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 - February 7 2022 - Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado
WWE Friday Night SmackDown - February 11 2022 - Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, Louisiana
BATTLE OF THE BRANDS:
RAW vs. SMACKDOWN
FACTOR 1: MATCHES
Raw = Pretty much every single match delivered in the ring, be it on a match quality level or from a storyline perspective. Austin Theory once again had an absolute banger, whilst the tag team match between R-K-Bro and the team of Seth Rollins and Kevin Owens was a fantastic way to end the show, even if we were robbed of a straight up one on one contest between Riddle and Rollins. That match was shaping up to be something special, so I hope it is re-visted soon!
SmackDown = Charlotte Flair defended her WWE SmackDown Women's Championship against Naomi in a worthy main event, providing fans with a solid contest to reinforce just how talented these two wrestlers are. Naomi never truly felt like she would win, but the journey to get to Flair retaining was more than enjoyable. The same cannot be said of Natalya vs Aliyah, which was as awful as I had anticipated it would be.
WINNER: Raw
FACTOR 2: PROMOS
Raw = Alexa Bliss continues to attend Therapy, with a clear change in her character being implemented each and every week. Despite the positive change for her, these segments are rather dull and boring, especially when you consider just how talented she actually is on the microphone. This is a severe waste of her artistic talents.
SmackDown = Roman Reigns and Goldberg both participated in sit down promo segments, with both men coming across well. Goldberg was surprisingly solid in his promo delivery, and mercifully, they kept it short and sweet.
WINNER: SmackDown
FACTOR 3: STORYLINES
Raw = Bobby Lashley vs Brock Lesnar understandably took a back seat this week to the rest of the show, but that is the danger you accept when you have Lesnar in such a prominent storyline. R-K-Bro were not only hilarious during the Quiz Bowl, but they anchored the show with their match against Seth Rollins and Kevin Owens. Whilst less emphasis was placed on storylines this week on the red brand, the sheer lack of anything as bad as what is present on SmackDown means it was a pleasant and enjoyable watch from the perspective of fans interested in feuds and storylines.
SmackDown = Roman Reigns vs Goldberg was adequately progressed this week, whilst Ronda Rousey's challenge of Charlotte Flair continued to gain traction. Unfortunately, the issues that are on SmackDown mainly revolve around the turgid and boring programme between Sonya Deville and Noami. Oh, and the pathetic feud that is Natalya vs Aliyah, which continues to hang like a noose around Aliyah's neck.
WINNER: Raw
FACTOR 4: SCHEDULING / PACING
Raw = Raw remained it's usual solid self, putting on a show that didn't overly drag over the full three hour run time. No particular segment brought down the pacing of the show, which was particularly pleasant to see.
SmackDown = SmackDown was much better this week in terms of pacing, with the scheduling of matches and promo segments set up in such a manner that the show genuinely felt like a huge improvement over the previous week's effort.
WINNER: Raw
EXTRA CREDIT BONUS ROUND!!!
Raw gains points for the Quiz Bowl. It could have been awful, but it was actually better than it had any right to be.
Raw also gains points for Austin Theory continuing to amaze me in the ring. He is such a precocious talent, but he is certainly evidencing that he deserves a prominent role on Raw.
Raw loses points for the placement of the Quiz Bowl, as I feel it would have benefitted from being somewhere else on the show. This is not to say it was bad, as noted by the fact it gained a point, but it's placement was something that stuck out to me in a negative fashion.
SmackDown gains points for giving Charlotte Flair and Naomi the spotlight in the main event that they deserve.
SmackDown also gains points for keeping Goldberg's involvement in the show to a minimum.
SmackDown loses points for 'In-Zayn', which was just terrible this week. It is a segment that can be used effectively so easily, so to see it fail spectacularly is a real shame.
POINT ADJUSTMENTS: Raw (+2 / -1) / SmackDown (+2 / -1)
THIS WEEK'S WINNER = Raw
With a score of 4 to 2, Raw once again wins this week's Battle of the Brands. Although Raw is victorious again, SmackDown was a clear improvement over recent weeks. The issue remains, however, that they are focusing on storylines which do not deserve to be showcased, whilst the clear lack of strength in depth is evident. Madcap Moss should be nowhere near a feud with Drew McIntyre, but it almost feels like it is happening out of necessity. Raw was overall a stronger product, which I anticipate to remain the case for the next few weeks at least.
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!
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