WWE Raw vs. SmackDown: Winner, Top Highlights and Botches for Week of June 15

Brock Lesnar returned to WWE television, the tag team championships were defended in the main event of the flagship show, Randy Orton sent a message loud-and-clear to Jinder Mahal and the women of the blue brand dominated the airwaves as Raw and SmackDown Live battled for brand supremacy this week.

Both shows produced moments and matches that captivated fans, but only one of them did so in a wholly effective way that earned them "winner" status.

Did Raw capitalize on The Beast Incarnate's return and produce an explosive broadcast that created buzz and excitement for Great Balls of Fire, or did SmackDown's build to Sunday's Money in the Bank eclipse Raw's attempts to earn a much-needed victory in the weekly showdown?

Find out now with this recap of the week that was in WWE TV.

Why Raw?

Monday's Raw kicked off and was ultimately defined by the extraordinary brawl between Samoa Joe and universal champion Brock Lesnar that kicked off the broadcast.

The intense pull-apart fight established Joe as a legitimate, fearless challenger to The Beast Incarnate and generated excitement for a dream match that will headline the July 9 Great Balls of Fire pay-per-view event.

Fans reacted favorably for what was, easily, the best segment either Raw or SmackDown presented all week.

Bookending the broadcast was a Best 2-Out-of-3 Falls match between The Hardy Boyz and Sheamus and Cesaro. The match, like the others between the two teams, was a strong one that continued to build on their rivalry and set them up for one last high-profile showdown.

The finish of the match left a lot to be desired (more on that in a moment), but the action from bell-to-bell was more of the same superb professional wrestling from four of the best in-ring performers under the WWE umbrella.

In between, Neville reasserted his dominance over the cruiserweight division.

A brutal assault of Rich Swann reminded the audience of his nasty, ruthless demeanor, while his warning to Akira Tozawa set up his next Cruiserweight Championship program.

The "whodunnit?" storyline involving Enzo Amore and Big Cass took another sharp turn Monday with the continued involvement of Big Show. The World's Largest Athlete took exception to Amore's insinuation that he may be behind knocking Cass out prior to their match with Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows.

The look on Cass' face as Big Show came to the aid of Amore earlier in the night, one of disdain and furious anger, may well set up the revelation of the Superstar behind the mysterious attack sooner than later.

Why SmackDown?

The final SmackDown Live on the road to Money in the Bank was a broadcast devoted to showcasing the rivalries that will unfold as part of the annual pay-per-view extravaganza.

WWE champion Jinder Mahal had one last warning for Randy Orton ahead of their match in The Viper's hometown of St. Louis, to which the former titleholder responded with an RKO out of nowhere that popped the crowd and left the 13-time champion standing tall.

The execution of the angle was perfect and reminded fans of just how quickly Orton can strike with his vaunted finishing maneuver.

The Money in the Bank ladder match winner will one day have the opportunity to challenge for Mahal or Orton's title, and Tuesday night, the six men involved in Sunday's high-risk match squared off in a big tag team match.

AJ Styles, Shinsuke Nakamura and Sami Zayn defeated Baron Corbin, Dolph Ziggler and United States champion Kevin Owens before a post-match flurry of ladders and bumps left The King of Strong Style standing above his peers with the Money in the Bank briefcase in his hand in what was a potential preview of what fans can expect to see Sunday night.

While the closing angle of Tuesday's show is one we witness every year around the Money in the Bank pay-per-view, it is typically an effective one that generates last-minute hype for the popular gimmick bout.

Perhaps the best part of this week's show was the emphasis put on the women's division ahead of the history-making female Money in the Bank ladder match.

Tamina turned in one of her finest in-ring performances to date, working a quality match against SmackDown women's champion Naomi. That bout gave way to a sneak attack by No. 1 contender Lana, who left the champion lying in a heap at her feet.

Later in the night, Charlotte Flair and Natalya turned in another superb wrestling match, solidifying their in-ring chemistry as one of the best in the entire company. Flair would win the match and cement her status as a favorite to leave St. Louis with the briefcase that would guarantee her a title shot at any point in the next year.

Biggest Botch

A double countout?

Really?

That is the finish WWE Creative concocted for the Best 2-Out-of-3 Falls match for the Raw Tag Team Championship match that saw The Hardy Boyz defend against Cesaro and Sheamus. For the first time in quite some time, the tag titles were spotlighted in a high-profile main event.

Rather than a satisfying conclusion worthy of the spot on the card, the match ended as ice cold as it possibly could have. The double countout came after three hours of television that had exhausted the Lafayette, Louisiana crowd. Rather than a red-hot finish to go along with the explosive opening segment involving Samoa Joe and Brock Lesnar, the show limped to a close courtesy of the lackluster outcome.

While it was admirable of WWE Creative to book the feud in the most significant position on the card, the finish did more to hurt it than anything, raising the question: Can WWE Creative produce television segments that will lend heat to a program some already consider overexposed and repetitive?

Winner

Despite a phenomenal opening to Raw, with Samoa Joe and Brock Lesnar tearing into each other with an intense brawl, SmackDown once again provided fans with a consistently effective show that built to Money in the Bank and put its top stars in the necessary positions ahead of Sunday's event.

Raw's inconsistent pace and inability to build off of the Joe-Lesnar war hurt it exponentially, while SmackDown Live's strong build to each of Sunday's marquee matches helped catapult it past the flagship show and into the winner's seat.

One of the strongest attributes of the blue brand is its understanding of its characters and its use of them on the show. The writing staff understands the importance of character development and booking those Superstars to the strengths.

Raw does not.

It seems as if the red brand too often tries to force its stars into storylines, regardless of whether it fits their characters' personalities or not. Look no further than Apollo Crews being shoved into the Titus Brand storyline despite not having the personality to banter with O'Neil and make the ordeal as successful as it can be.

Until Raw can tighten up its show and find a better, more effective way to utilize its stars, it will consistently find itself in second place.

And rightfully so.