So I just watched the John Cena "Word Life" DVD for the first time. It was a good education in how Cena got over in the first place. I'll say this for the guy, he can be very entertaining when used properly.
BUT (you knew it was coming) I'm not about to get all starry-eyed about John Cena and propose, like some have, that a return to "Basic Thuganomics" would get him over again just like it did before.
But (Two but's in a row? What is this, a DX reunion?) more than any gimmick, bad scriptwriting, or PG rating, the ONE thing that is keeping John Cena from getting over is the fact that John Cena is old.
Not physically old. John Cena is only thirty-five and still in great shape. He's old in TV years.
Take any personality on any show that has ever been on TV, and sooner or later, regardless of what heights of popularity they achieve, fans lose interest.
There are only so many stories. Only so many scenarios. Even the best writers run out of ideas. You don't have to go any further than the most popular wrestlers of all time to see that this is true.
Hulk Hogan did more for the business of professional wrestling than anyone. He enjoyed success unheard of or even imagined up to that point. But after winning his first WWF Championship in 1984, by the end of 1991, public interest had definitely waned. His match with The Undertaker at the Survivor Series that year was probably the turning point.
The Undertaker was a better athlete and a fresh face with a new, intriguing story that the people wanted to get behind and the fact that he was not allowed to beat Hogan cleanly for the title expedited public opinion turning against Hogan.
This was felt even more in his feud with Sid Justice early the following year. Many fans were cheering for Sid despite the fact that he was supposed to be the heel. And despite the fact that the WWF was still doing everything it could to present Hogan as the conquering hero.
Sound familiar?
The amount of exposure that personality has is obviously a big factor in how long it takes for this public indifference to set in. The fans turning on Hulk Hogan took eight years. Until then, they were happy to accept him as their hero, believe in him, and cheer for him.
But when the fans decided that they had had enough, no amount of selling or re-packaging by the WWF was going to change their opinion.
John Cena has been on the top of the card for about the same amount of time that Hogan was, however, he's been getting a mixed reaction almost from the beginning because of the greater amount of exposure.
John Cena is on ALL of WWE's weekly programming whether he's on the show live, or in a video recap. When Hogan was enjoying his run, you might go weeks without seeing him in any way, shape or form. You certainly wouldn't see him wrestle. The WWF was smart enough to save him for house shows, the occasional Saturday Night's Main Event, or pay per view, of which they only had four back in those days.
Just like with Hogan, public opinion has turned on John Cena. And no amount of re-packaging is going to change their minds. Just like they did with The Undertaker and Sid, fans today want to get behind someone new like Daniel Bryan or CM Punk.
But just like they did with Hogan, bringing him back to beat Yokozuna for the title at WrestleMania IX even though the fans had clearly moved on, they're going to continue to go to the well with John Cena until they finally realize all they're bringing up is an empty bucket.
Saturday, April 28, 2012
Saturday, April 21, 2012
My Problem With ECW
Before you get all fired up, I strongly encourage you to read all the way through to the end and THEN make up your mind.
I feel like I didn't say everything I could in my last post, "The Time Is Now", and wanted to continue the discussion here.
To avoid repeating all that I've already said before, I'm just going to sum it all up like this: the WWE is trending downward and independent wrestling promotions are on the rise.
Here's the problem, independent wrestling promotions always seem to be more concerned about the product itself rather than solving the problem of how to get the product to as many people as possible.
So how does ECW factor into this?
ECW, as revolutionary as it was, meant absolutely nothing to me. It still doesn't. All I know about ECW, is what I've either read in magazines or books, or seen in DVDs. I didn't experience the phenomenon while it was taking place. Part of the reason for that is because I had basically stopped watching wrestling at that time, but also because I live on the wrong side of the country.
I'm basically on the West Coast, so even if I wanted to watch ECW in its heyday, I couldn't have because there was no place to find it out here.
When people who experienced the ECW revolution speak fondly of that time, they usually mention things like, the atmosphere in the arena, the amount of fan involvement in the shows, the wide array of characters and personalities, the quality of the action, the "underground" feel of the promotion, the music, etc.
All of those things are well and good but here's where we get to the title and my problem with ECW: the more people that know, the more people that care.
If I went to the busiest part of town and pulled someone off the street and asked them who John Cena is, chances are pretty good that they might have heard of him even if they don't watch wrestling.
What do you think the chances would be of that same person knowing who the Sandman is? Or Tommy Dreamer? Or Taz?
It was easy to fall in love with wrestling when I did because it was easy to find. I didn't have to trade tapes with anyone. I didn't have to wait for weekly show to be made available on the internet and then sit in front of my computer for two hours watching a one hour show after waiting through multiple bufferings and load times. I certainly didn't have to pay for any kind of membership to watch it.
No, whenever I wanted to watch wrestling, I just plopped my fat ass down on the couch and turned on the tv and there was Hulk Hogan. There was Ted DiBiase. There was the Ultimate Warrior. There was Jake "The Snake" Roberts. It couldn't get any easier.
I didn't watch WWF Superstars of Wrestling because I was a lifelong fan of wrestling. I watched it because it was cool and because it was there. And any time it wasn't there, I could beg my mom to take me to the local video rental store and there'd be dozens of tapes matches and shows that I hadn't seen that I could rent and watch at home.
