Smackdown is better than RAW

[AttitudeChild]

This is my first time posting a thread so if it's in the wrong place feel free to move it.

The common thought on these threads is that Smackdown is the "B" Show. Smackdown isn't as good as RAW. The Smackdown stars aren't as big as RAWs and so on. But I could not disagree more. Over the past 10 years, Smackdown has delivered some of the most memorable moments, feuds and Superstars in the the history of the company. When ever a Superstar goes from Smackdown to RAW, he never has the same success that he did on the 'Blue Brand'. Here is just a 'SMALL SAMPLE' of the great moments, feuds and matches Smackdown has produced in just the last 2 years.

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It seems that peoples main problems with Smackdown are two things. It comes on Friday and IT'S NOT LIVE. Come on guys. Those are the lamest excuses for not watching and you know it. It comes on Friday? So what, if you have cable chances are you have a DVR. Tape it. If you don't than you can just go to WWE's YouTube page, they post full episodes in 1080p HD with no commercials. And who cares if it's not live. Unless you're there in attendance, the show being live means nothing.
Smackdown is the victim of what I like to call the "Simpsons/Futurama" syndrome. The Simpsons will always be considered the better show because of all the history it has. But 9 times out of 10, Futurama is the far funnier show. It's the same with Smackdown. Most people grew up with RAW and consider it the better show even though Smackdown has better feuds, matches and promos. I know this might get me a lot of heat for saying, but Monday Night RAW is metaphorically a Has-Been. Besides one or two things here and there, RAW has done nothing of importance in recent memory. It's only living off the things it did in the past. Smackdown on the other hand continues to produces great TV.

So to the questions I want to ask.
1: Do you agree with me? Why or why not?
2: If you don't watch Smackdown, will you give it a chance tonight?

 

[thesawks]

Even if Cena is the biggest tool ever Orton is 10x worse then him. Orton has no personality, and should never ever be a face as long as he is a face champion the show can never be better then raw

 

[Gavschenko]

Even if Cena is the biggest tool ever Orton is 10x worse then him. Orton has no personality, and should never ever be a face as long as he is a face champion the show can never be better then raw

couldnt have put it better myself orton sucks and is why people dont watch smackdown cause hes champ and is robotic and barely gets a move on him

 

[MrPierrini]

No, they still don't have enough main eventers

 

[reed214]

i actually agree with the O.P. if you don't watch smackdown then you can't comment on this, and if you do then you will say that the content is much better than on Raw. I love John Morrison and i was really hoping he would get moved to Smackdown to get off the crowded Raw roster that is obviously not helping all the stars over there. (Del Rio is feuding with Big Show coming off a huge push for a world title and Ziggler who had a decent feud with Edge is now back down to the U.S Title).

if anything loading up Raw is hurting them, and esp. hurting my boy Morrison who is "injured" (not sure if that is a work or not) and off of t.v from what would have been the best feud of the year vs Truth (atleast in-ring). and we are seeing matches on Raw that have been happening on Smackdown for the last year. Sin Cara + Randy Orton (best wrestler in the world) + the other matches (which are better,sorry swagger vs evan bourne) make Smackdown the number one show. they dont need to A list stars, they are creating them. (and while i mention that, can Barrett get his main event push already?? thank you)

 

[AttitudeChild]

No, they still don't have enough main eventers

This is another flaw in peoples argument about Smackdown. This might night make much since but stay with me. It's not that you don't watch because the Superstars aren't big enough, the Superstars aren't big enough because you don't watch. If given the right opportunity, people like Cody Rhodes, Daniel Byran and Sin Cara could easily become main event players.

 

[Rammsteinerteen]

It has more wrestling, the only reason why people say Raw is better is because they have bigger stars, and bigger storylines, but people have to realize that Smack Down has talented stars that are given great match time. I'm loving that Daniel Bryan is getting the longest matches there.

But one problem about Smack Down that almost makes me despise Smack Down.

Blandy Boreton, the Robot monster from the planet Robotica

 

[Radical Canadian Goose]

So the common problem with Raw is: Heel heavy? Hello? has anybody watched smackdown lately? Bigger problem here...Seriously. Orton is THE FACE of the company , which begs me to ask WHY IS ORTON A FACE EXACTLY? And who is the #2 face on this roster? Kane (old) Big Zeke (never will get over) Daniel Bryan (wwe universe has a hard time grasping indy stars..give him time) Sin Cara (don't forcefeed him to me). I know that Raws faces are weak as well but I'll take Rey, Big Show , a revved up ARI and a returning JoMO anyday

 

[Mustang Sally]

In the past, I could agree that Smackdown was better. Smackdown always seemed to have a "flow" to it's storylines and production; it seemed more of a continuing saga than a series of matches thrown together, as Raw does.

However, I feel as though a lot of the heart of Smackdown departed with Edge. Maybe the drafting of some of the other players to Raw hurt too, but Edge was the guy whose character was the recurring theme every week. Even when he wasn't on camera, his presence was felt.

