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.
WWE Monday Night Raw - July 19, 2021 - American Airlines Center in Dallas, TX
WWE Friday Night SmackDown - July 23, 2021 – Rolling Loud Music Festival in Miami, FL
BATTLE OF THE BRANDS:
RAW vs. SMACKDOWN
FACTOR 1: MATCHES
Raw = Keith Lee returned this week to answer the open challenge from Bobby Lashley. Unfortunately, he was a step behind where he should be, but this is down to ring rust more than anything else. Charlotte Flair vs Rhea Ripley was good enough, but that finish was just turgid. At least it led to a successful cash-in for Nikki A.S.H.
SmackDown = SmackDown's matches were all fair to good quality, with no single match disappointing. I enjoyed the match environment at Rolling Loud, but I did come away slightly disappointed that Bianca Belair vs Carmella was not as engaging as it needed to be.
WINNER: SmackDown
FACTOR 2: PROMOS
Raw = John Cena gave a stunning show opening promo, perfectly recapturing the wave of emotion he had with fans at Money in the Bank. He worked the crowd well, making fans miss him even more than they already had.
SmackDown = Pretty much every single promo was a home run this week. Edge and Seth Rollins duelled well, whilst John Cena, Paul Heyman, and Roman Reigns all brought their A game.
WINNER: SmackDown
FACTOR 3: STORYLINES
Raw = I'm over Charlotte Flair vs Rhea Ripley, but hopefully they will go their separate ways now Nikki A.S.H. is Raw Women's Champion. However, the egregious storyline return of Goldberg fills me with utter dread!
SmackDown = SmackDown has, quite frankly, the best storylines in WWE at the moment. The insertion of Finn Balor into the WWE Universal Championship scene is amazing, especially as it appears to have come at the expense of John Cena. Edge vs Seth Rollins promises to be an unmissable feud, whilst Baron Corbin's continued fall from grace is a smart way to keep him relevant after losing his crown.
WINNER: SmackDown
FACTOR 4: SCHEDULING / PACING
Raw = Raw was a mess in terms of pacing, feeling like a slog to get through.
SmackDown = SmackDown masterfully managed two venues well, with the show avoiding the poor feeling of being stitched together.
WINNER: SmackDown
EXTRA CREDIT BONUS ROUND!!!
Raw gains points for Keith Lee's return, which was long overdue.
Raw also gains points for actually pulling the trigger on Nikki A.S.H.
Raw loses points for going to the well once again with Goldberg.
SmackDown gains points for making Finn Balor relevant again.
SmackDown also gains points for using Rolling Loud in a manner that didn't compromise the show.
SmackDown loses points for stealing Big E's thunder. He should have been afforded his own, uninterrupted segment.
POINT ADJUSTMENTS: Raw (+2 / -1) / SmackDown (+2 / -1)
THIS WEEK'S WINNER = SmackDown
With a score of 5 to 1, SmackDown wins this week's Battle of the Brands. Raw just felt too bloated, with the direction of many storylines negatively impacting the show. SmackDown was in comparison a much tighter and enjoyable show.
That's my pick for the better show of the week, but how do YOU stand?
Which was better, Raw or SmackDown?
Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
Subscribe to Smark Out Moment on YouTube, iTunes, Google Podcasts, Spotify, and more!
0 comments: