I Have Pinpointed The Beginning of When Smackdown Became Better Than RAW

[suneeboy]

It was after the draft when RAW broke up The King and JR. Michael Cole is not a good choice for the voice of RAW. Some say the announcers don't matter, but I say the announcers do. Their job is to set the tone of the show and the mood of the match. Michael Cole says the same old thing every night, and to make it worse he's been saying it over the same old matches for about a year. He also says some of the most annoying shit I have ever heard a wrestling announcer say, eventhough he's been with the WWE forever. On top of that, he STILL gets shit wrong.

Perfect example...I was watching the US Championship Match from Thursday's SuperStars, and MVP went for the cover after a hard clothesline on Kofi, who kicks out at two and Cole says with such emotion and confidence, "...and a kick out by the Brazilian Champion Kingston." Youtube it.

Wrestling is a show, and the costumes, the gimmicks, fireworks, live crowd, and announcers are all apart of that show. They are to compensate the at home viewer for that energy that you get from being there live.

Michael Cole with his annoying voice, punk ass look, and "vintage" catchphrases ruin the show for the at home viewer as he makes bad matches matches worse, and good matches average, and just doesn't put anything over as intense or as believable as it should be.

When he came, he cut the red tape on making Smackdown the more enjoyable show to watch with the better announce team. He's not the JR of old, but he is still JR, and I think the King misses him at the table more than anybody.

[shafe_41]

I disagree with that just for the simple fact that yes Michael Cole is annoying a little bit... but announcers don't make or break the show. And no matter how much he may annoy us with his commentary, Michael Cole did not single handedly bring Raw down. Not a chance in hell. King is holding his own on Raw and I applaud him for that.

I believe Smackdown became more enjoyable around the same time everyone else believes it did. The draft this year. Smackdown's roster may not be "better", but it's fresher. On Raw, you still have the same main eventers shoved down our throats with HHH, Orton, Cena, Batista... and your occassional Big Show. We thought MVP would be a huge addition to the roster... and he is... but the guy is boring the hell out of a lot of people. I want to like him. I really really do because I loved him on Smackdown. But the face character on Raw is just not working for him. The Miz is the only breath of fresh air on Raw right now.

Smackdown has Taker, Punk, Shelton (somehow still his name comes up in good mid-card talent even though he's never featured due to his personality of wet toilet paper), Morrison, Jericho, and yes... even Jeff Hardy. Hell, even Khali is becoming more entertaining. Then they give us Ziggler who is being featured more and more and I love that because he's got skills upon skills. And even though I don't like Rey-Rey, his run with Jericho is giving him some steam and they're having great matches. Then the star of Smackdown... Edge. Edge is, and has been more entertaining than anybody on Raw over the last 3-4 years. Smackdown is his show and I really believe he single-handedly made that show as entertaining as it is. He carried it .

So for that... that's why Smackdown is more entertaining. I just don't believe it has anything to do with Michael Cole. During matches, put Raw on mute. Problem solved. No Cole. Turn volume on when promos and ring-talking are happening. Cole won't be talking over them. But volume and mute control still doesn't change the fact that Raw still has Cena, Show, HHH, Orton, and Batista. I really think that if Rey-Rey would have stayed on Raw, and Cena could have come over to Smackdown, there wouldn't even be a debate on which show is better. As much as I dislike Cena matches, the man is entertaining on the stick, and I always sit through his matches... even though I rarely enjoy one. Smackdown would then be head over heels better than Raw.

But for now... Smackdown is better. But it's just got nothing to do with Michael Cole. That's just like...my opinion man.

[Lord Sidious]

It was after the draft when RAW broke up The King and JR. Michael Cole is not a good choice for the voice of RAW. Some say the announcers don't matter, but I say the announcers do. Their job is to set the tone of the show and the mood of the match. Michael Cole says the same old thing every night, and to make it worse he's been saying it over the same old matches for about a year. He also says some of the most annoying shit I have ever heard a wrestling announcer say, eventhough he's been with the WWE forever. On top of that, he STILL gets shit wrong.

