Is Smackdown better than Raw right now?

[Open the Muggy Gate 0]

Right now, I'm much more interested in the happenings on Smackdown than on RAW. They have captured my attention much more with their new characters and pushes than RAW has.

 

Tag Team Division - At least Smackdown is putting their tag team champions on TV and giving them good opponents and good matches. They gave MNM vs. Holly & Haas a good amount of time on SMackdown last week, and I gotta say, I loved the match. Easy *** in my books, even with the DQ and the fact that I hate Bob Holly so fucking much. Given a little time and a little care, they could have a nice feud there and... get this... a competitive division! On Raw, we just saw the Hearthrobs make only their second appearance on the main show. Most of the marks haven't seen them in action... why should we care... MNM have been on SD every week since their debut. That's why we pay attention to them more than the Hearthrobs.

 

Main Event scene - On Raw, it's basically HHH & Batista and whoever loses to them that week. Batista's magic is starting to fade. Meanwhile, Cena and JBL's stock rose greatly after that Judgement Day match. They put on a possible MOTY canidate (Maybe I'm stretching it there, but man was that a fucking brawl). Eddie G and Rey Mysterio can jump into that main event scene any time they wish and there would be no problem with that either. Undertaker can come back and BOOM, main event. Kurt Angle & Booker T as well... They can put several superstars in the main event slot on Smackdown. On RAW though, it's basically HHH, Batista, Edge, HBK. That's really about it. Sure, they do put other faces on there sometimes... and they should, but they don't do it often. Like Christian, Benoit, Jericho, Shelton... you just don't see them in that main event slot often. On Smackdown, several wrestlers could be in the main event slot and have it be legit.

 

The gimmick divisions - Women's Division vs. Cruiserweight Division

Trish is out and all the woman are parading around in bikinis right now. Paul London, Chavo G. and company are putting on solid matches on SD and Velocity. At least the WWE is looking like they are giving the Cruiserweight division some air time lately.

 

And Smackdown has Carlito.... so they automatically win on my list.

 

So what do you think? Is Smackdown better than Raw right now?

[BorneAgain 0]

Smackdown has its flaws obviously, (The Angle-Sharmell nonsense being a good example) but it doesn't seem as drab and predictable as Raw is these days, especially when it comes to main event match-ups. With Smackdown you can have Cena vs. Bashams as the big match one week and then say Chavo and Rey in a street fight the next show.

 

There's a real sense of variety to me for Smackdown with just a number of different talents mixing it up and not keeping the focus say on just one or two guys. (Yeah JBL was champion nine months but he wasn't all over every Smackdown doing promos. Plus his were/are entertaining and not lifeless like HHH's)

Edited May 31, 2005 by BorneAgain

[RavishingRickRudo 0]

Not for me.

 

Raw has Sheldon Benjamin, Rosie, and Benoit. In other words, the only wrestlers I give a shit about. And right now, I only watch the WWE for those particular wrestlers. If I were watching for storylines and good matches, I wouldn't be watching period. Though the occasional Akio match has me interested enough to check it out.

 

Every time I turn to Smackdown or Velocity, I can only tune in for about 30 seconds. In that 30 seconds, I see bad television and I turn it off. And that's if I even remember if it's on.

Edited May 31, 2005 by RavishingRickRudo

[Guest Rrrsh]

Rosie????????????????????

[Ravenbomb 0]

Christian and Benjamin > SD

[Open the Muggy Gate 0]

Christian and Benjamin > SD

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

If Christian joins SD, does that make SD automatically better then?

[Celtic Jobber 0]

I really, really hate John Cena and Bradshaw, and Smackdown is pretty much built around those two. So Raw wins by default.

[tekcop 0]

I really, really hate John Cena and Bradshaw, and Smackdown is pretty much built around those two. So Raw wins by default.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

But you see, it isn't. Cena and JBL only appear, maybe two to three segments per show. SD gives plenty more time to other workers besides the World Title champ and challenge like RAW.

[Guest hhheld_down]

RAW has pretty much lost most of my interest right now, HHH's endless title chances when he looses are bullshit and the probably the most popular reason SD! is better right now. At least SD! pushes new stars even if they suck.

[Guest Arnold_OldSchool]

Both Main Event scenes are stale as all hell. and both mid cards are rather thin.... Cena vs The Bashems is not my idea of a "main event". Ditto any Booker T match.

[Dandy 0]

Raw still entertains me more, and only two things would change that for me:

 

1) if SD became live like Raw

 

or

 

2) if SD returned to the awesome weekly wrestling during the SD6 era.

 

 

 

As for the quality of Raw, they really need a revamp of their formula.

[RavishingRickRudo 0]

Fuck yeah. Rosie has great promos, and has one of the better movesets in the company. He is greatly underutilized.

[cabbageboy 0]

Smackdown is leagues above Raw right now. Just compare the last SMDN PPV with the last Raw PPV. Eddie/Rey is vastly more intense and interesting than anything on Raw at the moment, Cena is improving as champion (which kinda shocks me), and the Angle/Booker stuff is at least so bad it's funny.

 

I know that Benoit and Shelton are on Raw but neither man really has any sustained direction to speak of. Benoit feuds with Edge, then defends ECW's honor, then dicks around with Edge some more despite not even really being in a feud with him (Edge is more concerned with Kane and winning the title than fighting Benoit). Shelton does stuff with Jericho, then fights Hassan, then doesn't do anything. The show is all over the place booking wise.

 

SMDN also has a better sense of who is a heel and who is a face.

[RavishingRickRudo 0]

And their heels and faces suck. Why should I care about any of them? The same thing applies to RAW, but at least they have the aforementioned 3 that I like. Newsflash, both shows are bad. It's pretty much which side of the bed you wake up on that decides which you like more.

 

The Eddie thing isn't really anything new for people who have been watching him for a while now. Guess what? In a few months he and Rey will be best buds again. It _always_ happens.

 

I don't think they are maximizing Cena's potential. The last feud with Bradshaw wasn't near what it could have been.

 

Don't ever use "so bad it's funny". That's what people use to justify Viscera and Gene Snitsky and the Diva Search. They're wastes of time, they're not funny to me, they're just bad.

[Kahran Ramsus 0]

My problem with RAW is that it is basically the same thing over and over again. HHH gets mad, beats the crap out of someone, and demands a HIAC match. How many times have we seen that storyline before? And everybody else is basically where they were a year ago and will be next year, aside from HHH's next opponent. It is just so dull over there. Nothing happens.

 

Sure Benoit is there, but he hasn't had a meaningful singles match in a long time and Guerrero isn't that much worse than him in the ring. Shelton is one step above being a jobber. He's good, but he gets a chance to show it about once every 6 months. I'm surprised they haven't had him job the title to Chris Masters yet.

 

Smackdown may do stupid things at times, but at least things change and they have a much better idea of who should be pushed. Lets compare...

 

Most heavily pushed guys on RAW

 

HHH (Been on top for years and will be for years to come. Lost twice and still gets another title match)

 

Batista (HHH's spring opponent this year. It isn't a matter of when he loses to HHH but when.)

 

Edge (Has held a title shot for two months now and has done nothing with it. He's in the same position he was before Wrestlemania, only now he has a useless valet.)

 

Randy Orton (Even when injured he got more interview time in one segment than Benoit & Benjamin have gotten in the past year. The most overrated guy on the roster.)

 

Muhammad Hassan (Iron Shiek 2005. Has shown little in the way of talent.)

 

Kane (Back again. Before long he will be in some other stupid storyline and will see his heat disappear, possibly THIS storyline.)

 

 

On Smackdown

 

JBL (The best promo man in the company)

 

John Cena (The best merchandise seller in the company, and who appeals to an audience that the company has lost since 2000.)

 

Eddy Guerrero (The best wrestler on Smackdown.)

 

Rey Misterio (The second best wrestler on Smackdown.)

 

Kurt Angle (Great wrestler, dumb feud.)

 

Booket T (Ain't what he used to be, but still has a following.)

 

 

There's no contest as far as I'm concerned.

 

I don't think they are maximizing Cena's potential. The last feud with Bradshaw wasn't near what it could have been.

 

They just had the best match of either man's career. What more do you want?

[RavishingRickRudo 0]

I'm sorry.

 

You must have missed the word "feud".

 

It's an easy word to miss, I know.

[Dobbs 3K 0]

I guess I am enjoying Smackdown a little bit more right now. The Cena/JBL feud has been more entertaining than HHH/Batista. On the downside, I was excited that they were actually _doing_ something with Booker T, and having him feud with Angle, a guy he could actually have good matches with...but then they did this stupid angle with Sharmell (who actually is a good idea to have around Booker T, since it freshens his character somewhat, and she can talk).