My point is, I wasn't alone. A lot of people fell in love with wrestling the same way that I did. As a kid, watching the WWF on tv.
Was the WWF on tv because Vince McMahon was a millionaire and had gobs of money to spend on tv shows and video tapes? No. Wrestling wasn't a million dollar industry at that point. And Vince was still getting off the ground. He certainly had money but most of it was borrowed.
Was the WWF on tv because Vince McMahon is a creative genius and his storylines and characters were just so good that people were begging him to put them on the air? No. When Vince gave his product to Ted Turner to run in the South instead of Georgia Championship Wrestling, the fans revolted because they hated the WWF storylines and characters.
Was the WWF on tv because their base of operations was close to my home in Yuma, AZ and they just happened to get their foot in the door of the local market? No. WWF headquaters in Stamford, Connecticut is about as far away as it can get from my hometown and still be in the same country.
So why did I ever fall in love with wrestling? Because it was there. Why was it there? Because of this quote from Vince McMahon himself: "If you provide THE HIGHEST PRODUCTION LEVEL, the fans will find you AS LONG AS YOU ARE DISTRIBUTED WELL." (emphasis mine)
Read it again. Not "if you provide the coolest atmosphere in the arena." Not "if you give the fans the greatest possible amount of involvement." Not "if you provide a wide array of characters and personalities." Not "if you provide the highest quality action possible." Not "if you have an underground feel." Not "if you have the coolest music."
Not that all of those things aren't important. I think part of the reason the WWE has suffered so many loses in revenue across the board is because they don't incorporate more of those things.
But that's not the point. The point is, I found the WWF because it was there. We can all turn our noses up at the current product, and rightfully so, because it is horrible. And some hot new indy fed can pop up that copies the ECW mold and produces something that's cutting edge and they'll make some waves for a little while.
But then what? There are kids just like me who are looking for something cool that they can get into. And the WWE is still there. But kids today aren't as naive as I was when I fell in love with wrestling. They're so much wiser to the ways of the world because of how much information is available to them.
Even as uninformed as I was growing up, there were plenty of times when I was embarrassed by some of the things the WWF did. I shook my head just like everyone else did at the Bushwackers, Zeus, and Hulk Hogan's terrible acting.
But it was there. Vince took advantage of cable television and used it for what it was: an affordable way to get a his product in front of as many people as possible. His product looked professional, and he paid the cable companies to run his shows.
I'm not going to pretend to understand all of the logistics of the present tv market BUT...there are a LOT more channels available today than there were when Vince was sending taped shows to cable companies. It would seem like with a greater need for quality shows to fill time on all of these channels, even if wrestling isn't considered a draw, if a company was to present a high-quality show that looked good, featured content that was attractive to advertisers, and was offered to these channels not only cost-free, but at a profit, a wrestling promotion wouldn't have too much trouble finding a home.
The WWF wasn't the only game in town either. When I was growing up, the AWA was also easy to find. They had a home on ESPN. But like so many others, I tended to prefer the WWF over the AWA. Not because the wrestling was superior. The AWA usually featured matches between their best talent on their tv shows whereas WWF television was made up of mostly squash matches.
I preferred the WWF because frankly, it looked better. Everything that happened in the WWF looked important because it usually took place in arenas full of thousands of fans as opposed to the dumpy-looking Showboat Sports Pavillion that the AWA shows were usually filmed in. The camerawork was professional and smooth. The lighting was perfect and the product was crisp.
How did Vince make the WWF a household name? It wasn't because he was rolling in dough. It was because he took chances that so far, no one else has been willing to take. He was on the cutting edge of production and distribution. So many of us, the diehard fans, gripe and moan about the current state of wrestling, just wishing that some renegade promotion would step up and revitalize the business.
But it's going to take more than just cool characters and intriguing storylines. It's going to take a promotional visionary putting the product in front of as many eyes as possible because, like we said before, the more people that know, the more people that care.
I feel like I didn't say everything I could in my last post, "The Time Is Now", and wanted to continue the discussion here.
To avoid repeating all that I've already said before, I'm just going to sum it all up like this: the WWE is trending downward and independent wrestling promotions are on the rise.
Here's the problem, independent wrestling promotions always seem to be more concerned about the product itself rather than solving the problem of how to get the product to as many people as possible.
So how does ECW factor into this?
ECW, as revolutionary as it was, meant absolutely nothing to me. It still doesn't. All I know about ECW, is what I've either read in magazines or books, or seen in DVDs. I didn't experience the phenomenon while it was taking place. Part of the reason for that is because I had basically stopped watching wrestling at that time, but also because I live on the wrong side of the country.
I'm basically on the West Coast, so even if I wanted to watch ECW in its heyday, I couldn't have because there was no place to find it out here.
When people who experienced the ECW revolution speak fondly of that time, they usually mention things like, the atmosphere in the arena, the amount of fan involvement in the shows, the wide array of characters and personalities, the quality of the action, the "underground" feel of the promotion, the music, etc.
