What's WWE's best show right now?

[rko102]

Personally I believe it's Smackdown.

RAW is getting stale with the weekly guest host gimmick that's been going on for months (that show really needs a permanent or at least temporary general manager), as well as the fact that matches just seem so predictable and the wrestling itself is so boring to watch. Cole and Lawler are a horrible announce team; Cole is repetitive as hell, and Lawler never seems much into what's going on anymore, but please, correct me if you think I'm wrong on that note.

ECW I barely ever watch, and the only thing I tend to like is the Abraham Washington show...that guy is friggin hilarious, and man can he work well with a mic. Josh Matthews is not a commentator, he's an interviewer..and who the hell is Byron Saxton anyway? The only guys I really like on this brand are Christian and Zack Ryder, and now that Tommy Dreamer is gone I'm really annoyed they still call this show ECW, since it hasn't been "extreme" in the real sense of the word for years. This show should be changed drastically, maybe to just feature younger talent or something, or they should just dissolve it altogether and go back to having Smackdown and RAW and extending the rosters. That would work better I think, especially with the abysmal TV ratings this show gets each and every week.

As for Smackdown, I really feel this is the A show right now. From Jericho and the Hart Dynasty working together now, to Batista's great heel turn and his feud with Mysterio, all the way to CM Punk and his Straight Edge society, I just can't get enough of this show. Not only that but Todd Grisham and Matt Striker are such a great announce team, especially Striker, and the whole thing is just a really great product in general. It's the only show I never complain about, and chances are heading into Wrestlemania over the next few months that won't change. I don't even mind Vickie Guerrero anymore, if you can believe that.

Let me know what you all think. Which show is number one and why? Feel free to stray off topic if you feel the need to in your explanations.

P.S. I'm not including Superstars in this since it's just a one-hour showcase of talent from each brand.

 

[BladeRunner]

Raw's been garbage for a while now. Sometimes it's actually painful to watch.

Smackdown, on the other hand, generally has good matches. It has some good long term storylines. It's a bit more adult than Raw. It has a strong mid card as well.

ECW really isn't that bad either actually. It's always a great place for up and coming talent. Some are good, some not so good, but not knowing who's going to show up as a new wrestler, that makes it special. It also actually kinda feels the most well balanced in story, matches, etc. Just enough of each.

But yeah, I went with Smackdown for overall quality.

 

[JayBriscoe2010]

Smackdown is the best show but of course Raw will always be labeled the A Show. You get Raw rebounds on Smackdown and even the following Raw lol. The best all around Wrestling is on Smackdown with Jericho/Punk/Morrison/Mysterio ect as well as developing characters "CM Punk". Raw has actually been solid the past 2 shows so hopefully that will keep up. But Smackdown was 5x better a few months ago when Punk was being pushed to the moon and there was no Batista.

 

[JoeyDice420]

Yea i definitely have 2 say smackdown..Raw is getting awfully cheesy, only thing interesting is the mcmahon-bret story..Orton,who was at one point my favorite performer..has become stale...His title reigns were Mediocre at best..smackdown puts on more, and Better matches, and ECW has its potential, but my vote goes to smackdown..oh and reference to the michael cole comment..VINTAGE VINTAGE VINTAGE!! lol

 

[Mr. Truth]

Raw has been stale for way too long. I don't care if I miss an episode. It's the same stuff week in and week out, and it's the same people feuding for the most part. Besides Kofi and The Miz, there's not much going for Raw right now.

Smackdown has been better then Raw. Generally, the shows are good, the matches are good, and the feuds are good. What hurts Smackdown for me is the Mysterio/Batista feud. I know WWE is directed towards the children nowadays, but how is anyone supposed to believe a guy who is 5'6" 135lb be able to beat a guy who a foot taller and weighs more then twice as much? I hate David vs Goliath feuds so much. That and I really can't stand Batista.

