Believe it or not, it has been almost 4 months since the WWE divided up RAW & Smackdown to make them each have an exclusive roster again. Looking back on what has happened since then, there are plenty of High's and Low's to this. I have compiled a list of the best things that have happened since the split, and the worst things that we have witnessed.
BEST:
1. Smackdown - The Miz
Ever since the split, The Miz has been spitting fire. Don't get me wrong, Miz was gaining some momentum as a top heel right before the split. The Miz has been a remarkable heel ever since the split. From his now viral segment with Daniel Bryan, in which he called Bryan out for not wanting to compete bad enough and being injury prone, to his rivalry with Dolph Ziggler. Ziggler & Miz flip flopped holding the Intercontinental Championship a few times that led to some excellent matches. The Miz certainly has earned the title of being a top heel, and the brand split is a huge reason why.
2. Smackdown - Dolph Ziggler
Dolph Ziggler salvaged his career because of the brand split. He competed for the WWE Championship a few months ago, and then proceeded to win the Intercontinental Championship after a 5-star match with The Miz. His mic skills have been on the rise, as he puts real emotion into his promos. Ziggler has made himself relevant again and the brand separation is a huge reason why.
3. RAW - Chris Jericho
With so many people on the same show, it can be hard for a legend to find huge success. This was the case before the brand split. Jericho was still a widely liked person, but it always seemed like he wasn't involved in something serious, or he was just putting someone over. Well, ever since the brand split, Chris Jericho has become one of the funniest and most popular superstars RAW has to offer. His popular "list" has been a smash hit within the show. His best friend gimmick with Kevin Owens has been A+ quality, and he has been in some meaningful matches/rivalries. Chris Jericho has had a boost back up in his career because of the brand split.
4. Big PPVs
With each show getting its own PPV's now, it is even more of a big deal when the shows come together now. This only happens 4 times a year: WrestleMania, SummerSlam, Survivor Series, Royal Rumble. These shows are now all most likely to be 4 hours, and contain big matches. Survivor Series is the first glance we had at this, and it featured a very good match card. In the future, it is more rare for all superstars to come together for the same show, making the big 4 PPV's "BIG" again.
WORST:
1. RAW - Sami Zayn
Sami Zayn has seemingly been lost in the mix ever since the brand split. Before the brand split, he was in a huge rivalry with Kevin Owens. Sami Zayn actually won this match, but Kevin Owens was the one who went on to become the top star of RAW and Universal Champion. Zayn had a short stint with Braun Strowman, a short stint teaming with Neville, and was placed in a random IC Title match with the Smackdown champion. It seems like the creative team just doesn't know what to do with Zayn, who holds a ton of potential.
2. RAW - Neville
This isn't saying that Neville was a top star before the brand split, because he certainly wasn't. But ever since the brand split Neville is struggling to even find TV time. Sometimes he doesn't even compete on WWE Superstars, which is filmed before RAW every week. Neville has yet to be in an extremely meaningful rivalry on RAW, and with even less superstars on RAW, it doesn't look like there is anything lined up for him in the near future.
3. Smackdown - Baron Corbin
Baron Corbin won the battle royal at WrestleMania. He had a meaningful rivalry with Dolph Ziggler shortly after. Ever since the brand split we have found Baron Corbin not doing much. He was involved with Kalisto for a short program, and then placed in the Survivor Series tag match, where he was shortly removed a few weeks after. They played him off as having an injury although it was a work. It will be interesting to see what they do with Corbin in the coming weeks.
4. Smackdown - Apollo Crews
Apollo Crews had a great start to his WWE Career on RAW. He was winning matches and getting TV time. After the brand seperation, Crews has been demoted to only appearing on Main Event, the show filmed before Smackdown every week. Things started out very good for Crews, but since have people within the company wondering what direction Crews will go into next.
5. RAW - Cruiserweight Division
Bringing back the cruiserweight division was a great idea, but I think WWE finally got it right by giving them their own show. They will still be appearing on RAW on a regular basis, but WWE brought the superstars in so abruptly that if the average fan didn't watch the Cruiserweight Classic they would not know any of the superstars, or how TJ Perkins was champion. The cruiserweights get bad reactions on TV, I was at a RAW event in Buffalo a few weeks ago and almost as soon as the match started the crowd started a "Boring" chant. This is something that has been appearing in more than 1 city.
All in all, the brand split has been successful so far in WWE and received positive reviews. It has made the WWE slightly more unpredictable and interesting. I look forward to WrestleMania season and seeing what happens within RAW & Smackdown!