All of those things are well and good but here's where we get to the title and my problem with ECW: the more people that know, the more people that care.
If I went to the busiest part of town and pulled someone off the street and asked them who John Cena is, chances are pretty good that they might have heard of him even if they don't watch wrestling.
What do you think the chances would be of that same person knowing who the Sandman is? Or Tommy Dreamer? Or Taz?
It was easy to fall in love with wrestling when I did because it was easy to find. I didn't have to trade tapes with anyone. I didn't have to wait for weekly show to be made available on the internet and then sit in front of my computer for two hours watching a one hour show after waiting through multiple bufferings and load times. I certainly didn't have to pay for any kind of membership to watch it.
No, whenever I wanted to watch wrestling, I just plopped my fat ass down on the couch and turned on the tv and there was Hulk Hogan. There was Ted DiBiase. There was the Ultimate Warrior. There was Jake "The Snake" Roberts. It couldn't get any easier.
I didn't watch WWF Superstars of Wrestling because I was a lifelong fan of wrestling. I watched it because it was cool and because it was there. And any time it wasn't there, I could beg my mom to take me to the local video rental store and there'd be dozens of tapes matches and shows that I hadn't seen that I could rent and watch at home.
My point is, I wasn't alone. A lot of people fell in love with wrestling the same way that I did. As a kid, watching the WWF on tv.
Was the WWF on tv because Vince McMahon was a millionaire and had gobs of money to spend on tv shows and video tapes? No. Wrestling wasn't a million dollar industry at that point. And Vince was still getting off the ground. He certainly had money but most of it was borrowed.
Was the WWF on tv because Vince McMahon is a creative genius and his storylines and characters were just so good that people were begging him to put them on the air? No. When Vince gave his product to Ted Turner to run in the South instead of Georgia Championship Wrestling, the fans revolted because they hated the WWF storylines and characters.
Was the WWF on tv because their base of operations was close to my home in Yuma, AZ and they just happened to get their foot in the door of the local market? No. WWF headquaters in Stamford, Connecticut is about as far away as it can get from my hometown and still be in the same country.
So why did I ever fall in love with wrestling? Because it was there. Why was it there? Because of this quote from Vince McMahon himself: "If you provide THE HIGHEST PRODUCTION LEVEL, the fans will find you AS LONG AS YOU ARE DISTRIBUTED WELL." (emphasis mine)
Read it again. Not "if you provide the coolest atmosphere in the arena." Not "if you give the fans the greatest possible amount of involvement." Not "if you provide a wide array of characters and personalities." Not "if you provide the highest quality action possible." Not "if you have an underground feel." Not "if you have the coolest music."
Not that all of those things aren't important. I think part of the reason the WWE has suffered so many loses in revenue across the board is because they don't incorporate more of those things.
But that's not the point. The point is, I found the WWF because it was there. We can all turn our noses up at the current product, and rightfully so, because it is horrible. And some hot new indy fed can pop up that copies the ECW mold and produces something that's cutting edge and they'll make some waves for a little while.
But then what? There are kids just like me who are looking for something cool that they can get into. And the WWE is still there. But kids today aren't as naive as I was when I fell in love with wrestling. They're so much wiser to the ways of the world because of how much information is available to them.
Even as uninformed as I was growing up, there were plenty of times when I was embarrassed by some of the things the WWF did. I shook my head just like everyone else did at the Bushwackers, Zeus, and Hulk Hogan's terrible acting.
But it was there. Vince took advantage of cable television and used it for what it was: an affordable way to get a his product in front of as many people as possible. His product looked professional, and he paid the cable companies to run his shows.
I'm not going to pretend to understand all of the logistics of the present tv market BUT...there are a LOT more channels available today than there were when Vince was sending taped shows to cable companies. It would seem like with a greater need for quality shows to fill time on all of these channels, even if wrestling isn't considered a draw, if a company was to present a high-quality show that looked good, featured content that was attractive to advertisers, and was offered to these channels not only cost-free, but at a profit, a wrestling promotion wouldn't have too much trouble finding a home.
The WWF wasn't the only game in town either. When I was growing up, the AWA was also easy to find. They had a home on ESPN. But like so many others, I tended to prefer the WWF over the AWA. Not because the wrestling was superior. The AWA usually featured matches between their best talent on their tv shows whereas WWF television was made up of mostly squash matches.
I preferred the WWF because frankly, it looked better. Everything that happened in the WWF looked important because it usually took place in arenas full of thousands of fans as opposed to the dumpy-looking Showboat Sports Pavillion that the AWA shows were usually filmed in. The camerawork was professional and smooth. The lighting was perfect and the product was crisp.
How did Vince make the WWF a household name? It wasn't because he was rolling in dough. It was because he took chances that so far, no one else has been willing to take. He was on the cutting edge of production and distribution. So many of us, the diehard fans, gripe and moan about the current state of wrestling, just wishing that some renegade promotion would step up and revitalize the business.
But it's going to take more than just cool characters and intriguing storylines. It's going to take a promotional visionary putting the product in front of as many eyes as possible because, like we said before, the more people that know, the more people that care.
