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: CROWD

Raw was in Chicago, so of course we had our "CM Punk" chants. However, it wasn't as bad this time because the show was so bad that they weren't interrupting anything good with their chanting.

SmackDown was in Indianapolis. My home state showed up. Great crowd with some great interaction.

WINNER: SmackDown

FACTOR 2: COMMENTARY

Just like the rest of the show, the Raw commentary team is a train wreck. I still hate Byron Saxton, and Cole & Graves just don't go as well together as JBL & Cole did. I still hold hope that they switch Graves and JBL at some point this year.

WINNER: SmackDown

FACTOR 3: MATCHES

SmackDown only had three matches. Two tag matches, one was a mixed tag which I hate, and then the main event. Nothing overly special. I enjoyed the main event but it wasn't enough for them to win here.

Raw had an incredible Cruiserweight Championship match. KO & Sami Zayn had a really good match. The main event with Jericho & Samoa Joe was a tiny bit disappointing, but they are building Joe's Coquina Clutch to be something incredible and move that needs to be feared. So although the match wasn't special, I think the finish will pay off in the long haul.

WINNER: Raw

FACTOR 4: PROMOS

Both shows were remarkably weak in the promos area. Since I have to choose, I'll go with Raw. Not because anything special happened, minus Y2J and KO having their first post friendship mic battle and brawl, but simply because they were just a little better.

WINNER: Raw

FACTOR 5: STORYLINES

I'm sure some of you are thinking, "Wow, Raw has two points even though it wasn't very good?" Yes. But this is where the shit hits the fan with Monday Night Raw. Their God-awful storylines hinder this show worse than any on screen performance ever could. Goldberg should NOT be champ. Lesnar & Goldberg should NOT be the WrestleMania main event, and definitely NOT for a title. KO vs. Y2J should be for the Universal Championship, NOT the United States Championship. Charlotte should NOT be involved in literally every Women's Championship match. Last but not least, The Undertaker should NOT be facing Roman Reigns. Whew.. That felt good. Seriously, what is going on?

SmackDown is much better except for a few things. Randy & Bray is coming in as a great story and feud. Their women's scene has been impeccable. Alexa & Mickey James will be a solid match. As long as the end route is Baron Corbin winning the Intercontinental Championship, then I'll enjoy that too. But now to the bad. Where are the tag champs? I get they don't have a ton of competition, but why not let them roll over some teams before The Revival comes up (which I'm assuming is the plan)? And last, why waste your star talent like AJ Styles on a match with Shane? Shane is a great competitor, but if anything you should've kept Taker on SmackDown, like he said in his promo, and let those two go at it on the biggest stage of them all.

Moral of the story, both shows have lows but Raw is FAR worse.

WINNER: SmackDown

FACTOR 6: SCHEDULING / PACING

I couldn't wait for Raw to be over. Easy win for SmackDown.

WINNER: SmackDown

FACTOR 7: VISUAL PRESENTATION

I guess I'll give this to Raw for Undertakers entrance alone.

WINNER: Raw

EXTRA CREDIT BONUS ROUND!!!

Goldberg is a freaking champ. In 2017. Minus one.

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


With a tally of only 4-2, it may not seem like SmackDown was the overwhelming better show but it definitely was. In terms of progressing their storylines, SmackDown is easily #1. If they had the Cruiserweights for their great matches, we wouldn't even have to do this. SmackDown would just sweep every week.