jiraffejustin Posted August 9, 2020 Report Share Posted August 9, 2020 I believe that Antifa are real life heels, but I don't really want to see an Antifa inspired faction on my wrestling tv. I don't guess it matters, because I hardly watch anymore. Also, Braun not caring about Alexa screams Bray having some kind of hand in coming up with the story. He probably thinks there is some kind of character development or something, but it just makes your babyface champion look like a dick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SirEdger Posted August 9, 2020 Report Share Posted August 9, 2020 Bruce Prichard is fully capable of booking Braun like a dick without anyone giving him input. I know that Bray probably has a bigger influence on the direction of his character than most do but I don't think he's the one that made Braun look like that on Smackdown. He might have suggested to give some layers to The Fiend (hence the direction they're hinting to go at the moment) but that has to be it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stiva Posted August 9, 2020 Report Share Posted August 9, 2020 19 hours ago, NintendoLogic said: "Oh my God! Is that...is that RETRIBUTION?" Fuck off. This is borderline unwatchable. Even ignoring the questionable faction, this presentation needs to change yesterday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NintendoLogic Posted August 9, 2020 Report Share Posted August 9, 2020 So is Raw better than Smackdown now? Sure, Smackdown has Daniel Bryan and AJ Styles, but they also have the triumvirate of terror that is Braun Strowman, Bray Wyatt, and Baron Corbin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WingedEagle Posted August 9, 2020 Report Share Posted August 9, 2020 2 hours ago, NintendoLogic said: So is Raw better than Smackdown now? Sure, Smackdown has Daniel Bryan and AJ Styles, but they also have the triumvirate of terror that is Braun Strowman, Bray Wyatt, and Baron Corbin. Raw's biggest disadvantage is that its 3 hours so it takes longer to fast forward through it. Given Bryan's absence, for my money the better show these days is usually the one that dedicates more time to Bayley & Sasha. They're the one consistently entertaining act in the company this summer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DMJ Posted August 9, 2020 Report Share Posted August 9, 2020 A week ago, based on just reading results, I would've said SmackDown in a heartbeat and openly said (in this thread or maybe last week's edition) that I'd be happy with SummerSlam being almost entirely built around the Blue Brand. Again, on paper, you not only have Daniel Bryan and AJ Styles, but the Big E push (at least 2 years too late, but I'll still gladly take Big E/AJ as a SummerSlam match), Matt Riddle (problematic figure but still "fresher" than anyone on Raw), the pretty good Sonya Deville/Mandy Rose feud going on, and the aforementioned Bayley as dominant heel champ. I even openly stated that while I'm not a fan of the Braun/Bray storyline, the addition of Alexa Bliss and Nikki made it perfectly reasonable "sports entertainment." I know its not saying much but Cesaro/Nakamura > any tag team on RAW and, hey, you got Miz, Sheamus, and Jeff Hardy. But after actually watching an episode (for the first time in a long time this week), I'm more hesitant. Yes, its still better than Raw - but maybe not by that much. As someone else said, SD being under 3 hours helps ALOT. I also really, really dislike Seth Rollins, find Street Profits mostly cringe-inducing, and am not a fan of this never-ending Hurt Business/Crews feud (especially when Aleister Black, Ricochet, and Ali are all better than Crews in almost every way). But, in a mythical world where Brock Lesnar, Becky Lynch, and Charlotte Flair were still around, RAW's roster would look much, much better than it does now (if Shayna or Ruby Riot had actual credibility and they'd have also been pushing Bianca Belair all along, the women's division would also be in a much better position than it is - but at least they've been trying the past couple weeks). So, no, Raw is not better or more watchable than SD - the difference in runtime makes that almost impossible - but SD is definitely not firing on all cylinders and needs work too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rovert Posted August 10, 2020 Report Share Posted August 10, 2020 A good post DMJ. This time two weeks Summerslam will be over or almost over. As you've said WWE has a lot to do and a major coherence problem. ALSO, they will quickly have to decide whether Summerslam will take place on a beach in front of fans in Atlantic City pretty pronto even if they let fans in for free. The company is a failing, indecisive mess currently even cutting them a lot of slack due to COVID conditions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WingedEagle Posted August 10, 2020 Report Share Posted August 10, 2020 Its honestly pretty scary to think that they're driving business to the point that TV execs may be having ultimately existential conversations about the company. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burgundy LaRue Posted August 10, 2020 Report Share Posted August 10, 2020 SmackDown tends to move their stories forward better, IMO. I've mentioned my issues with Braun seemingly not caring about Alexa, but Braun also mentioned becoming the monster Bray didn't expect, so that's progress. Bayley-Sasha continue their march toward a breakup. They've reestablished Mandy-Sonya. Riddle-Corbin-Gable-Sheamus will lead to some good matches. Lucha House Party are mixing it up with Cesaro-Nakamura. Heavy Machinery will likely feud with Miz & Morrison. Big E getting a solo push. It's not perfect, but it goes from point to point pretty well. In a vacuum, a number of RAW episodes are fine. The problem comes when you try to connect several episodes to see where the stories are going, and realize little or nothing has progressed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jmare007 Posted August 10, 2020 Report Share Posted August 10, 2020 I only watched SD because of Bryan, now that he's gone I ain't watching. I'm happy Big E is finally getting a chance in singles competition though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alucard Posted August 11, 2020 Report Share Posted August 11, 2020 On 8/6/2020 at 8:53 AM, NintendoLogic said: Just imagine how much worse it would've been for Cole if Hunter hadn't been there to come to the aid of his son. I don't watch NXT at all but I am baffled if Cole is a face now? That said, I will absolutely watch anything with McAfee vs HHH on it. I did think the best use of Cole that I've seen was when he had a few main roster matches last year with HHH managing him. They very much had a father/son manager dynamic. Sort of similar to the recent Orton/Flair pairing that I wish they stuck with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sek69 Posted August 12, 2020 Report Share Posted August 12, 2020 That was apparently supposed to be Cole's babyface turn, I guess it makes sense considering babyfaces are constantly made to look like geeks in WWE. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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