Friday, April 20, 2012
The Time Is Now
My boys, the Shining Wizards, of Shining Wizards Wrestling Podcast fame; check them out at www.shiningwizards.com got a pretty good convo going on their Facebook page www.facebook.com/shiningwizards about the state of the wrestling business today, particularly WWE. I was going to respond to it, but the more I wrote, the more I wrote. So rather than blow up their Wall, I decided to post my thoughts here.
The funny thing is, I don't think casual fans who care to see the Rock or Brock Lesnar are going to tune in to Raw or Smackdown for the following reasons:
-There are so many shows on tv now and most people don't watch them when they air. I never do. First showings of anything I care to see, I always have to DVR and watch later. So if you've got a DVR full of things to watch, unless you're a diehard wrestling fan, are you really going to spend what little time you have getting caught up on the WWE? Unless something really makes headlines, most casual fans aren't going to care.
-Another reason casual fans don't care enough to watch wrestling every week, the shows are TERRIBLE! Bringing in these returning guys is a great gimmick that could really be used to increase viewership but if I didn't love wrestling and tuned in just to see Dwayne Johnson or Brock, I'd say, "What the hell is THIS crap??" and change the channel!
Clearly, the Rock produced pay per view buyrates for WrestleMania but with the economy the way it is, that's one of the few shows casual fans are going to shell out for because everyone still regards WrestleMania as a big deal, even if they don't watch wrestling on a regular basis.
I don't think Brock is going to help pay per view numbers. Maybe for Extreme Rules, but casual fans aren't going to keep shelling out $60 every freaking month just to see Brock Lesnar fake fighting, especially when NOTHING on the rest of the card gets them hooked.
The WWE has its fanbase which consists of probably mostly kids and a few diehard adults who are wrestling fans but I don't see that fanbase growing at all. In fact, I could easily see it shrinking, just like it has for the past several years. The numbers are down across the board, pay per view buys (with the exception of this year's WrestleMania), viewership of their weekly tv shows, ticket sales, merchandise sales, etc, etc.
Now we get to the title of this post. THE TIME IS NOW for a renegade promotion to step up and revolutionize the business the way ECW did in the mid 90's. Independent wrestling promotions are springing up all over the country and any one of them could hit on the right mix of talent, creativity, cultural relevance, and savvy promotional strategy to enjoy that same type of success.
World Wrestling Entertainment is what it is. And without competition, a rival pressing them to think outside the box, and forcing them to listen to their fans (#YesYesYes) who are perfectly capable of making up their own minds about what constitutes ENTERTAINMENT, things are not going to change.
Which is why I say THE TIME IS NOW! Dedicated fans of the art of professional wrestling like myself, and most likely you if you've chosen to read this blog, are clamoring for something MORE. From there it becomes a simple case of supply and demand.
Demand is in abundance, now we're just waiting on the supply.
THE TIME IS NOW.
The funny thing is, I don't think casual fans who care to see the Rock or Brock Lesnar are going to tune in to Raw or Smackdown for the following reasons:
-There are so many shows on tv now and most people don't watch them when they air. I never do. First showings of anything I care to see, I always have to DVR and watch later. So if you've got a DVR full of things to watch, unless you're a diehard wrestling fan, are you really going to spend what little time you have getting caught up on the WWE? Unless something really makes headlines, most casual fans aren't going to care.
-Another reason casual fans don't care enough to watch wrestling every week, the shows are TERRIBLE! Bringing in these returning guys is a great gimmick that could really be used to increase viewership but if I didn't love wrestling and tuned in just to see Dwayne Johnson or Brock, I'd say, "What the hell is THIS crap??" and change the channel!
Clearly, the Rock produced pay per view buyrates for WrestleMania but with the economy the way it is, that's one of the few shows casual fans are going to shell out for because everyone still regards WrestleMania as a big deal, even if they don't watch wrestling on a regular basis.
I don't think Brock is going to help pay per view numbers. Maybe for Extreme Rules, but casual fans aren't going to keep shelling out $60 every freaking month just to see Brock Lesnar fake fighting, especially when NOTHING on the rest of the card gets them hooked.
The WWE has its fanbase which consists of probably mostly kids and a few diehard adults who are wrestling fans but I don't see that fanbase growing at all. In fact, I could easily see it shrinking, just like it has for the past several years. The numbers are down across the board, pay per view buys (with the exception of this year's WrestleMania), viewership of their weekly tv shows, ticket sales, merchandise sales, etc, etc.
Now we get to the title of this post. THE TIME IS NOW for a renegade promotion to step up and revolutionize the business the way ECW did in the mid 90's. Independent wrestling promotions are springing up all over the country and any one of them could hit on the right mix of talent, creativity, cultural relevance, and savvy promotional strategy to enjoy that same type of success.
World Wrestling Entertainment is what it is. And without competition, a rival pressing them to think outside the box, and forcing them to listen to their fans (#YesYesYes) who are perfectly capable of making up their own minds about what constitutes ENTERTAINMENT, things are not going to change.
Which is why I say THE TIME IS NOW! Dedicated fans of the art of professional wrestling like myself, and most likely you if you've chosen to read this blog, are clamoring for something MORE. From there it becomes a simple case of supply and demand.
