WWE's weekly content is too densely scheduled

[Poit]

The weekly schedule, after the brand split...

Some Sundays: PPV
Every Monday: Raw
Every Tuesday: Smackdown
Every Wednesday: NXT

Before the brand split, Smackdown was on Thursdays (Fridays even further back). Not just that, but the time between PPVs is, on average, about a week less than it was before the brand split.

We have three days in a row of shows. Every 2-4 weeks there's a PPV, so that's instead four days in a row. After having three or four days in a row of content, we then have three of four days of nothing.

Am I the only one who feels fatigued when it comes time to watch NXT on Wednesdays? Does anyone else think stuff needs to be more spread out?

[Lock Jaw]

No. This is the reason why I am many many weeks behind on NXT.

[Mr. Nerfect]

I think they need less stuff. Two hours max for RAW. I kind of think that given the current pacing of their product, they could probably cut back SmackDown to 90 minutes too. They could make up some time to USA by giving them things like the CWC.
"See the most highly regarded tournament of our time," or some shit.

[Evil Vito]

I definitely agree. Personally I avoid NXT results and watch it later in the week as opposed to watching it "live" on Wednesday.

Raw's obviously not changing days and there's nothing you can do about SmackDown though. I've seen it argued that they should have kept SmackDown on Thursday but made it live. The problem is a lot of the TV crew guys and certainly many of the backstage workers are working both shows and messing about with their schedules after years might cause issues.

[Destor]

If they ever go full on demand ill start watching again. Until then its just too much.

[Simple Fan]

No I like it better this way. I don't watch NXT every week because its better to watch 2 or 3 episodes at a time I feel.

[XL]

Wait until November...

Saturday: NXT Takeover Toronto
Sunday: Survivor Series
Monday: Raw
Tuesday: SmackDown
Wednesday: NXT

It's a lot, definitely. Almost feels like WWE have done it on purpose; would you want to watch Lucha Underground/TNA after all that content earlier in the week?

[Mr. Nerfect]

Do you think the "they get more money for the television deals" thing is a good argument, really? I know it changes the metrics of what we're talking about in that this is about duration and not how close it is to other shows during the week, but I wonder how many more viewers would make the commitment to watch if there wasn't just so fucking much? That would drive up ratings, please advertisers and allow more of a long-term gain.

Would it be too unreasonable to make the case that a 2-hour RAW is a lot more valuable than a 3-hour RAW? Especially if you can then produce another show for the network for another time slot. The CWC went for ten weeks. You can boost that up to 11 with the Bracketology. That's half a season of programming right there. If you do something like that with the women, you can basically produce an entire season's worth of content to run alongside RAW and SmackDown separately.

[Nicky Fives]

Nobody says you have to watch it live.... I'm pretty consistently one week behind WWE at all times and only make an effort to catch up for the big PPV's so I can watch them live....

[Big Vic]

Just stop watching raw.

[Simple Fan]

This thread is like complaining about being a wrestling fan. If its such a chore don't watch it. As a wrestling fan like I said I like this new format. Mondays through Wednesday is all WWE then TNA on Thursday. If there is a PPV or a Takeover that just makes it better.

[Destor]

This thread is like complaining about being a wrestling fan. If its such a chore don't watch it. As a wrestling fan like I said I like this new format. Mondays through Wednesday is all WWE then TNA on Thursday. If there is a PPV or a Takeover that just makes it better.
Well I dont.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Yeah, I haven't watched television in ages. I also missed No Mercy and will probably miss Hell in a Cell.

[Mr. Nerfect]

I love wrestling, but I also love discussing wrestling -- what works and what doesn't. I love the business of wrestling and the interesting facts and figures around it. I love listening to the experts and working out whether what they say makes sense or not. I love good wrestling -- I love wrestling that engages me on such an emotionally raw level I stop analysing why it didn't work on me.

Unfortunately, there's not much good wrestling on television.