Perfect example...I was watching the US Championship Match from Thursday's SuperStars, and MVP went for the cover after a hard clothesline on Kofi, who kicks out at two and Cole says with such emotion and confidence, "...and a kick out by the Brazilian Champion Kingston." Youtube it.

Wrestling is a show, and the costumes, the gimmicks, fireworks, live crowd, and announcers are all apart of that show. They are to compensate the at home viewer for that energy that you get from being there live.

Michael Cole with his annoying voice, punk ass look, and "vintage" catchphrases ruin the show for the at home viewer as he makes bad matches matches worse, and good matches average, and just doesn't put anything over as intense or as believable as it should be.

When he came, he cut the red tape on making Smackdown the more enjoyable show to watch with the better announce team. He's not the JR of old, but he is still JR, and I think the King misses him at the table more than anybody.

The problem you need to understand with Michael Cole is that it isn't Michael Cole's fault. The Michael Cole of today on Raw is completely different than the Michael Cole that was on Smackdown. And that isn't Michael Cole's fault. That is Vince McMahon's fault. Michael Cole today is acting exactly how Vince McMahon wants him to act.

You have heard all the reports:

Vince wants the announcers to not show any emotion or get excited as frequently. Cole now does that.

Vince wants announcers to appear like they are simply having calm, relaxed conversations with each other. Cole now does that.

Vince wants announcers pausing periodically at certain times. In other words, some degree of silence between announcers is now considered acceptable. Cole now does that.

Ross, I've noticed is also toned down quite a bit from what he used to be. However, he simply has a lot of his style engrained in his blood. So where he has made a conscious effort to tone down his style, there are clearly remnants of the old Ross remaining, and hasn't totally conformed to Vince's new announcing style. However realistically, McMahon is not going to get rid of Ross. It just isn't going to happen. So that's perhaps why Ross gets more leeway than Cole.

Vince is constantly screaming at Cole and berating him. And clearly, what you see on TV today is the result of all the screaming from Vince.

Don't blame Michael Cole. It isn't his fault. Blame Vince McMahon and his new vision for how announcers "should supposedly be announcing".

[RicSpade]

Honestly the fact that Raw isn't better than Smackdown is debatable and here is why...
Granted while I am sick of seeing Orton/HHH and Show/Cena, you have to remember at the moment they are the most marketable assets to the roster at the moment.
The reason you are seeing Smackdown as the better show is simply because they are integrating new feuds to build future superstars. The same goes for ECW. Right now I want you to think of Smackdown and ECW as the breeding ground for future main event superstars don't believe me?? Think about it where did CM Punk and John Morrison actually start getting their real push? ECW, then they both were getting pushed on Raw and Punk became world heavyweight champion. The same goes for Matt Hardy once they decided he could be more then a mid-carder by putting the ECW title on him they moved him to Raw. Now you may say Jericho and Mysterio and Undertaker are all over on Smackdown but who else but them are going to build the new superstars. By next draft unless trades are made in the near future expect to see new feuds in 2010 on Raw, because the breeding ground will be ready to unleash the new main eventers.

[RH23]

I'm going to have to disagree with you. I do think that having Michael Cole on Raw is a little problem. To me, JR is the voice of Raw and Michael Cole is the voice of Smackdown. But its not his fault that Raw is worse than Smackdown. Raw has all the same guys, HHH, Orton, Batista, and Cena(lately he hasn't been) are all always in the main event scene and constantly being shoved down our throat. Smackdown is way more fresh then Raw. The main event scene has been changing as of late and its been very entertaining. Plus Smackdown is more of a "wrestling" show. So almost all of the midcarders have t.v. time. Raw is where midcarders get screwed because they always focus on the same guys.

Also, the announcing has been forced to tone down their reactions as Lord Sidious stated. Vince wants them to call the matches with little to no reactions and no biased calling. IMO announcing was better when we had one face announcer and one heel announcer.

