5 reasons why Smackdown Live was better than Monday Night Raw in 2017
Brand supremacy has become a huge thing in the WWE since the brand split and while it's obvious that both WWE Smackdown Live and Monday Night Raw are a part of the same company, that still hasn't stopped fans from picking sides when it comes to which one can put on the better show week after week.
While some think that Raw would be the obvious winner here, especially since they have the bigger names, more time to work with and controversial angles at play, Smackdown Live has done a lot in 2017 to prove that they are no longer the "B show" of the WWE. In fact, it seemed like Monday Night Raw was relegated to the B show" this year.
With that being said, here are five reasons why Smackdown Live was better than Monday Night Raw this year. If you enjoyed the list, please leave a comment below and let us know which show you thought was better in 2017 and why you think that.
#5 Better use of pay-per-views to progress storylines
Smackdown Live might have had a miss here and there throughout 2017, especially with how Jinder Mahal retained the WWE Title during a Punjabi Prison match at Backlash, but Smackdown Live has otherwise done a very good job at making the most of their pay-per-views and progressing storylines in the process.
Take Hell in a Cell for example, where Sami Zayn made a shocking save for Kevin Owens during the hell in a cell match between Owens and Shane McMahon. Not only did the move have the WWE Universe talking for days about what happened, it also created one of the most unique authority vs. good guys storyline in the process.
Smackdown Live also used the Survivor Series pay-per-view more effectively by having Owens and Zayn almost cost Team Blue the win. Of course, the duo were fought off by Shane McMahon, but it was really an awesome way to further the storyline of Owens and Zayn versus McMahon without overshadowing the pay-per-view too much.