10 Things You Learn Binge Watching Every WWE SmackDown From 2002
1. Second Half Of 2002 Was Way Better Than Raw
The final quarter of 2002 saw Vince McMahon try to turn heads with desperate PR stunts like the Billy and Chuck gay wedding hoax, "Hot Lesbian Action", and the infamously awful Katie Vick saga. Somehow, Raw was landed with 2 of the 3 there - SmackDown only had to suffer through the first stunt, and it wasn't anywhere near as bad as the others.
Billy and Chuck's stuff only came unglued by the finish, because WWE refused to go through with things and infuriated some as a result. Again though, at least SmackDown wasn't touting lesbian sex as one of its main selling points. Or...or...necrophilia. Come on, folks. What were they thinking here?! McMahon even defended Triple H simulating sex on a corpse whilst dressed as Kane years later.
Away from those pesky, outlandish PR stunts, it's fair to say that SmackDown was the true 'A' show compared to Raw. Triple H's World Heavyweight Title stuff was stinky, but Brock Lesnar's feud with The Undertaker on Thursdays ruled. The undercard on Monday nights flattered to deceive when it wasn't outright bad, but the aforementioned 'SmackDown Six' produced excellent matches aplenty no matter which combo Paul Heyman put in the ring.
WWE's Raw brand struggled to find its own identity as the year came to a close. That wasn't the case over on SmackDown. The good times wouldn't last (they rarely do), but the second half of '02 was a fine era to check out what was happening on the blue side. It was the best show in wrestling at the time.
What else did you learn from watching every episode of WWE SmackDown from 2002? For more wrestling, check out WWE Greatest Royal Rumble Wrestlers - Where Are They Now? and 25 Things You Didn't Know About John Cena!