I like Randy Orton; I really do.....but do you know what quality he lacks that made Edge the main guy on Smackdown?........Edge was a storyteller. He could keep you interested with his words as well as his wrestling, whether he was a heel or a face. Orton can match Edge as a wrestler, but never as a personality......and the top man of a brand needs that quality; it permeates the whole show when done right.....and Smackdown is sorely missing it.

 

[PhD]

You aren't the first person to notice this. In general, Smackdown has been a better show because it's more about wrestling and less about trying to draw numbers for USA Network, which pretty much has Vince by the balls, while trying to push personalities who will make the company money through merchandise sales, which is much more profitable for them than television or PPV.

For those bitching about Orton being the face of Smackdown, you can be pretty certain it has to do with their desire to move t-shirt and shitty direct-to-video movies more than anything else. It is a concession to keep the rest of the show interesting.

 

[AttitudeChild]

For those bitching about Orton being the face of Smackdown, you can be pretty certain it has to do with their desire to move t-shirt and shitty direct-to-video movies more than anything else. It is a concession to keep the rest of the show interesting.

Could not agree more. Yeah Orton is pretty lame, but there is so much more stuff on the show that more than makes up for it. Example, Daniel Bryan vs Sin Cara.

 

[WrestlingIsReal]

i like smackdown more than raw right now mostly because of the draft.

 

[EdgeHead21]

I've thought for ages now SD is better than Raw. I like Raw, don't get me wrong, especially CM Punk's work and I'm hoping he gets a push either to help persuade him to remain with WWE or one last push before he leaves.

Anyways, SD has great wrestling, great promos and has produced countless great moments as the O.P. pointed out. Edge cashing in on 'Taker, Punk lifting up Umaga, Bradshaw's transition into JBL, Angle using a tranq. gun on Show and shaving him bald and so on, things just seemed bigger on Raw because that's their main brand. Plus SD has produced some fantastic matches, Morrison vs. Mysterio a few years ago, Guerrero vs. JBL in that Steel Cage match for the WWE Title, HBK vs. Mysterio and so far the first and only time they've faced off one on one Punk vs. Triple H.

Plus heels tend to relish more on SD. If you're on Raw and a heel chances are you'll be squashed by Cena or win the Title then lose win then lose etc. if you're in a feud with him over the Title. JBL, Eddie, Booker, Edge, Punk, Matt, Rhodes, McIntyre and now Christian, all have done/were doing/are doing fantastic on SD as a top heel or a rising heel.

 

[owen8472]

Orton on smackdown works well because you dont want you 2 top guys on the same show it helps build both shows. I would love to see some cross brand championship matchs with cena orton or have undertaker come back as a heel and take on orton

 

[Yrrab]

I don't know, man.

The fact that it's NOT live is a very legitimate reason to think less of Smackdown. All the botches get patched up to look nice on T.V, whereas on RAW, if they happen, you see it. While I'm not saying there are a ridiculous number of botches on either brand, I think I've read/seen more botches on Smackdown than I have RAW, which is pathetic given that they patch them up before they air.

Smackdown doesn't have enough main-eventers. I really thought last years roster was pretty much perfect. I'd have tossed Bryan or Morrison to Smackdown and took Del Rio, but that's pretty much it. Without Edge, Smackdown's suffering and people see it.

I'm not sure really what you think is better about Smackdown than RAW, but whatever it is, awesome man. Glad you dig it, it's an awesome show. I just happen to prefer entertainment is all.

 

[batmanofpintucky]

I agree with the majority of the opinion on this thread, which is unusual and frightens me....

Smackdown has been better than Raw. As stated earlier in this thread RAW is on a quest for ratings. Remember the Snooki, Stratus, Morrison angle? Blah, just for the numbers. So in turn, we get a 2 hour 10 minute show with 20-30 minutes of in ring action. Smackdown just seems to go to work everyday, very consistent to the format they have established. There are less ratings oriented stunts that would ruin storylines, matches, or pushes.

Randy Orton just kills Smackdown for me. As his current face character, he is as exciting as, let's say plain vanilla ice milk. Sure it's easier to appeal to a broader audience with a blander character, but god we need some flavor! Put that title on someone who can work a mic.

 

[Zangash]

I also prefer SmackDown to Raw. I don't get why people hate on Randy Orton so much. Sure, he is pretty bland, but imo it's still better than seeing the exact same thing from Cena for hundreds of weeks straight, with the only break being him getting "Fired", even though he still gets to be on Raw the entire time.

You rarely see good matches on Raw anymore now that they've put pretty much every mic worker on Raw and the good wrestlers on SmackDown. Sin Cara vs Daniel Bryan was amazing, and despite the fact that it ended with interference it still went a pretty long time.

The most entertainment I've been getting out of Raw lately has been the Miz getting owned by Alex Riley. Also, R-Truth is terrible, and his awkward "Conspiracy" gimmick is irritating.

 

[SteelRevenge]

THIS!! 1000 TIMES YES!!!!! AGREE WITH THE NAME OF THIS THREAD!!
Ahem, sorry about that.