 

On the plus side, the Eddie/Rey angle has been great. Paul London and the other Cruiserweights put on solid matches, and there has been little Undertaker to crap up the show lately. Teddie Long is also much less annoying than Bischoff.

 

So yeah...until RAW gets some fresh things going, I think Smackdown is better right now. The whole taped vs live thing doesn't matter to me, as I purposely avoid the spoilers.

[Brett Favre 0]

Smackdown! been better for the past 20 months or so.

 

I mean really, the title goes from HBK to HHH, from Goldberg back to HHH, Um Benoit to Orton, back to HHH, and it's eventually going back to HHH, probably as soon as in a few weeks. On the other side you have the belt going from Angle to Brock to Eddie, to JBL, to Cena, it's pretty simple to understand. Maybe neither show is good, but RAW is far worse. And i'm not a big fan of the unintentional comedy provided by Snitsky and Viscera. I can't stand Snitsky. Did Lita side with him yesterday? I don't even know.

 

Benjamin is a good wrestler, but he's still boring as fuck and has absolutely no character. Benoit is back in the mid-card, along with Christian who jobs every week. Batista is a suckass Champ who's only over because he's feuding with HHH. It's the same shit every year, HHH loses the title at Mania, and some how gets it back. JR and King are the worst announcers in the history of western civilization. Too one sided for the faces, and everytime Muhammed Hassan comes out, the annoying ass "USA" chants start.

 

On Smackdown! Tazz and Cole are infinitely better than the King and JR. Tazz is the best commentator in the company, and Cole actually calls a match. Maybe the storylines suck ass, but there's always someone new, and something new happening. JBL and Cena is still entertaining for the crowd. Neither of them come out and bore the shit out of the crowd, or get buried and make each other look bad. Eddie and Rey is a nice storyline, and yeah, they'll probably become best buds later on, but you'll have to take what they give you, because usually, it's not good anyway. This is. Orlando Jordan is a nice little heel, leading the Cabinet when JBL is not around. Angle and Booker have storylines unlike Benjamin and Christian. Carlito has his cabana, and MNM is something new. The tag titles don't even exist on RAW, and the Crusierweight division isn't totally bad with London as champ.

 

Basically, RAW hasn't changed a single bit for the last like 2 years. It's the same HHH cycle, with everyone else roaming without anything to do. Smackdown shuffles Main Eventers, and keeps everyone fresh. Even if it's bad, it ain't old.

[Guest M. Harry Smilac]

I find myself forgetting to tune in to either show so basically it comes down to personal favorites like rudo.

 

Since i'm partial to RVD/Rey/Eddie, I go with Smackdown.

 

 

My biggest beef with RAW is nothing ever changes.It reminds me of the Monday Night War dvd when Eddy says you didn't know what time of the month it was in WCW because you turn on the TV and it's the same shit.

 

I tuned in to RAW for about 10 seconds last night and that was enough to go "Hey look it's Edge vs. Benoit...AGAIN"

You could add tables, barbwire, or whatever and I still wouldn't be interested in that match.

 

What did I see when I tuned in to the last 2 minutes of Raw last week?HHH coming out with the sledgehammer.Didn't I see this 2 years ago except it was Goldberg in the ring and not Batista.'Same shit, different face'

 

 

 

As much as I can bag on Raw both shows are pretty much the same in their crapiness.

 

Both have one true brightspot right now- Carlito and Christian

 

Both have their bigman as a total joke- Big Show and Kane

 

Both have a comedy hoss- Heidenreich and Snitsky

 

Both mid-level titles are being underlooked.

 

I could go on and on.

[Gary Floyd 0]

Smackdown. As bad as Cena is, I'd rather watch him than HHH. Besides, he's actually over, and has a character. While Benoit, Benjamin, and other talented workers are on Raw, they never have anything to do, while on Smackdown, guys like Booker, Angle, and even Eddie and Rey are given some limelight. Plus, Tazz ad Cole are much better than JR and King, who do nothing but rant and talk about nothing half if not most of the time.