Demand is in abundance, now we're just waiting on the supply.
THE TIME IS NOW.
Sunday, April 8, 2012
Hulk Hogan's "Impact Zone"
It's a little dated but here's my review form Impact Wrestling on Spike TV for Thursday, April 5th.
SEGMENT 1. We're treated to a 10-minute Hogan lovefest that was basically just to set up the card for tonight's show. My solution: Have Tenay and Taz allude to Hogan "shaking things up" since taking over as the GM, give the rundown, and start the first match.
SEGMENT 2. First half of Jeff Hardy vs Kurt Angle. It was an okay match but my question is, AGAIN??
SEGMENT 3. Second half of Hardy-Angle. A clean win by Angle would've been nice but maybe the fact that he lost means he's going over at Lockdown. My point is, Who cares? It's basically more WCW-style booking in which the same old guys wrestle the same old guys. Not only are these guys old (not that they're bad workers, but they're definitely on the downside), but they're unreliable. Why build a featured pay-per-view match around them? At least have them work with younger, more reliable talent as a way of building stars of the future! There was some backstage stuff between Hogan and Angle, Ric Flair calling Eric Bischoff, and a promo by Bully Ray against Austin Aries. So far, two of the three segments we've had have featured Hogan and Flair. Bully Ray's promo was fine.
SEGMENT 4. Bully Ray has an in-ring confrontation with Austin Aries and just no-sells about fifty punches to the head. It's obvious Aries is smaller than Bully Ray, but constantly referring to it, is NOT the way to build Aries up as one of the "regular" guys. They need to take a cue from the WWE, when they were building up Shawn Michaels, even when he was matched up with giants like Undertaker, Kevin Nash, and Sid, they NEVER pointed out the size differential. They'd promote the size and strength of the giant but never how much smaller Shawn was. As much as I'm glad Aries is getting a push, I'm afraid in the long run, it's not going to advance his career much, especially if Bully Ray continues not selling for him. Abyss' "brother" had a backstage segment. Not a fan but glad he's finally gotten a gimmick change. Maybe it pays off.
SEGMENT 5. AJ Styles and James Storm decide to have a match and there just happens to be time for it? Since when do wrestlers decide to just go out and have a match? Why did this whole backstage conversation have to happen? Just have the match announced at the beginning of the show and put this time to better use! Speaking of time wasted, the Knockouts involved in the 6-way challenge all get separate introductions. I like intros in multiple-wrestler matches like this...but it's Impact Wrestling's ghetto intros...and it's the Knockouts. Who cares? This whole segment could've gone to something else.
SEGMENT 6. Knockouts have a 6-way, which at first sounds appealing but when you realize they were wrestling, it become much less so. The worst wrestler of the six (and that's saying something) ends up winning. I realize that the Knockouts have their place, but when they're given this much time, and most of them are just terrible in the ring, and you have talented workers on the roster who aren't on tv, something's wrong. Bobby Roode and his security team have a backstage segment with Mr. Anderson, who I used to think was good enough to be a "face of the company" type guy, but he's lost some of his "mojo" in my opinion. It may be the result of his bass ackwards booking and not having anything meaningful to do, but he really laid an egg in this segment.
SEGMENT 7. James Storm and Jeff Hardy hanging out at some country music awards show. I applaud this because it's the kind of thing WWE would do. Anytime one of their Superstars participates in type of event beyond wrestling, the WWE is all over it which is smart because it's good exposure. So hopefully, Impact Wrestling has gotten the hint and the trend will continue. Eric Young's bachelor party was epically bad. I think the guy's a good worker and definitely has charisma, but he's gone through so many incarnations that it's just time to move on. It wasn't funny. It was just embarrassingly awful.
SEGMENT 8. James Storm beats AJ Styles clean in a decent match. I understand them giving Storm a win to help build his momentum leading up to Lockdown, but it shouldn't have been against someone like AJ. AJ Styles should be one of the top guys in the company, not high-end enhancement talent. Another Hogan backstage segment, this time with Sting.
SEGMENT 9. James Storm backstage with Montgomery Gentry (who are famous I guess?). Bobby Roode walks up with his entourage and spits water in their faces. I like that. The heel wrestling champion should punk celebrities, especially if they're associating with his arch-rival. This would've been enough Bobby Roode for me (and his match with Mr. Anderson). It was his best segment, and he gained some solid heel heat. The rest of the stuff where he appeared just felt like overkill.
SEGMENT 10. The Motor City Machine Guns are back! And no one cares. Seriously, both of these guys should've moved on by now. I personally think Alex Shelley has great potential as a singles wrestler. Then again, he is working for Impact Wrestling. Another Bischoff-Flair backstage segment.
SEGMENT 11. Hogan and Bischoff have an in-ring confrontation. It was just horrible. The only other names mentioned were (surprise!) Garrett Bischoff and Gunner.
SEGMENT 12. Bobby Roode beats Mr. Anderson by cheating, which would've been fine with me BUT Hogan couldn't let the show end without making sure his favorite person, himself, graced the screen one last time. He comes out and reverses the decision. So in total, that makes FIVE OUT OF TWELVE segments that featured Hulk Hogan.