Yes smackdown is by far the better show if you are interested in great matches, smooth storylines, and char development.

If however you prefer to watch a show abt selling merch that go ahead and watch raw.

Red is where one goes to see old vetrans beat up guys half their age and twice their size. where one goes to see 2-3 people soak up 90% air time talking about the same thing week after week. its where you go if you wanna see Snookie and other such celebs promoting thier latest reality tv show.

Personally I can just tune into etalk which has far fewer commercials if I`m in the mood for that. Followed by the hills if i ever go insane. otherwise its all about blue.

Also can`t help but notice the only defense people have for hating smackdown is not liking one viper. he`s only been there a month or so and while he does take up some air time its hardly the like the orton show, though i can see the confusion since raw viewers expect only one or two guys to be shown through the whole program.

I personally like the guy and if you ask me he`s only a little bland because they made him face and stopped giving him as much promo time and char development that he had as a rising heel.

Also, the fact its on friday and taped is soooo not a legit argument. And star power; look around. the number of big stars has virtually been cut to 2! 1 on each show!

 

[Syborgg]

Honestly, I don't view it as one show being better than the other. I go into Raw knowing that I'm going to see more promo segments and "hyping" for the PPVs and such. At the same time I go into Smackdown knowing that I'm typically in for more actual in-ring action.

Both shows have their pros and cons. The best part about SD being taped is that they can use post-production to edit big errors that the commentators make and maybe even edit out botched moves. The thing I don't like about SD right now is that for awhile it seemed as though it was the show to get some of the younger talent over and give them a taste of the ME. While that still maybe the case in some ways, the addition of Orton and Sheamus has kind of stalled guys like Cody Rhodes who I thought was next in line before the draft.

As for Raw, I like the fact that we get the odd appearance by Bret Hart or SCSA, and because they are live there is no one on Twitter or whatever to spoil the suprise. With the internet, there are very few big surprises anymore, and things like the Nexus debut and special appearances would lose a little steam if people knew about them before hand. The argument would be "don't read the spoilers." I don't but with the emergance of Twitter and sometimes the "dirt sheets" put the stuff right in the headlines, it can be difficult to avoid.

My point of the whole thing is that I don't really view one show as the "A" show. Instead I enjoy them for what they both offer. I just hope that they don't ever try to turn SD into Raw-lite or vice-versa. Keep the key differences in both shows so that it doesn't feel like I'm watching the same exact show twice. Although at times they do mimic each other.

 

[WWWYKI777]

No I don't agree with you

You posted stuff from a couple years ago , thats not RIGHT NOW and right now imo RAW is so much better than Smackdown its not even funny

I usually don't watch Smackdown because I'm usually doing other things on Friday nights and its not live and as such I just read it on Tuesdays when its posted

Tonight I caught half of Smackdown and it was just ok

I will say though that TNA > RAW

but RAW > Smackdown

 

[team extreme]

i think raw has a better show, but i think smackdown does a great job building talent. Most superstars who start on smackdown work their way up the ladder. A lot of great superstars started out on smackdown-john cena, carlito, the miz, r truth, and have all made a name for themselves on raw. Some superstars have floated around like big show, kane and others who always make a big name on both shows. I also think that the fact that undertaker has always been on smackdown is another big push.

 

[drk_knight]

Both shows are awesome, there is none better than the other. Also, Tna suck balls, they have shit writers and just coping exactly what they wrote in wcw days, the ratings prove that they suck balls.

 

[wwerulestnaisbad]

Ortons bland? Hes a snake like persona he does snake like things. Tell me again how is that bland please. P.S The RKO is probaly the BEST finisher in WWE.


But on to the subject. I would much rather perfer smackdown then raw. I could go on with a bunch of details, but to save time i have 1 word 9 letters W R E S T L I N G. Raw is good and all, but when it comes right down to it most of it is just 1 word 4 letters T A L K. If you would like two see 2 guys in the ring wrestling Smackdown is your show. If you like to see a guy jibberjabering about how his career is a "consperisy" and then 5 min. later someone cuts a promo raw is your show.


WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

 

[Macho_King]

I watch Smackdown almost every week. I'd say for sure more than not. And i agree for the most part Smackdown is a better show than raw but raw is live so it has that feeling of a big event that smackdown doesnt have even if you dont read the spoilers. Smackdown seems more about the wrestling and the matches seems way better on the show. Everybody should watch it if your a wrestling fan.

 

[Da Truth]

I think Smackdown has recently gotten better. It had fallen off for awhile. It hasn't been good for a whole 10 year period as you make think, AC, but that's my opinion. It was great when Paul Heyman was doing alot of the writing and during some of the little Ruthless Agression Era, but after that it just fell off. It would get good then it would flame out. It wasn't too consistent, but the right now it's giving Raw a run for it's money, and actually I would rather watch Smackdown than Raw. Both of them need more legit tagteam competition, and Smacdown need to change it's World Champion quickly.