[attila]

Smackdown being better than RAW is not debatable. Smackdown is the best wrestling product on television at the moment and IMO on par with the best of Attitude. They are producing some friggin' fantastic shows right now. The talent is fresh, the story lines are complex and multi-layered and I don't feel anywhere near as insulted watching it as I do any other wrestling product over the last 5 years - save for ROH.

However, I have to disagree with the "pinpointed" moment for when it became the better show. While I agree that it is draft related, Smackdown only got as hot as it is right now after this year's draft. From week one with the Edge/Hardy and Jericho/Ray story lines and with CM Punk and Umaga lingering around, they were on fire from the word go. Its as if creative finally got creative.

The story lines that these 6 superstars were and continue to be involved in (except for Umaga unfortunately) are great. They are complicated yet straightforward, they are multi-layered with everyone and everything playing into each other as an extension of their own personal disputes. The motivations of each of the fighters have been well established and documented, the turn of CM Punk is, while obvious, being played out so slowly that everyone knows what's coming, yet we are all compelled to sit on edge in anticipation of that moment when he just finally SNAPS!

It's just well structured writing and well a orchestrated execution of the creative vision. The announcers have little to do with anything when the writing is this good. If the product was composed mostly of filler and craptacular vignettes and angles like Raw, it wouldn't matter who was calling the action - it would still stink like the shit that it is.

[Thugz417]

Since were blaming Michael Cole for everything, can we hold him responsible for Howard Finkel being bald? :)

Let's face it Michael Cole sucks as an announcer but he is giving it his best with the strict guidelines Vince gives him. From what I understand it, Vince is literally SCREAMING into the announcers ears every night telling them how to act what to say etc etc etc. Now I'll be the first to admit I HATE Coleslaw as the voice of Monday Night Raw but let's cut the guy some slack. Can't blame creatives screw ups on him.

[Jerichoholic1]

I agree that smackdown is better than raw right now.....but not because of J.R. even though he is the shit. The reason, in my opinion, is simply because of the wrestling. Remember, that is what it is, wrestling. Smackdown has better matches...hands down. Hell, even the womens matches are somewhat entertaining because of gail kim. Okay yes, they still have promos, every wrestling show is going to. But, for the most part smackdown just has the better WRESTLERS. Jericho, Mysterio, Hardy, Punk, Benjaman, Edge, Morrison....Did you see that punk morrison match???? Great! As compared to.....HHH, Cena, Show, Orton, and MIZ???? Cmon. Yeah, I am sure cena CAN wrestle, but he does'nt, HHH can kinda.....Orton for sure can, but he just talks a lot right now.....show just flat out can't. and miz......ugh. Raw needs shawn michaels back. Thats my point and I'm stickin to it!

[tfwilliams]

Could u plz get me the link to when he says brazilian i cant find it

[Y 2 Jake]

I didn't read any of the above posts, apart from the short one.

But the answer to the thread title is 2002 when the brand split happened. Smackdown has been the wrestlinh show since then. It's only become obvious to some that Raw isn't as good because they don't have intresting angles anymore. Now on Raw you just get poor matches and long promos.

[tbanger]

Perfect example...I was watching the US Championship Match from Thursday's SuperStars, and MVP went for the cover after a hard clothesline on Kofi, who kicks out at two and Cole says with such emotion and confidence, "...and a kick out by the Brazilian Champion Kingston." Youtube it.


I thought that as well, but then i rationalised that he was probably saying resilient. lol

I think the real reason Smackdown is better than Raw is the freshness, we don't want to see Cena/Big Show anymore, and Orton/HHH is getting incredibly tedious. But with Punk's slow heel turn, and the up and comers on Smackdown, its just a more interesting show.

[bioshock]

Cole has always sucked IMO, just watch the video where Cole takes over for JR on Raw, then JR takes his spot back...And leads to JR kicking Cole in the nuts.

