Battle of the Brands. It was a poor week for both shows, with both brands struggling to put on a coherent show. Each show featured something new, however it was the additions to Raw which struck a chord with fans. Could Raw Underground be the saviour of an ailing product? Only time will tell.