SmackDown to be Improved?

[SAIYANS]

PWInsider.com is reporting WWE now has the goal of getting SmackDown up to par with WWE.

The current deal with Syfy expires next month and it's expected a new deal will be signed. There is talk of more focus being put on SmackDown to make the quality of the programming better as well as considering expanding it to three hours to feature more stories.

I do partially get the sentiment of needing it to be the same 3 hours as Raw. That will always make Raw look like A, SD B, and Main Event the C show. That said I think if they truly wanted to give SD some unbelievable facelift, they should move it back to Thursdays. Thursdays for 3 hours would give them more viewers, more story development, and kill TNA for kicks

 

[Dash]

I hope this means that they'll split the roster into two brands again. The introduction of the SuperShow has not only killed Smackdown as a show but it's also slowed down the careers of many midcarders who should be featured more often because of the main event superstars taking up all of the air time by appearing on both shows. Not to mention that the World Heavyweight Championship lost all of its prestige once Smackdown became the baby show. If they're going to keep things how they are now then I definitely don't want to see an extra hour of Smackdown a week, but I'd be all for it if it was its own brand.

 

[Chris]

Don't think 3 hours would help Smackdown at all with the amount of viewers they have. The move back to Thursdays would be really nice if they did that though and that'd probably force TNA to go back to Saturdays or some shit.

 

[Deezy]

Smackdown! doesn't need an extra hour, it needs to get the stigma of B-show off it. No Raw Rebounds for one thing, taking out ten minutes to recap an angle that doesn't have anything to do with the show doesn't help.

Brand re-extension? No, all Smackdown! needs is just some love from the higher ups who write this shit. Needs it's own writers who don't get poached to Raw everytime someone gets fired.

You could totally fix both brands with 2 bookers a show, who collaborate on mainevents for PPVs. You don't need a writing committee, Booking committees never worked, give people the book who have a vision, and follow that vision.

 

[John McHenry]

The thing that Smackdown has and will always need is live. More often than not that's the reason it doesn't do as good. People work and can do other things if they can read a report and figure out if it'll be a good show or a shit show.

 

[Crippler]

yeah i agree with Prime if you watch SD on a regular you see it's a good show and the main reason people don't watch is one. is taped and you know how people judge it off spoilers right away without even watching that's why i feel they need to be live. Maybe on a Wednesday or Thursday and the 2nd reason Fridays is PARTY! Night SD comes on at 10pm here in the UK C'MON! No one gets in at 10.

 

[Gimmick]

That's good to hear. It'd be cool to see them go back to what it was like 12 years ago and just have one core roster. I know the brand split is pretty much non existent at this point, but you don't see the likes of Punk or Cena on Smackdown every week. I rather they didn't move it up to 3 hours though. 6 hours a week for the two main shows is way too much.

It might also further the chance of them getting rid of the World title, which would be great.

 

[SAIYANS]

I have to be the only one who hates lives SDs and even ECW/nxt on syfy. The commercial placements are so odd compared to raw on USA. I don't mind it being taped, not even 3 hours, even if that means cutting on an hour earlier as opposed to last a hour longer. Just move it over to Thurdays and call up some nxt talent. Give tag teams, divas, small workers more stage in that first hour IMO.

 

[Dale]

Wouldn't like this move at all really unless they do something radical and bring in a legit Cruiserweight Division or something because half the time it seems as though they can't even write consistently good 2 hour SmackDown's, let alone a 3 hour.

 

[CGS]

Unless they are gonna do the brand extension properly again I see no reason to expand the show to 3 hours. Raw is already too much most weeks since we tend to get matches and stuff that happen on SD also happen on Raw to fill the time up. If SD becomes 3 hours as well then we will basically see the same show twice every week.

 

[Deezy]

Wouldn't like this move at all really unless they do something radical and bring in a legit Cruiserweight Division or something because half the time it seems as though they can't even write consistently good 2 hour SmackDown's, let alone a 3 hour.

This is because Smackdown! is a B-Show, a glorified Mainevent/Superstars. It doesn't start angles of its own, it is just a show that showcases undercard feuds and angles. All their writers who write promising things is poached and brought to Raw because that is the golden child.

Cruiserweights won't help. Nobody tunes into to watch them.

 

[Chris]

What Dale means is that Smackdown just needs something different that separates it from Raw. And stop the fucking rematches less than a week from each other.

 

[Keith]

^ Plus if it felt like proper Cruiserweight wrestling and not the watered down stuff we got in 2002-04 then it could make a difference.

A lot of the stuff deezy said I am in favour of.

No third hour is needed.

They need that world title to be somewhere approaching raw's WWE title again. Maybe have it close some PPV's and just make the PPV hype more equal. If they can't get it back up then maybe drop it, and just make it where the WWE Champion appears on both shows like that was one of the best ideas they had with original brand split.

 

[Troy]

I love watching wrestling and shouldn't really complain about another hour of wrestling on television each week but I don't want Smackdown to go to three hours. I would prefer WWE to add another hour show during the week as three hours two times a week, three when a PPV is on, is too much.

It would be great if WWE did treat Smackdown as an equal and tried to make it as good as possible rather than making it so clear that it is the B show. Using the top names on both shows more regularly would be a nice start, how often does Cena wrestle on Smackdown? Allowing it to excel and promote it's storylines as the most important, rather than constantly recapping RAW would be a good move as well. Treating the WHC as a bigger deal and on par with the WWE title is a must if they are to improve Smackdown.

 

[CGS]

When was the last time SD was really on par with Raw? I guess you could make a case for 2008/09 but I reckon that was more due to the fact that the booking of SD was lightyears better than Raw (Especially in 2009) rather than pure strength. Honestly the last time I can remember was the days of the SD 6 back in 2002/03 which is really a shame.