And Impact Wrestling wonders why they're not doing better?
Actually, maybe they're not wondering. Maybe they think they're doing great! That would be make sense since Hogan has added NOTHING to the bottom line since joining the company and yet they continue to put him on tv as if it's going to help them.
Meanwhile, according to Impact Wrestling's website (http://www.impactwrestling.com/roster/Wrestler-Roster), there are currently thirty-four wrestlers employed by the company not including Knockouts or guys who only compete occasionally like Hogan, Flair and Sting. Exactly FOURTEEN of those thirty-four wrestlers appeared on the show. That's approximately forty one percent of the current roster of active wrestlers.
That means MORE THAN HALF the competent wrestlers on the company's payroll aren't even on tv. While entire segments are being devoted to Hulk Hogan, Eric Bischoff, Ric Flair, Sting, even Dixie Carter!
I haven't kept up regularly with Impact Wrestling but figured I'd take a moment to watch the show and provide some thoughtful analysis so that I could at least honestly say I'd give it a chance.
And after doing so, can only come to this conclusion, the "Impact Zone" is aptly named because anyone who enters it is sure to have their stool impacted Ed Leslie-style. Apparently when Gorilla Monsoon dubbed Hogan "immortal" in 1990, ol' Hulk took it literally!
SEGMENT 1. We're treated to a 10-minute Hogan lovefest that was basically just to set up the card for tonight's show. My solution: Have Tenay and Taz allude to Hogan "shaking things up" since taking over as the GM, give the rundown, and start the first match.
SEGMENT 2. First half of Jeff Hardy vs Kurt Angle. It was an okay match but my question is, AGAIN??
SEGMENT 3. Second half of Hardy-Angle. A clean win by Angle would've been nice but maybe the fact that he lost means he's going over at Lockdown. My point is, Who cares? It's basically more WCW-style booking in which the same old guys wrestle the same old guys. Not only are these guys old (not that they're bad workers, but they're definitely on the downside), but they're unreliable. Why build a featured pay-per-view match around them? At least have them work with younger, more reliable talent as a way of building stars of the future! There was some backstage stuff between Hogan and Angle, Ric Flair calling Eric Bischoff, and a promo by Bully Ray against Austin Aries. So far, two of the three segments we've had have featured Hogan and Flair. Bully Ray's promo was fine.
SEGMENT 4. Bully Ray has an in-ring confrontation with Austin Aries and just no-sells about fifty punches to the head. It's obvious Aries is smaller than Bully Ray, but constantly referring to it, is NOT the way to build Aries up as one of the "regular" guys. They need to take a cue from the WWE, when they were building up Shawn Michaels, even when he was matched up with giants like Undertaker, Kevin Nash, and Sid, they NEVER pointed out the size differential. They'd promote the size and strength of the giant but never how much smaller Shawn was. As much as I'm glad Aries is getting a push, I'm afraid in the long run, it's not going to advance his career much, especially if Bully Ray continues not selling for him. Abyss' "brother" had a backstage segment. Not a fan but glad he's finally gotten a gimmick change. Maybe it pays off.
SEGMENT 5. AJ Styles and James Storm decide to have a match and there just happens to be time for it? Since when do wrestlers decide to just go out and have a match? Why did this whole backstage conversation have to happen? Just have the match announced at the beginning of the show and put this time to better use! Speaking of time wasted, the Knockouts involved in the 6-way challenge all get separate introductions. I like intros in multiple-wrestler matches like this...but it's Impact Wrestling's ghetto intros...and it's the Knockouts. Who cares? This whole segment could've gone to something else.
SEGMENT 6. Knockouts have a 6-way, which at first sounds appealing but when you realize they were wrestling, it become much less so. The worst wrestler of the six (and that's saying something) ends up winning. I realize that the Knockouts have their place, but when they're given this much time, and most of them are just terrible in the ring, and you have talented workers on the roster who aren't on tv, something's wrong. Bobby Roode and his security team have a backstage segment with Mr. Anderson, who I used to think was good enough to be a "face of the company" type guy, but he's lost some of his "mojo" in my opinion. It may be the result of his bass ackwards booking and not having anything meaningful to do, but he really laid an egg in this segment.
SEGMENT 7. James Storm and Jeff Hardy hanging out at some country music awards show. I applaud this because it's the kind of thing WWE would do. Anytime one of their Superstars participates in type of event beyond wrestling, the WWE is all over it which is smart because it's good exposure. So hopefully, Impact Wrestling has gotten the hint and the trend will continue. Eric Young's bachelor party was epically bad. I think the guy's a good worker and definitely has charisma, but he's gone through so many incarnations that it's just time to move on. It wasn't funny. It was just embarrassingly awful.
SEGMENT 8. James Storm beats AJ Styles clean in a decent match. I understand them giving Storm a win to help build his momentum leading up to Lockdown, but it shouldn't have been against someone like AJ. AJ Styles should be one of the top guys in the company, not high-end enhancement talent. Another Hogan backstage segment, this time with Sting.