Every since Cole took over then in 1999, he has came across as the WWE's #1 YES MAN, he has never defined anything to make it his own.

And yeah as much as all you morons above who say the announcers don't matter thats a crock of shit, it matters in wrestler, the NFL, the NBA, NCAA ect... They just don't put some lousy person on to call a game, they put the very best on, and the that gets over with the people watching.

If Cole was calling matches in the 80s or early-mid 90s for WWF or WCW he would be the last guy when it came to announcing he would be the guy calling the crappy shows no one watches.

Its like why when you watch Wrestlemania 4 your listening to Gorilla and Jesse, not McMahon and Hillbilly Jim calling the matches, and yes Hillbilly called alot of matches in the 80s. Its because the best get to do it.

But hey compare everyone calling shit in WWE to the UFC, and WWE fails on everything. thats my opinion.

[pthbass89]

It's a bit of a sweeping generalization to claim Michael Cole as the sole reason to why Raw is currently repeating and repackaging the same feuds and just generally lacking any depth or excitement. Cole is just a mouth piece to point out the obvious.

Smackdown is picking up steam fast because fans are now becoming more aware of the likes of Morrison & CM Punk (Whom IMHO are going to be the best draws for a long time), more fans are now getting behind Morrison and Punk (Even though it's a heel turn, alot of the fans prefer him this way) every week. The quality of their match was near PPV quality, in fact their past ECW matches have been brilliant as well and gave the brand some of it's best matches before Punk went to Raw and Morrison teamed up with The Miz.

To be honest, I'm not really missing The Undertaker, until WM25 he has just been trudging along with the same old routine and denying younger talent some air time. I think the fans are now wanting a show in which the new talent is mixing heavily with the veterans, but whilst laying the foundations for future feuds (For Example: Morrison actually getting into a decent feud with Edge or Chris Jericho, a win over either would elevate him closer to main event status).

If Smackdown can consistently put on shows like the last few then Raw will definitely take more of a bashing in the ratings and will no doubt have to fish up some story line to steady the balance. Either way, for the moment Smackdown is proving to be the freshest place for new superstars actually making some leeway into the main event scene, and I for one encourage more of it.

And having JR commentate it all does make it that bit sweeter as well.

[carlos_hbk_619_312]

I think the reason smackdown is more exciting is because of the people who make it exciting.
Rey mysterio entrance gets the fans so hyped up for a intresting high-flying match.

Jeff Hardy entrance and new looks makes th fans know that its going to be a mainevent tonight.

Justin Roberts with his unique way of introuducing these superstars make ppl excited.

I think in my opioion that smackdown has always been better.
Blue arena
cool annoucers
exciting superstars.
Rey Mysterio, Jeff Hardy, Edge, R truth, Crhis Jericho, CM Punk and the very talented Jhon Morrison.

[4 star frog splash]

I don't think there is an exact moment when smackdown became better than raw but this years draft definately shook things up. i also think vickie guerrero leaving smackdown changed the show dramtically. it made wrestling important again and not whatever the vickie/edge current topic was.

smackdown has become a great wrestling show. it's tv matches have been better than raw ppv matches for a few months now. and it is giving a ppv quality main event on tv almost every week. it has produced the best fued of the year, made the intercontinental title mean something again, pushed talent, and more than anything else produced quality wrestling matches both on tv and ppv.

raw is dying at the moment. triple h/orton is almost killing the show by itself, such a poor fued that still doesn't seem to have an end in sight. raw are giving the fans nothing that they want to see. i now am getting to a point where i don't care what happens on raw. they seem to try hard to give such a grand product but ultimately the product is very poor. triple h/orton, trump, mcmahon, cena/show, batista and no real desire to push anyone (except maybe miz, see how the cena angle pans out).

mcmahons involvement on smackdown this week got me worried, character wise he needs to stay off that show... well he needs to stay off tv all together.