For me, ECW wins out. Since it's an hour, we don't get much filler crap that Raw gives us. No Hornswaggle, no DX pimpin merchandise. The matches on ECW tend to be better then Raw's and are at least on par with Smackdown's. ECW has all the up and comers, guys like Zack Ryder and Ezekiel Jackson. Christian is the best champion on any brand. Christian is a great worker, can put on a great match with nearly anyone, is terrific on the mic, and oozes charisma. If he's not on Smackdown soon (although that would hurt ECW) then something is wrong with creative. Based on that, I have to go with ECW. Above anything else, ECW gets me to tune in every week I can watch, while I don't really care if I miss an episode of the A or B show.

 

[wwechampsam]

definitely smackdown it has proper feuds and a good mid card. but they need to change ecw make it a newcomers only show and have it when a person wins and eventually loose the ecw championship and get there rematch and lose they have to to go to Raw or smackdown

 

[Slowdude]

Raw has been stale for years and it isn't improving. Worst brand for years.
ECW, i personally found it number one show during and between Miz and Morrison's first tag title reign and the time both men left the brand during the draft of 2009. The reason it dropped in my books was due to only have Christian/Dreamer/Regal and a bunch of rookies such as Tatsu and Ryder for the second half of the year after Henry/Bourne/Swagger etc were stolen off the brand.
Smackdown is clearly number and has been since the 2009 draft. Although during the first month and a bit after Taker won the World Title (and since Jeff left...) it did go down in entertainment quite a bit, it recently has picked up again with the Heel Batista vs Rey vs Taker feud, Punk saving the universe, JoMo/Mcintyre, piggie james crap etc.

Smackdown #1 since the 2009 draft
ECW #2 since the 2009 draft
Raw #3 and is just terrible and has been (Although after Punk won the title and for the coming weeks until Mike Adamle became the GM in 2008 it was the best brand)

 

[avi01]

Smack Down since quite a while and by far. Raw is generic, too much of a talk show, repetitive, so much of cliche with those host except for Bret Hart, Ventura and some others. Having Bret Hart on Raw was the first time I watch Raw in over a year and apart from the Hart segment, it still did not match Smack Down. Bret Hart-McMahon is the only reason I will watch raw in the coming months. Each time I watch Smack Down, I`m pretty much sure it is worth the time. Raw tries to much to be marketable for me, smack down is the real thing. I hope when he returns, Edge stays on Smack Down and HHH never leaves Raw.

 

[Dagger Dias]

Smackdown is easily the best WWE show right now because it is one of the two big brands alongside Raw, and unlike Raw it doesn't have any guest hosts wasting time that wrestlers could be using to get over. I look forward to Smackdown every week and my fridays are incomplete without seeing it. ECW is only an hour long and doesn't have the established main eventers that Raw or Smackdown do. Raw has always been seen as the flagship show, but ever since the guest host concept began, I have preferred Smackdown far more. It's no surprise that Smackdown is winning the poll in this thread by a landslide.

 

[flyguy1609]

Smackdown is number 1 and in my heart was/has been the best show... the only thing i would like to see more from smackdown in more of the champ but hey it is w-e and i know thats the takers mo...

I think ECWWWE act has been the number 2 brand right now. I love Christian as champ, he was the right man to carry that title for the brand. i just wish he would get more of a response on other shows but hey its good...

I hate Raw right now, the need to tell DX to break up, there annoying, maybe have hhh and the big show team up and cause all sorts of hell again on raw, it is becomming way to stale

 

[Vintage]

The only WWE show I can watch without it on fast forward is ECW right now. It's a shell of what it should be, but I find it entertaining since I can't really ever predict their programming. I like seeing the new performers in the ring mixing it up with the vets. I like that on that show, its more about whats going on in the ring instead of backstage. I really can't stomach watching Raw, it's pretty much the same show week in and week out and the roster is stale as hell. Smackdown isn't bad at all, but I just can't get into it like I do ECW. I do have to unfortunately mention though, that since Striker left the announcing has been atrocious, he did a good job selling these new guys and gave them cool nicknames to work with.