[Simple Fan]

Yeah but this thread isn't about whether wrestling is good or not. Its complaining that WWE has to much content which I find weird if you're a WWE fan.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Yeah, but even too much of a good thing can sour you on it. Haven't you ever heard that expression? And when it's not a good thing and there's too much of it, it gets disenchanting.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Also, think of it this way:

A professional wrestling company's story in a modern era is told episodically. Now, I'd argue that not much happens each episode nowadays, but let's say that you want to be a completionist and consume the entirety of a product. You're not the sort of person who feels comfortable just watching RAW or just watching SmackDown or just watching NXT. You have to set aside three or four nights of your week for wrestling. One of them requires a three-hour commitment.

Can you see how that density could be bad for wrestling fans, who want to, say, go and do something with friends on a Tuesday night? Maybe they have work on a Wednesday evening? It might seem a simple answer to say "defer your watching" and they can go back and watch something later, but those things pile up. And when you go without something for a little while you think "you know what, I really don't care."

If they had just one or two shows a week that people could say "That's what I do at this point in time every week" then it'd be fine. Instead you have this scenario where you miss a week and realize how little everything matters. Well, it certainly increases the chances of that.

More wrestling programming can actually devalue wrestling programming. Less is more and those cliches.

[Ruien]

Not to much wrestling for me because I don't watch everything that is on. I do not care about NXT at all. I will catch some of Raw but don't go out of my way to watch it. Smackdown is my go to show now and I attempt to catch as much as possible every Tuesday.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Do you think the brand split has actually divided viewers, as opposed to making RAW and SmackDown can't miss programming?

[Mr. Nerfect]

SmackDown just had its lowest USA Network rating ever. People say it was against giant competition, but an excuse is an excuse. People obviously prioritize other things over whatever is going on around the WWE World Title right now. This seems like a good time for me to make my obligatory "the brand split might have been a really bad idea" statement. None of the feuds in the company actually feels like a World Title feud. Owens vs. Rollins is about Triple H's affection. That could very easily be an upper mid-card feud two or three matches down on a PPV. Styles vs. Ambrose doesn't feel like a main event since both guys feel like they are trying to find footing in that scene. Styles vs. Cena feels like the real program there.

Has splitting the women up really been good for them? Becky Lynch and Natalya could really be useful as opponents for Sasha and Charlotte after they finish with each other as HIAC and have nothing to do. Bayley and Dana are about to have their 15th match and Bayley hasn't even had 15 matches yet. You've got Nia Jax, but the thing is, you're supposed to be pushing her. Everybody on the RAW side is supposed to be getting a push, except for Paige and Summer Rae, both of whom are on the shelf. Oh, you've got Alicia Fox, but you've used her for Jax already. This is where you need your Naomi's, Alexa Bliss's and Carmella's. They're there to take a beating from the elite girls while they work out who they are.

There's so much filler on the programming these days. I disagree with the Russo philosophy of "if you give them a chinlock they'll change the channel," and wrestling should have the confidence to be what it is, but a lot of the programming is a big metaphorical "chinlock" if it were. I love Goldust and The Shining Stars, but was that shit on RAW really supposed to keep people engaged? If they tune out of that, who is to say they're going to come back? The Styles/Ellsworth stuff is a chinlock. Everything is spinning its wheels along.

But we're in a PC era where you can't fire Titus O'Neil because he sucks anymore. You keep him around to keep morale up because he's a great guy. R-Truth stopped meaning anything to even your dumbest child years ago, but he's still doing his shtick because he's still in great shape. I used to be all "there's a place for all this talent, you just need to use them properly," but I think the reality of running a proper wrestling promotion means you need to say goodbye to tired acts. And it's sometimes not their fault. Guys just have a certain shelf life before you need to take them off TV and recharge their batteries. Dolph Ziggler is a great example of this. Maybe The Spirit Squad should have beaten the piss out of him, he could have taken a sabbatical and worked somewhere else (New Japan, EVOLVE, NXT, etc.) and they could actually have heat and set up something for Dolph Ziggler when people actually miss him and say "You know what I could go for? A Dolph Ziggler match?".