[Motor City Mayhem]

100% agree on the fact that Cole sucks and that Raw (mostly King) misses J.R.But thats not the reason why Smackdowns the new best show.Its because the Triple H vs Randy Orton rivalry, the WWEs Main Feud, Sucks,Its Predictable, Its Boring, and Vince dosnt realize that, and he continues to push it but it sucks.And when a Show/Brand cant push there Main Rivalry it just wont work.Look at when Smackdown has Taker vs Batista, That pushed SD! of the edge because they knew how to make it good. Plain and Simple.

[jonfostersucks]

Perfect example...I was watching the US Championship Match from Thursday's SuperStars, and MVP went for the cover after a hard clothesline on Kofi, who kicks out at two and Cole says with such emotion and confidence, "...and a kick out by the Brazilian Champion Kingston." Youtube it.

Cole said "resilient", not "Brazilian". I remember that, I too thought he said Brazilian at first, but I'm sure it was resilient.

[muntja]

Period; I personally only watch ECW because it's about wrestling and it's being carried by my man - Christian;

I just have to say no matter how bad Raw is, it will never be second to Smackdown and there is one reason for that - the fake cheering they add to smackdown; Everytime I hear that fake cheering I get bored right away, why do they put that in? Or better yet, why don't they get a better fake cheering sound file and put that in?

[Nev]

EDIT: Also, RAW has gotten better in the late run. SD! is going great.

[suneeboy]

Smackdown being better than RAW is not debatable. Smackdown is the best wrestling product on television at the moment and IMO on par with the best of Attitude. They are producing some friggin' fantastic shows right now. The talent is fresh, the story lines are complex and multi-layered and I don't feel anywhere near as insulted watching it as I do any other wrestling product over the last 5 years - save for ROH.

However, I have to disagree with the "pinpointed" moment for when it became the better show. While I agree that it is draft related, Smackdown only got as hot as it is right now after this year's draft. From week one with the Edge/Hardy and Jericho/Ray story lines and with CM Punk and Umaga lingering around, they were on fire from the word go. Its as if creative finally got creative.

The story lines that these 6 superstars were and continue to be involved in (except for Umaga unfortunately) are great. They are complicated yet straightforward, they are multi-layered with everyone and everything playing into each other as an extension of their own personal disputes. The motivations of each of the fighters have been well established and documented, the turn of CM Punk is, while obvious, being played out so slowly that everyone knows what's coming, yet we are all compelled to sit on edge in anticipation of that moment when he just finally SNAPS!

It's just well structured writing and well a orchestrated execution of the creative vision. The announcers have little to do with anything when the writing is this good. If the product was composed mostly of filler and craptacular vignettes and angles like Raw, it wouldn't matter who was calling the action - it would still stink like the shit that it is.

Cole isn't the sole reason, but he is one of the major reasons. His voice is supposed to set the mood and the tone of the show and he fails in every area there. He doesn't have a big show, big match voice. The guy needs to do Webcasts, and PPV Free for alls only.

[suneeboy]

Cole said "resilient", not "Brazilian". I remember that, I too thought he said Brazilian at first, but I'm sure it was resilient.

You know you're right. At 4:52 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mw8UNWYFKvY he says "resilient". He's still shit though, and the guy shouldn't be on RAW.

Some may think I'm putting too much emphasis on Cole and that the announcers aren't THAT important, but if we are going to say RAW is the flagship, and the A Show, everything about it has to be top of the line. The wrestlers, the storylines, the promos, and the announcers. I can cut Cole some slack, but I won't.

Question - do you think dropping Cole from RAW would make the show better or would it not matter??

[Nev]

Smackdown was better than RAW ever since April 2002.

Smackdown declined after the Batista-Undertaker feud came to a close. As much as I hated Batista, this feud was gold as the kids LOVED it. I remember listening to a bunch of sixth graders keep yelling "Batista is better than Undertaker!" or vice-versa.

After that feud ended, SD! slowly declined.

Don't use the arguement of MyNetworkTV or the fact that it's on Friday Nights.