 

[Chill]

Well I'm not suprised to see Raw getting lambasted in here, I suppose at times it's worthy of the IWC's criticism and besides the in vogue thing to do right now is to shit over Raw and praise Smackdown because it offers 'good wrestling'.

However, I must say that I largely enjoy both shows and I find it difficult which one to choose as being the 'best' right now. Nevertheless, I'm voting for Raw, not because I feel it is the flagship show or that I owe it any sort of loyalty but there's just something about this show, and I can't quite put my finger on it, that makes be enjoy it more than Smackdown.

Admittedly, some dire things can go down on Monday nights and I could do away with some of the Hornswoggle segments and I don't mind the guest host concept provided the stars aren't there to promote themselves and don't come across as ignorant as so many of them have, in fact I prefer it when it's a wrestling personality with the Guest Host duties.

Despite it's shortcomings, I do like how we're beginning to see more of the younger talent being given a chance to shine on Raw and I enjoy tuning in to see guys like Legacy, Kofi Kingston and The Miz develop each week. So why do I prefer Raw? As questionable as some of the content may be at times, there is more talent on the show who I prefer watching than on any of the other shows and so unless I tune in I'm not going to see the talent I like perform and so I'd rather watch the show and see them over not watching at all and not seeing them.

 

[GeminiJ13]

Smackdown is the FAAARRRR better show. Raw is more of a soap opera where Smackdown focuses on wrestling. With the exception of CM Punk, Smackdown is pretty straight forward and even the women on Smackdown are impressing me with there angles and skills. Having Sheamus as World Champion is enough to tune into Smackdown every Friday night instead of RAW, which seems to have become more political than ever backstage (Since Sheamus kisses ass and gets THE belt in 3months) which makes all the veterans look weak and underutilized. Chris Jericho is the best thing RAW has going right, and they screwed that up. I am getting sick of Legacy helping Orton, they have established themselves enough to be successful without him. Jack Swagger needs to go to Smackdown. He is one of the best wrestlers they have and he is jobbing to Evan Bourne on RAW, he is better in the ring than on the mic. Raw also needs to quit wasting time with Miz promo's. Nobody wants to hear this prick talk, trust me. Its bad enough that we have to watch him wrestle! I would hate to be on RAW cause if your not in the clique (Vince HHH HBK Cena Orton Sheamus) then you are probably mistreated and belittled. Smackdown is more for a wrestling fan, Rey Mysterio, Morrison,CM Punk,Jericho,Hart Dynasty,Mickie James,Michelle McCool,Beth are great in the ring. I would rather see Morrison vs McIntyre 9times in a row than watch a lame guest host babble thru a script for the fist 18 minutes of RAW.

 

[gully side adidja]

Well personally wwe is not doing anything fantastic right now, but in my opinion raw is the best, i will give a evaluation on all three shows and why below......



1. Raw: To be honest raw is not that good right now, especially for in ring ability, but it slightly better than smackdown as of now, it has guest host's more entertainiment, more unpredictable than the others, and better character build up.

2.Smackdown: if you would have asked me this 4/5 months ago this would have won by a HUGE margin, from may till august/september it had everything, the feud of the year(cm punk jeff hardy) tremendous matches, solid consistent matches regularly, and a fresh young feel to it. HOWEVER, since jeff hardy left, and batista joined smackdown it has gone down fast, the matches quality has gone down, the feud's have been dissapointing or lack thereof(cm punk/undertaker, vince/teddy long angle), and constant repeat matches (morrison vs ziggler, batista vs rey, hart dynasty vs cryme tyme), smackdown is number two.


3, ecw: now although ecw has christian and benjiman, it will always be the c show, it feels like sunday night heat or velocity, abraham washington has a quarter of the show to just talk, poor gm, no one really cares about the wrestlers and matches on the show(once again bar christian and yoshi to a extent), so it feels flat and to me it is a show that is not unmissable, if i see it i see it, if i don't i'm not bothered, ecw is the worst.