You often see it suggested that wrestling needs an off-season, but I don't think wrestling needs an off-season so much as talent need to be used more sparingly. Bayley is getting crushed doing her week-to-week. Even a Cesaro match is starting to mean nothing since he's been on RAW every week since the RAW after Mania. I don't just think the shows are condensed, but the talent is overexposed across them.

[Wishbone]

Agreed. I'm like 3 weeks behind on NXT right now. Only reason I stay semi-up to date with RAW and Smackdown is because I have a friend that I watch them with on the weekends. Honestly a 2 hour RAW would be ideal as that show just drags on and feels like a chore most of the time. Drop RAW to 2 hours and move Smackdown to Thursday, then have NXT some time on the weekend maybe. In truth I almost wish they'd just drop Smackdown all together as even if it was moved we'd still have that 2 hours of programming. It's just too much, man...

[Ruien]

Do you think the brand split has actually divided viewers, as opposed to making RAW and SmackDown can't miss programming?

SmackDown just had its lowest USA Network rating ever. People say it was against giant competition, but an excuse is an excuse. People obviously prioritize other things over whatever is going on around the WWE World Title right now.

Well, I don't think anyone really watched SmackDown before did they? But they did divide me. Raw has Y2J, Rollins, and Rusev but that is it. And within 3 hours that is a long pause between those wrestlers getting screen time. And from what I seen before, Rusev just gets hammered by Reigns anyways and I don't want to see that.

SmackDown has Miz, Spirit Squad, Heath/Rhyno, Bray/Harper, AJ, Cena (When he is around), and Dean. That is a ton to look forward to in a 2 hour show.

[Mr. Nerfect]

No, but I wonder if the SmackDown rise is a temporary patch. RAW has shriveled a bit. I wonder if the SmackDown increase makes up for the RAW deficit?

[Droford]

I usually watch NXT on the weekend sometime now. I dont seeany reason to watch it Wednesdays.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

With DVR and stuff. You can watch it any time you want. Live threads or chatting with people is the only reason to watch live.

[Simple Fan]

DVR is truely king. Best way to watch Raw and Smackdown. NXT is pretty much the same I can skip what I want and watch what I want.

[Emperor Smeat]

Get worse once you add in the pre and post show stuff WWE does for ppvs, Raw, and Smackdown. Even morse with Main Event and Superstars that gets shown for overseas markets for weekly stuff.

I usually watch NXT a day later because of Lucha Underground and other tv shows having more priority for me on Wednesdays.

[slik]

Yes, it's overwhelming tbh.

It's oversaturation.

[Cool King]

All I watch is Raw, SmackDown and PPV's. I don't watch NXT, Main Event or Superstars, but even though I only watch what I watch, I still feel it can be a bit too much at times.

I think the main "problem" is the PPV's.

Since the brand split, we've had a PPV pretty much fortnightly. I think next year would be a good time for the WWE to start designating each month to each brand just like what they did during the first Brand Extension and that way, there would be some good "breathing space" between PPV's and weekly shows, and it would also give angles a good amount of time to develop and build up interest for that brand's next PPV.

For example:

January - Interbrand (Royal Rumble)
February - Raw
March & April - Depending on when WrestleMania is, the other month will be SmackDown's
May - Raw
June - SmackDown
July - Raw
August - Interbrand (SummerSlam)
September - SmackDown
October - Raw
November - Interbrand (Survivor Series)
December - SmackDown

Another "problem" like most people have said, is Raw being three hours. It really does feel like it drags and can be a chore to watch it all most of the time.

A two hour Raw and SmackDown along with maybe NXT and Main Event both on a Friday one after the other, would probably be better. Two hours of WWE on Monday, Tuesday and Friday every week, with three hours of the PPV once a month sounds more maintainable for your average WWE fan, if you ask me.