Prior to move to MNTV in October '08, Smackdown was taking a beating in the ratings with numbers like 2.4 or 2.2 ratings. The move to mynetworkTV never helped it.

Smackdown managed to hit numbers just as good as RAW, or even better numbers too (a 2.8 network rating is equivalent to a 3.5 cable rating about) when it was on Friday Nights during 2005-07.

SD! just collapsed in '08. I always found myself yawning to death watching SD!. Edge and Vickie didn't help much either nor did the Edge/Taker feud attract the kids.

Nowadays, SD! has the better wrestling product. PWtorch says that SD! has been very "laid back and smooth" because Vince has been staying out of the scene. It will be interesting to see how SD! builds up and improves.

[Debisibmania]

2002!? no way. I went to a supershow in 2006 and the only decent match they had was kennedy vs Batista. Undertaker fought Henry. I dont even remember the rest. Raw was doing the DX McMahon thing, which I hated, but was still more entertaining. At least they had Edge vs Cena, one of the best feuds of all time in my opinion.

Anyway, Smackdown definetely had its turning point around the time of the draft... but I did start watching it a lot more before that. Edge vs Taker was always entertaining. How about Shelton vs Matt Hardy. I loved that.

But it is NOT NOT NOT debatable that Smackdown is the best right now.

Edge > Cena
Jericho > Orton
Punk > Batista
Hardy > Show
Taker = HBK

Mid carders too

Rey > M. Hardy
Morrison > Kofi
Shelton > MVP
that last one is debatable but MVP sux as Face... I cant say it enough.

Aside from the feuds being fresher, and having better talent... The in ring wrestling is 20X better on Smackdown. The announce team IS better. There is nothing that can even compare on Raw aside from Miz vs Cena, and thats just cause most smarks hate Cena and Miz is doin the talkin for us. I do rly like Miz, but he hasnt even had a match on raw yet.

[Lord Sidious]

Let me say it again, because evidently some people didn't hear me the first time, or more so have simply not been reading/processing the newsboards.

(gets Jimmy Hart's megaphone out)


MICHAEL COLE IS ANNOUNCING EXACTLY THE WAY VINCE McMAHON WANTS HIM TO ANNOUNCE.


I have heard so many people say they notice a difference between his announcing when he was on Smackdown compared to Raw. Does it not process to some of you why his style has changed? Do you think he is doing this on his own without the Dictator dictating to him exactly what he wants him to do throughout the entire show?

Ross gets away with a little more shit than Cole because he is Jim Ross. It has to do with Ross' tenure with the company and in the business, in general. However, Vince knew that it was going to be difficult to get Ross to change his ways, so he simply moved him to the "B" show while bringing in Cole, who Vince knew would be easier to mold into the announcer he wanted him to be.

Cole was absolutely fine on Smackdown. He was completely the opposite of what you see today. He exhibited emotion. He got excited for the big spots. He was constantly talking. Today, he is a completely different announcer, and make no mistake about it, that has nothing to do with Michael Cole and everything to do with Vince McMahon dictating the announcing style to him.

You have heard all the posts about Vince "screaming in the ears" of his announcers throughout the entire broadcasts. Does that not register in people's brains how much control Vince exhibits over the announcing on his shows? Foley left because of it. As good a commentator as JBL was, apparently JBL never even approached WWE about doing it and he said they never even approached him about the thought of it.

Even Ross has commented in his blog that Vince gets on his case frequently if he gets excited, or anything like that on Smackdown.

Does it not process why we no longer have Face/Heel broadcast teams? You think it's simply because there are no Heel commentators out there, or people that can be molded into Heel commentators?

I don't think it processes with people that ever single thing you see on your screens is exactly the way Vince McMahon wants it to be. From the wrestling, the announcing style .... EVERYTHING. So I have a lot of difficulty why a lot of you are attempting to blame Michael Cole simply for following orders from Vince ... and why you refuse to simply come out, tell it like it is, and say "Vince McMahon's vision for today's commentary style absolutely sucks!".