SEGMENT 9. James Storm backstage with Montgomery Gentry (who are famous I guess?). Bobby Roode walks up with his entourage and spits water in their faces. I like that. The heel wrestling champion should punk celebrities, especially if they're associating with his arch-rival. This would've been enough Bobby Roode for me (and his match with Mr. Anderson). It was his best segment, and he gained some solid heel heat. The rest of the stuff where he appeared just felt like overkill.
SEGMENT 10. The Motor City Machine Guns are back! And no one cares. Seriously, both of these guys should've moved on by now. I personally think Alex Shelley has great potential as a singles wrestler. Then again, he is working for Impact Wrestling. Another Bischoff-Flair backstage segment.
SEGMENT 11. Hogan and Bischoff have an in-ring confrontation. It was just horrible. The only other names mentioned were (surprise!) Garrett Bischoff and Gunner.
SEGMENT 12. Bobby Roode beats Mr. Anderson by cheating, which would've been fine with me BUT Hogan couldn't let the show end without making sure his favorite person, himself, graced the screen one last time. He comes out and reverses the decision. So in total, that makes FIVE OUT OF TWELVE segments that featured Hulk Hogan.
And Impact Wrestling wonders why they're not doing better?
Actually, maybe they're not wondering. Maybe they think they're doing great! That would be make sense since Hogan has added NOTHING to the bottom line since joining the company and yet they continue to put him on tv as if it's going to help them.
Meanwhile, according to Impact Wrestling's website (http://www.impactwrestling.com/roster/Wrestler-Roster), there are currently thirty-four wrestlers employed by the company not including Knockouts or guys who only compete occasionally like Hogan, Flair and Sting. Exactly FOURTEEN of those thirty-four wrestlers appeared on the show. That's approximately forty one percent of the current roster of active wrestlers.
That means MORE THAN HALF the competent wrestlers on the company's payroll aren't even on tv. While entire segments are being devoted to Hulk Hogan, Eric Bischoff, Ric Flair, Sting, even Dixie Carter!
I haven't kept up regularly with Impact Wrestling but figured I'd take a moment to watch the show and provide some thoughtful analysis so that I could at least honestly say I'd give it a chance.
And after doing so, can only come to this conclusion, the "Impact Zone" is aptly named because anyone who enters it is sure to have their stool impacted Ed Leslie-style. Apparently when Gorilla Monsoon dubbed Hogan "immortal" in 1990, ol' Hulk took it literally!
Wednesday, April 4, 2012
WWE's (Non-Existent) Tag Team Division
Just for fun I'm going to look at WWE "Superstars" who aren't doing anything (or more accurately, WWE is not doing anything with), and pair them up to form some semblance of a tag team division which we can all agree, is sorely missed in wrestling these days. (By the way, WWE.com had a really terrible article on this subject that is partly responsible for me finding the motivation to do my own)
I love rambling on and on about things but instead of taking the scenic route, we're just going to get right into it. I'm trying to get this blog read and so in the interest of brevity, I'll spare you from all that could be said on this subject.
MASON RYAN & JUSTIN GABRIEL
I HATE Mason Ryan. I think he sucks in the ring and every time I see his face I want to punch it. I'm not a big fan of Gabriel either. Dude's got one move, that's it. BUT, that's why you stick guys in tag teams in the first place, because they can't really make it on their own. It gives them a chance to maximize their strengths, while hiding their weaknesses.
So why these two together? I like pairings of contrasting styles. Teams like the Hart Foundation which featured a power wrestler and a technical wrestler are even more rare than teams of two guys with similar styles. Matches with a team like this would build themselves. Gabriel takes a beating, eventually makes the hot tag to Mason Ryan who comes in and cleans house, sets the opponent up for Gabriel's 450 splash and -- Boom! Fans are entertained and both guys get over because they aren't floundering on their own for their shortcomings to be exposed.
Another thing working in their favor is they've both got that "rugged, good-looking European" thing going on (I know Gabriel's not from Europe but he sounds like he is and he freaking wears Speedos in the ring! All European guys wear Speedos, don't they?)
ALEX RILEY & JTG
Odd couples work, right? That's what I'm going for with these two. I personally think both guys could do well as singles competitors but the WWE clearly has no interest in using either one of them for anything meaningful right now so, why not team them up? I think they both have the charisma to make their interaction funny without getting so over-the-top goofy that they lose believability as a viable tag team.
CAMACHO & HUNICO
They're basically a tag team already and they've got the contrasting styles thing going for them. I know a lot of people hate the whole vato loco gimmick but I don't think anyone has ever used it to its full potential. We all laughed at Konnan because he was really more of a caricature. In real life, thugs are people to be feared. They could snap at any time for any reason and they don't give a damn about fighting fair. Push the gimmick as far as the PG rating will allow and you've got something worth watching.
CURT HAWKINS & TYLER REKS
They're already dressing alike. Might as well make them a tag team.
GREAT KHALI & JINDER MAHAL
I think they tried this already before but if anyone needs to have their weaknesses hidden it's Khali. Nobody cares about Jinder right now but in a tag team where he's always got Khali for a safety net, he'd have the chance to show whether or not he's a talented worker, either by doing some good old-fashioned heel bumping or building some heat as a ruthless cheater a'la the Iron Sheik when he was teaming with Nikolai Volkoff. He's clearly got "the look" to have a future in the business whereas Khali's probably already reached his ceiling. Why not get the most out of them in a tag team that, at least at first glance, looks scary as hell.