[The CyNick]

SmackDown just had its lowest USA Network rating ever. People say it was against giant competition, but an excuse is an excuse. People obviously prioritize other things over whatever is going on around the WWE World Title right now. This seems like a good time for me to make my obligatory "the brand split might have been a really bad idea" statement. None of the feuds in the company actually feels like a World Title feud. Owens vs. Rollins is about Triple H's affection. That could very easily be an upper mid-card feud two or three matches down on a PPV. Styles vs. Ambrose doesn't feel like a main event since both guys feel like they are trying to find footing in that scene. Styles vs. Cena feels like the real program there.

Has splitting the women up really been good for them? Becky Lynch and Natalya could really be useful as opponents for Sasha and Charlotte after they finish with each other as HIAC and have nothing to do. Bayley and Dana are about to have their 15th match and Bayley hasn't even had 15 matches yet. You've got Nia Jax, but the thing is, you're supposed to be pushing her. Everybody on the RAW side is supposed to be getting a push, except for Paige and Summer Rae, both of whom are on the shelf. Oh, you've got Alicia Fox, but you've used her for Jax already. This is where you need your Naomi's, Alexa Bliss's and Carmella's. They're there to take a beating from the elite girls while they work out who they are.

There's so much filler on the programming these days. I disagree with the Russo philosophy of "if you give them a chinlock they'll change the channel," and wrestling should have the confidence to be what it is, but a lot of the programming is a big metaphorical "chinlock" if it were. I love Goldust and The Shining Stars, but was that shit on RAW really supposed to keep people engaged? If they tune out of that, who is to say they're going to come back? The Styles/Ellsworth stuff is a chinlock. Everything is spinning its wheels along.

But we're in a PC era where you can't fire Titus O'Neil because he sucks anymore. You keep him around to keep morale up because he's a great guy. R-Truth stopped meaning anything to even your dumbest child years ago, but he's still doing his shtick because he's still in great shape. I used to be all "there's a place for all this talent, you just need to use them properly," but I think the reality of running a proper wrestling promotion means you need to say goodbye to tired acts. And it's sometimes not their fault. Guys just have a certain shelf life before you need to take them off TV and recharge their batteries. Dolph Ziggler is a great example of this. Maybe The Spirit Squad should have beaten the piss out of him, he could have taken a sabbatical and worked somewhere else (New Japan, EVOLVE, NXT, etc.) and they could actually have heat and set up something for Dolph Ziggler when people actually miss him and say "You know what I could go for? A Dolph Ziggler match?".

You often see it suggested that wrestling needs an off-season, but I don't think wrestling needs an off-season so much as talent need to be used more sparingly. Bayley is getting crushed doing her week-to-week. Even a Cesaro match is starting to mean nothing since he's been on RAW every week since the RAW after Mania. I don't just think the shows are condensed, but the talent is overexposed across them.

I find it easier to watch RAW and SDL when they have separate rosters.

My feeling is when you have one roster with two shows, you end up with only 6-7 programs going on at once, and those programs get burned out too quickly by having 5 hours to fill.

With separate rosters, you still have 5 hours, but now you get to see 12-14 programs, which gives more guys opportunity to shine. The problem as I see it right now is both rosters are thin, and it will take time for guys who were previously 5th or 6th from the top guys to become 2nd or 3rd from the top guys who are knocking on the door of the main event. Even established guys like Miz and Ziggler are essentially semi main guys on SDL, and get time to shine. In a combined roster environment, they would be 5th or 6th from the top, and get less time on a PPV to tell a story. The Ziggler-Miz storyline has been one of the best IC title programs in at least a decade.

The other advantage from a business standpoint is the additional PPVs for The Network. Content is key, and by having the brand split you now have 20 PPVs for your $10 per month, instead of 12. Thats an excellent value add message that can be sold to new and existing subs.

[Poit]

Yeah but this thread isn't about whether wrestling is good or not. Its complaining that WWE has to much content which I find weird if you're a WWE fan.

That's not at all what the thread is complaining about. The amount of content per week has not gone up much (the average number of weeks between PPVs is about one less).

The complaint is that all the weekly content is in the first half of the week, all in a row. Then the second half of the week has nothing.

[Anybody Thrilla]

DVR, man. Watch it whenever you want to/can.