Again, I can only assume it is because there are too many Vince marks out there that refuse to see the reality of the situation, and are therefore unable to bring the appropriate criticism to this man that he deserves.

To these people, whenever WWE does something good, it's because "Vince McMahon is a genius."

Whenever something goes wrong in WWE ... the TV show is boring, there isn't enough wrestling, a segment is lame, etc ... it's "always Stephanie or the writer's fault ... not Vince's" (despite how much control Vince has over the Creative department ... and for all intents and purposes, Vince McMahon is the true head of the Creative Department which is evident by the extent of his involvement in it each week.) Again, I can only chalk it up to Vince marks.

If you are unhappy with Michael Cole's announcing style, blame the correct person responsible for all of it ... Vince McMahon.

[suneeboy]

If you are unhappy with Michael Cole's announcing style, blame the correct person responsible for all of it ... Vince McMahon.

That is true, however that does not take any blame away from Michael Cole. He is not a victim, and he is not being manipulated. If he were in a corporate office he can get off with the "He's just doing his job" routine, but in the entertainment business that doesn't cut it. The director may be bad, but the actors still have to take heat because they are the ones who make the vision a reality.

Vince is not giving him every single line to say, and to give the impression that Cole is reading off of a script or getting every phrase from McMahon is naive.

Vince is to blame but that goes without saying on so many different and complex levels. Michael Cole is to blame because his voice, vocabulary, and look do not set the tone for what a flagship show should have. He kind of reminds me of Vince when he was announcing...and that's not a good thing.

[Big Pimpin]

While I agree that Smackdown has gotten better during the 2008 draft. The announcing switch had a small part in that, but the thing is is that the Smackdown announcing team(also include the ECW announcing team in this) aren't as fucked with as Cole & Lawler are cause RAW is Vince's pet project & he likes his announcers to announce a certain way.

I think the major reason why Smackdown is better is due to the freshness that it has & of course Smackdown has the better quality of talent.

Let's have a comparison of talent below this.

Main Event:

Punk > Cena
Jericho > Orton
Jeff Hardy > HHH
Edge > Big Show
Rey Rey > Batista
Taker = HBK

And now the mid card

Morrison > Kofi
Ziggler > Matt Hardy
R-Truth < The Miz
Shelton = MVP

Pretty much with the exception of The Miz being better than R-Truth(R-Truth is a great talent by the way), Smackdown's talent is way way better than Raw's right now. A large part of it has to do with it being more about wrestling than long boring ass promos week after week. The main event scene on Smackdown is always changing & staying fresh while Raw's main event scene is boring, stale & produces the same old shit week after week. Hell you could have Gorilla Monsoon & Bobby Heenan being the announcers on RAW & the quality of the show would still be atrocious.

Basically the announcing team isn't the sole reason on why the shows are good/bad.

[Lord Sidious]

That is true, however that does not take any blame away from Michael Cole.

To a logical person, it would. But I'll elaborate momentarily ...


He is not a victim, and he is not being manipulated. If he were in a corporate office he can get off with the "He's just doing his job" routine, but in the entertainment business that doesn't cut it.

I'm sorry, but yes it does, particularly with this company, with the way this particular Chairman runs things. What do you want Michael Cole to do? Tell Vince that he "thinks his vision for announcing sucks" ... which would probably get Michael Cole fired or result in him putting in his notice?

Vince absolutely does not tolerate any deviation from the way he does things. In WWE, if you haven't picked this up by now, it is Vince's way or the highway. He does not want feedback from the performers, because the man is an egomaniac and even more so, a control freak.

So I feel for Michael Cole. I really do. I've met the guy before through another WWE acquaintance and he seemed like a down to Earth guy. Although, like anyone else working for WWE, the man wants to keep his job and he is going to do whatever he's told to do, by his boss.