 

[Tastycles]

Personally, I enjoy ECW the most. The characters all have development and everyone gets a shot both in traditional mic segments, but also on the Abraham Washington show. The matches are of a pretty good standard too, and the commentary and Tiffany are getting a lot better with time.

If your looking at what is objectively best though, I'd probably have to say Smackdown. It too has storylines and development for its characters, albeit to a lesser extent, but it also has star power.

Raw is by far the worst mainstream wrestling show on air right now. More often than not, it is a guest host segment followed by a load of shite. If you took Miz and Cena off the show, then you'd end up with something completely unwatchable.

 

[gman]

ECW IS very good these days christian as champion is amazing with in ring veterans like regal,goldust we have fresh blood like tatsu,archer ,ryder etc. And it is a show that deserves an extra half an hour or an hour of on air time
to show case its talents raw sucks because i personally hate hornswoggle. smackdown is very good too!!!

 

[Orton1.0]

As for me guys i'll go with RAW....despite its setbacks and f***ups, Its still the best!!! Maybe a small side of me is biased because Randy Orton is on It.

I would have gone for SMACKDOWN but Jeff and Edge are no where to be found......all we have is screwed up asshole going by the name of a straight edge champion---PUNK!!!!!

 

[Blade]

Last night strengthens my belief that Smackdown is the best wrestling program on TV right now, WWE or otherwise. It was just one of those shows where everything just worked and everyone did their best work. The best Smackdown since the height of Punk vs Hardy, in my opinion. Great matches from Ziggler, Kane, Morrison and Jericho. Decent matches from the tag teams and Batista/Mysterio. And a pleasant surprise for the winners of the tag match. Overall, it was just a great, great show. And Punk's promo was superb.

Simply put, Smackdown puts on a practically flawless show every other month or so. They pull out something something special where there's nothing bad in the show. Raw hasn't had a truly great episode since.... Well, probably since the draft where we saw Cena vs Swagger. Since then it's just been bobbing in a sea of mediocrity. ECW is good, but most of the matches seem incredibly generic. Apart from Christian, very few of the wrestlers actually go out of their way to make every match good. It just screams blandness.

Right now, and for the forseeable future, Smackdown is the best.

 

[MR.KENNEDY]

I'm also going to agree with Smackdown. It appears to develop younger talent much better than Raw, and is much less of a gimmick than Raw. I highly doubt that there is anyone seriously enjoying this guest host concept. There are also at least 5 young WWE superstars that would benefit from being on Smackdown, as quite frankly they are doing nothing on Raw (Swagger, Bourne etc.)

ECW has improved vastly as of late however, the homecoming tournament being impressive in my eyes.

 

[Sasori]

RAW is stale. It has middle aged pranksters (DX), a midget (Hornswoggle), a goody goody super man (John Cena), and the worlds worst WWE champion (Sheamus). The guest host thing is getting lame too considering we already have MTV, Much Music, etc for pop culture. Although the guest host thing can be a good thing MDM Ted Dibiase Sr. hosted and so did Bret Hart two legends who people miss. But otherwise dis-appointment.

Smackdown isn't as great as it was a couple of months ago. But I still feel its a little better than RAW. It's mid-card is amazing packed with guys like Punk, Morrison, Matt Hardy, Hart Dynasty, etc. It's main event scene isn't that bad either. They have longer, fresher, and better feuds. But it can get very boring at times.

ECW, is good. To be honest I just mark out for Yoshi Tatsu and Christian. Nothing more really. I find it boring. But its main events are usually better than RAWs and possibly Smackdown every now and than. Any one remember Christian vs. Jericho? or Yoshi Tatsu vs. Christian? Amazing matches... It's also the best place to see the youngest and brightest new comers.

Overall I'd say Smackdown like the majority.

 

[Nicole13Edge/HardyFan]

Smackdown has been great these last year. Smackdown has really improved, I'll be honest a year or two ago I didn't care if I saw Smackdown but now I watch it every Friday because it is just that good.

We all know that Smackdown is better then ECW and Superstars, but I also think that SD is better then RAW and TNA. TNA is not as good as it used to be now that they are bringing in all of these has-beens and are using old WWE rilvaries. RAW has these stupid guest host thing going on.