Edited May 31, 2005 by lovecraft231

[Kahran Ramsus 0]

Even if it's bad, it ain't old

 

Exactly. Smackdown might be good or bad depending on the week, but RAW is just plain boring. Even when RAW's good its dull, because it isn't anything we haven't seen before. I can only think of two RAWs this year that really did something different, one was the Rocker reunion, and the other was the first round of the Gold Rush tournament, specifically with Shelton/Shawn. Other than those two shows it has just been bland. HHH/Benoit in March was good, but who didn't know what the outcome was going to be? The Battle Royal on Smackdown wasn't great, but at least I didn't know who was going to win (I actually thought Rey was).

 

Plus, Tazz ad Cole are much better than JR and King, who do nothing but rant and talk about nothing half if not most of the time.

 

True. I'm of the belief that if the two shows are even anywhere close in terms of quality, Smackdown will be more enjoyable to watch just because the announcing is better. RAW has to clearly be the better show otherwise to make up for that shortcoming.

[RavishingRickRudo 0]

I find RAW to be less boring than Smackdown (I didn't say "more exciting", it's still rather dull), and that's probably because of the live aspect of it. I'll read the spoilers for Smackdown, which I am usually bored by, and will make note to tune in when only something remotely interesting happens - which isn't very often.

 

I find chatting on this message board to be more exciting than either show right now.

 

Hmm... maybe the WWE should, you know, fix some things on their shows, yah?

[Brett Favre 0]

The show is a little better when you DON'T read the spoilers.

[Hunter's Torn Quad 0]

That's like saying getting shot by a sniper from a mile away is a little better than getting shot by a madman in front of you. If the show was good, it would be good with or without the spoilers.

[RavishingRickRudo 0]

It's also like saying walking blindfolded in a pit of snakes is better than going without the blindfold.

 

I'd like to know what I'm getting into before I get into it, if Raw had spoilers I'd read em too. The only time I don't like reading spoilers is when there's a PRIDE show on a 24 hour delay.

[Brett Favre 0]

That's like saying getting shot by a sniper from a mile away is a little better than getting shot by a madman in front of you. If the show was good, it would be good with or without the spoilers.

 

I think it is.

 

It's also like saying walking blindfolded in a pit of snakes is better than going without the blindfold.

 

RAW does entertain you more than SD! doesn't it? It's probably the other way around, since you do like RAW better.

 

I never said the show was great, but it's still better than RAW. It would probably be better than RAW for you if you didn't read the spoilers. Really, a show is more entertaining when you don't know what's going to happen.

Edited June 1, 2005 by Cena's Writer

[Guest Rrrsh]

Fuck yeah.  Rosie has great promos, and has one of the better movesets in the company.  He is greatly underutilized.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

I cant remember a single promo he has ever done. And his moveset is WAY too indy.

 

And if he great underutilized, why do you watch for him? That would be as dumb as me saying I watch Smackdown for Paul London.

[RavishingRickRudo 0]

But knowing the event happened 2 days earlier already taints it. Hell, even PRIDE with a 24 hour delay isn't as exciting as a live UFC show. You know there is going to be post-production and editing, so the "anything can happen" vibe gets taken away. But for someone who thinks neither show is exciting and I don't watch for the excitement, I'd rather Benoit, Benjamin and Rosie all be on Smackdown so I can know when they're on, tune in and see em, and then tune out.

[Hunter's Torn Quad 0]

Crap is going to be crap, whether you know it's coming or not. The spoiler argument is just an easy excuse. And at least with spoilers he'll know when to avoid the kind of thing that might turn him off the show entirely and not tune back in.

[Brett Favre 0]

But knowing the event happened 2 days earlier already taints it. Hell, even PRIDE with a 24 hour delay isn't as exciting as a live UFC show. You know there is going to be post-production and editing, so the "anything can happen" vibe gets taken away. But for someone who thinks neither show is exciting and I don't watch for the excitement, I'd rather Benoit, Benjamin and Rosie all be on Smackdown so I can know when they're on, tune in and see em, and then tune out.

 

If you don't care for the excitement, what does it matter that it was taped 2 days earlier? Atleast when you don't read spoilers, if you try hard, maybe a little bit, it feels like it's happening right now. Almost.

 

Crap is going to be crap, whether you know it's coming or not. The spoiler argument is just an easy excuse. And at least with spoilers he'll know when to avoid the kind of thing that might turn him off the show entirely and not tune back in.

 

Crap is better when you don't know what's going to happen. I find the suspense entertaining.