That is exactly what is transpiring here. Vince controls the entire creative direction of the WWE. Nothing goes on TV without Vince McMahon's approval. If you are unhappy with Cole's announcing style, Vince McMahon is the one to blame.

And to the JR marks that are also defending Vince, you should keep in mind that Vince wanted Ross off of Raw, more than likely because he wanted a fresh face on his show AND because he knew Cole would adapt easier to the new announcing style Vince wanted on his program, as opposed to Ross who would be more of a struggle to change. Vince didn't want to deal with that on his show.

Since Cole has left Smackdown, he has been a completely different announcer. I tuned into Raw last week after a several month long hiatus, and I was just amazed at how poor the announcing still was. And I know that Cole has the ability to get excited and get into the matches. However, his hands are bound because McMahon doesn't want him doing that. So, either listen to the boss, or be fired.


The director may be bad, but the actors still have to take heat because they are the ones who make the vision a reality.

If an actor wants to do one thing, and the director/producer envisions another way, either the director or producer will give in to the actor, or they won't. Now, do you think Vince is the kind of "director" that will give in to what Michael Cole thinks or not?

Give me a break.


Vince is not giving him every single line to say, and to give the impression that Cole is reading off of a script or getting every phrase from McMahon is naive.

I am not implying Vince feeds Cole every single line. I think he feeds him several lines per broadcast, but no it obviously isn't every single line. What I am critiquing is Vince's vision for the announcing style of today's announcers. Cole's lack of emotion. Cole not getting excited. Being silent at intervals during the broadcast. Not arguing with Lawler (not that any announcers argue, anymore ... again thanks to Vince). Using the same catchphrases like "vintage" over and over (which is obvious to anyone with a set of eyes is intentional).

What's naive is you, knowing everything we know about Vince and the kind of person he is, thinking Michael Cole has a better shot at ignoring how Vince tells him to announce, and still expecting Cole to keep his job.

If Vince was not happy with Cole or his delivery, he would replace him. Keep in mind that Vince replaced Ross for a reason, too. However, he isn't.


Vince is to blame but that goes without saying on so many different and complex levels.

No, it really isn't. The more involved and hands-on the person on Top wants to be, and Vince is clearly VERY hands-on, the more responsibility he is going to take for the areas of the company he is directly involved in. And that is his involvement in the Creative Department as well as the announcing.

I think it is extremely abnormal for someone who is an Executive position like McMahon, to be involved to the extent he is, in these specific areas of the company. If you think about it, the Chairman of the Board of this company is on headset each and every week feeding his commentators lines during the show.

And the problem is that this person is too involved in the process. However, if the problem arises with perhaps his own vision being the problem, what can be done about it? It doesn't go any higher than Vince. The man has become blind to the things going on in his company, because he is too involved in a particular facet of the company, that being the Creative department.


Michael Cole is to blame because

his voice

I completely disagree on this. He has a broadcaster's voice. If you want to debate his emotion (or lack thereof), that is Vince's fault.

vocabulary,

Be more specific on this one. What is wrong with his vocabulary?


and look

If we want to get downright to it with "looks", Cole looks more professional for a flagship show than someone who had Bells Palsy. This personally makes not a lick of difference to me, but if you want to bring up "appearance and looks", then Cole's "look" is more appealing for television than Ross.


do not set the tone for what a flagship show should have. He kind of reminds me of Vince when he was announcing...and that's not a good thing.

I would take the Vince McMahon of old any day over what he's done to Michael Cole. I couldn't imagine Vince McMahon actually announcing this way, back in the day. And it would be hard imagining him do it today. The two styles are completely different, so I am not seeing the comparison, whatsoever.

[stebbinsd]

As for Micheal Cole being a bad commentator, I have the same answer to that as I do for those who hate Don West.

If it's that bad for you, just mute the TV. See, I have a friend who is deaf, but he still loves wrestling because the matches speak for themselves. That, that right there, proves that announcing is like HD: A totally unnecessary splurge.