10 Ways The Brand Split Has Changed WWE (One Year On)
3. SmackDown Finally Has An Identity
SmackDown was a lifeless show prior to the 2016 draft. While not entirely unenjoyable, the blue brand was little more than Raw Lite, often featuring repeat matches and angles from the night before. Nothing important ever happened on SD, which made it totally skippable, and completely unappealing to all but the diehards.
The split has worked wonders in this regard. SmackDown finally feels like a show worth watching again, and this is partly down to the identity it has forged over the past 12 months. While Raw remains WWE’s star studded sports entertainment factory, SD combines more experimental booking with superhuman in-ring efforts from the likes of AJ Styles, creating a unique show that doesn’t feel like the B option anymore.
SmackDown is still rife with textbook WWE storytelling tropes, and the company could certainly do more to differentiate it from Raw. The bookers’ choices don’t always go over as intended either (see: the Wyatt/Orton feud), but in terms of making the blue brand relevant again, the split has been a success. It’ll never be perfect, and the ratings remain stuck behind Raw’s, but the upturn is undeniable.