So Smackdown is the best because it has good storylines and great wrestlers and divas that are good wrestlers and entertaniers. Smackdown also won the bragging rights trophy so I think that Smackdown in the #1 wrestling show today. I mean during Raw I will be on the computer and not pay attention sometimes but I always pay attention during SD because it is just that good.

So I think that SD is the #1 wrestling show today. What do you guys think what show do you think is the #1 wrestling show?

 

[Mitch Henessey]

Smackdown has be better than Raw at times in 2009 and this year if you ask me. That's mainly because Raw has been so stale for a while. The guest host concept has been horrible if you ask me. The only two guest host that were memorable to me were Shaq and Bret Hart. Other than that, they've all either been passable or just plain terrible. Sheamus winning the title was a shocker, but I think WWE's going out of their way to not make him look too dominant.

I will have to strongly disagree with you on Smackdown being better than TNA. TNA has been getting better and better ever since befroe Jan 4. Smackdown doesn't have any thing close to the Styles/Angle feud wrestling wise or storyline wise. Look I'm a fan of The Undertaker, and have been ever since I was a kid, but his current reign as WHC has been very forgettable. Taker VS Batista is really the only blockbuster feud on Smackdown, and we were only teased with it at the TLC ppv.

Smackdown does have John Morrison, who has all the tools to be a future world champion, but I still think he's a long way from that status. Then you have Rey Mysterio.While it's refreshing to have him thrown in the title hunt every now and then, the whole underdog thing can get old after a while.

So while I do tend to like Smackdown more than Raw most of the time, It surley isn't the best wrestling show out there right now. Just because Smackdown is something else you would rather watch than Raw, that still isn't enough to declare it the best wrestling show.

 

[DMBlacklist]

Personally I have to agree, Smackdown is a much better show over Raw. Raw was always the 'segment' show in my opinion, more promos, more build, more pushing the product where as Smackdown, yes can be heavy on promos at times, has what appears to be better wrestling, better stars, better stories and it also appears that younger talent actually has a chance on Smackdown where as on Raw the veterans seem to take charge.

Yes I know Shaemus is in the spotlight now but look at all the other younger guys, Bourne, MVP, Swagger, Kofi, Priceless, they're not doing a 'whole' lot with while on Smackdown, though Mysterio/Batista/Taker are your main eventers, you still have Punk, Hardy, Dynasty, Crime Tyme, a better women's division, McIntyre, Morrison, etc.

Smackdown in my opinion has always had better 'wrestling' on their side of the show where as Raw has all the drama/segments. So enclosing, yes, Smackdown is by far superior to Raw.

 

[undertaker fan]

To me if you asked me this in 2007 (When I first started to watch WWE) I would say of course not RAW is better but now Smackdown is better all the way. Smackdown to me has better stories where as RAW has stale stories. Has better future main eventers and good main eventers where as RAW has good main eventers and have good future main eventers but aren't getting pushed anytime soon. Smackdown also has my favorite wrestler don't blast me because it's my opinion the undertaker so of course it's my favorite show. But if edge wasn't injured and if Jeff Hardy wasn't taking his break from WWE in TNA Smackdown would have better what are to me are already good main events.

 

[Notorious718]

I voted Smackdown because it's not stale plain and simple. I was excited when I saw Mysterio vs Taker on X'mas because it was fresh and not something that we've seen a bajillion times (see Cena vs Orton and HHH vs Orton). Smackdown has great storylines and I love seeing CM Punk's Straightedge Society promos. I personally find them hilarious. "One nation under Punk, indivisible with dignity and sobriety for all." I laughed my frickin' ass off when he said that. Smackdown also has the divas that can actually wrestle which is something that RAW seriously lacks. Although Smackdown hasn't been the same since Hardy left (this past summer has featured some of the best wrestling I've seen on Smackdown in a long time) it's still the number one WWE brand in my eyes with ECW following a very close second.