TPWW Forums - View Single Post - Why does everyone think Smackdown is being killed by the draft?

**darkpower** · 06-28-2005, 12:06 AM

Ok, umm....when during this whole thing did people wake up and realize this when I've been saying this since the night Cena got drafted with that fucking title? SD, which I had thought should've been the better show before the draft, is GETTING SHAFTED, no questions asked.

SD really didn't suck, but they needed a bit better writing. And Friday nights are not necessarily a death sentence for the show, and I think people need to stop thinking it is. Even though it's the second least watched night of the week, that doesn't mean no one is going to watch it. I believe that the fans will follow the product regardless of what night it's on or what network it's on. And hopefully SD will be able to get some trade offs for being on Fridays, but I don't see it happening.

So instead of Vince trying to make this year the best year SD has ever had, he's already decided to say "fuck it" and send all the stars from SD over to RAW via this draft. The reason I have objected is because if Friday night is one of the two worst rated TV nights, the other being Saturday, then would you not give someone a reason to WANT to watch a Friday night show instead of just letting it fall?

And what about the SD stars, PPV buyrates, ticket sales, and merchandice? What happens to the main event picture now? SmackDown is not just a show on Thursday/Friday nights. It's part of the WWE's revenue. It's part of the paychecks, it's part of the roster that can make or break the WWE. If you send all the GOOD SD stars to RAW now, when you have until 06 to make a statement, then you're also telling the fans that they shouldn't pay their money for those PPVs, merchandice, and tickets, and thus, they start losing money before 06 even arrives, and that, in retrospect, is what ultimely can become the WWE's would-be downfall.

And what about past 06? You can't unify the rosters, as it would be just way too many stars to cram onto one show. And while the unification of the belts may seem like a good idea, look at who is in the driver seat on RAW most of the time. Triple H. Do you think he isn't going to be at least a bit in that title picture 24/7? And what about brand individuality? How would the shows have their own idenity if they are having to share the same title? This was the main problem back in 02 when the extension started, in my opinion.

So even though this draft is not over, two picks left for each show, things are not looking good for the "minor league". We can make our predictions all we want, but bottom line is, for all we know, RAW will get Eddie Guererro and Rey Mysterio while SD gets the Masterbore and Simon Dean. Hopefully I am proven wrong, because I would love to be able to see both brands succeed, and I would watch SmackDown to hear anyone else commentate other than JR and the King (I do admit, if it was those two rather than Cole and Tazz doing SD commentary, it would make SD that much worse), something tells me that Vince isn't going to do the smart thing, and instead do the stupidest thing ever.

06-28-2005, 12:06 AM	#57
darkpower Why So Curious? Posts: 3,408	Ok, umm....when during this whole thing did people wake up and realize this when I've been saying this since the night Cena got drafted with that fucking title? SD, which I had thought should've been the better show before the draft, is GETTING SHAFTED, no questions asked. SD really didn't suck, but they needed a bit better writing. And Friday nights are not necessarily a death sentence for the show, and I think people need to stop thinking it is. Even though it's the second least watched night of the week, that doesn't mean no one is going to watch it. I believe that the fans will follow the product regardless of what night it's on or what network it's on. And hopefully SD will be able to get some trade offs for being on Fridays, but I don't see it happening. So instead of Vince trying to make this year the best year SD has ever had, he's already decided to say "fuck it" and send all the stars from SD over to RAW via this draft. The reason I have objected is because if Friday night is one of the two worst rated TV nights, the other being Saturday, then would you not give someone a reason to WANT to watch a Friday night show instead of just letting it fall? And what about the SD stars, PPV buyrates, ticket sales, and merchandice? What happens to the main event picture now? SmackDown is not just a show on Thursday/Friday nights. It's part of the WWE's revenue. It's part of the paychecks, it's part of the roster that can make or break the WWE. If you send all the GOOD SD stars to RAW now, when you have until 06 to make a statement, then you're also telling the fans that they shouldn't pay their money for those PPVs, merchandice, and tickets, and thus, they start losing money before 06 even arrives, and that, in retrospect, is what ultimely can become the WWE's would-be downfall. And what about past 06? You can't unify the rosters, as it would be just way too many stars to cram onto one show. And while the unification of the belts may seem like a good idea, look at who is in the driver seat on RAW most of the time. Triple H. Do you think he isn't going to be at least a bit in that title picture 24/7? And what about brand individuality? How would the shows have their own idenity if they are having to share the same title? This was the main problem back in 02 when the extension started, in my opinion. So even though this draft is not over, two picks left for each show, things are not looking good for the "minor league". We can make our predictions all we want, but bottom line is, for all we know, RAW will get Eddie Guererro and Rey Mysterio while SD gets the Masterbore and Simon Dean. Hopefully I am proven wrong, because I would love to be able to see both brands succeed, and I would watch SmackDown to hear anyone else commentate other than JR and the King (I do admit, if it was those two rather than Cole and Tazz doing SD commentary, it would make SD that much worse), something tells me that Vince isn't going to do the smart thing, and instead do the stupidest thing ever.