7 Traps WWE’s Brand Extension Has Fallen Into (Again)
4. False Competition Between The Brands
Paul Heyman claimed during a Q&A tour of the UK last summer that Vince McMahon's entire vision for the original brand extension was to create greater competition within his company. If different teams were working on Raw and SmackDown, the warring brands would hypothetically push one another to greater heights.
Pushing the idea of this battle behind the scenes is one thing, presenting it in front of fans as phoney brand warfare is another entirely. It's good that WWE have resisted the temptation to bring back the redundant Bragging Rights pay-per-view, although Survivor Series 2016 did feature an unnecessary focus on Raw vs. SmackDown.
Team Red vs. Team Blue feels lazy, and it's hard for fans to become invested in a story that comes across so forced (and often false) on television.
Admittedly, WWE have already moved on a little from announcers on each show chortling about the other product like they're Tony Schiavone running down Mick Foley's World Title win in 1999. More steps need to be taken though, because Raw vs. SmackDown rarely makes for a deep or compelling story.