DREW MCINTYRE & JOE HENNIG
You read that correctly. Have Drew confront "Michael McGillicutty" about his bogus name and urge him to go back to being called by his given name. Both men have an "anointing" on their careers, one by the chairman himself, Vince McMahon, and one by the heritage of his legendary father. So it makes sense for them to team up to claim their destiny since going it alone has been fruitless. McIntyre could be the chief talker, but I'd even like to see them acquire a manager (someone other than Vicki Guerrero). And Joe needs to adopt his father's persona. He has to know it like the back of his hand and I would imagine no other gimmick would give him the same level of comfort and confidence.
TRENT BARRETA & TYSON KIDD
I think both of these guys belong in a tag team. I thought about pairing one of them with Ted DiBiase, who I also think belongs in a tag team but since he's on the shelf with an injury, I decided to throw these two together. Barreta is more of the carefree goofball whereas Tyson is the more serious wrestler. Tyson has great mat skills, and Trent is the reckless hi-flier. I even came up with a name for this one...T-N-T! They're both on the smallish side but they could have some GREAT matches with the current tag champs, Primo & Epico.
Johnny Curtis is another guy who is going to need a partner if he isn't put into a singles program with an experienced babyface vet whom he can go over. I've got several ideas for utilizing the creeper character he's apparently developed on NXT (I don't watch the show; I cheated and looked it up on Wikipedia. Shhhh!)
Throw in THE USOS and PRIMO & EPICO and you've got the makings of a pretty decent tag team division. It could happen, but this is World Wrestling Entertainment we're talking about here so...I'm not going to hold my breath.
Still it's fun to speculate. That's all I got for now. Discuss!
I love rambling on and on about things but instead of taking the scenic route, we're just going to get right into it. I'm trying to get this blog read and so in the interest of brevity, I'll spare you from all that could be said on this subject.
MASON RYAN & JUSTIN GABRIEL
I HATE Mason Ryan. I think he sucks in the ring and every time I see his face I want to punch it. I'm not a big fan of Gabriel either. Dude's got one move, that's it. BUT, that's why you stick guys in tag teams in the first place, because they can't really make it on their own. It gives them a chance to maximize their strengths, while hiding their weaknesses.
So why these two together? I like pairings of contrasting styles. Teams like the Hart Foundation which featured a power wrestler and a technical wrestler are even more rare than teams of two guys with similar styles. Matches with a team like this would build themselves. Gabriel takes a beating, eventually makes the hot tag to Mason Ryan who comes in and cleans house, sets the opponent up for Gabriel's 450 splash and -- Boom! Fans are entertained and both guys get over because they aren't floundering on their own for their shortcomings to be exposed.
Another thing working in their favor is they've both got that "rugged, good-looking European" thing going on (I know Gabriel's not from Europe but he sounds like he is and he freaking wears Speedos in the ring! All European guys wear Speedos, don't they?)
ALEX RILEY & JTG
Odd couples work, right? That's what I'm going for with these two. I personally think both guys could do well as singles competitors but the WWE clearly has no interest in using either one of them for anything meaningful right now so, why not team them up? I think they both have the charisma to make their interaction funny without getting so over-the-top goofy that they lose believability as a viable tag team.
CAMACHO & HUNICO
They're basically a tag team already and they've got the contrasting styles thing going for them. I know a lot of people hate the whole vato loco gimmick but I don't think anyone has ever used it to its full potential. We all laughed at Konnan because he was really more of a caricature. In real life, thugs are people to be feared. They could snap at any time for any reason and they don't give a damn about fighting fair. Push the gimmick as far as the PG rating will allow and you've got something worth watching.
CURT HAWKINS & TYLER REKS
They're already dressing alike. Might as well make them a tag team.
GREAT KHALI & JINDER MAHAL
I think they tried this already before but if anyone needs to have their weaknesses hidden it's Khali. Nobody cares about Jinder right now but in a tag team where he's always got Khali for a safety net, he'd have the chance to show whether or not he's a talented worker, either by doing some good old-fashioned heel bumping or building some heat as a ruthless cheater a'la the Iron Sheik when he was teaming with Nikolai Volkoff. He's clearly got "the look" to have a future in the business whereas Khali's probably already reached his ceiling. Why not get the most out of them in a tag team that, at least at first glance, looks scary as hell.
DREW MCINTYRE & JOE HENNIG
You read that correctly. Have Drew confront "Michael McGillicutty" about his bogus name and urge him to go back to being called by his given name. Both men have an "anointing" on their careers, one by the chairman himself, Vince McMahon, and one by the heritage of his legendary father. So it makes sense for them to team up to claim their destiny since going it alone has been fruitless. McIntyre could be the chief talker, but I'd even like to see them acquire a manager (someone other than Vicki Guerrero). And Joe needs to adopt his father's persona. He has to know it like the back of his hand and I would imagine no other gimmick would give him the same level of comfort and confidence.
TRENT BARRETA & TYSON KIDD
I think both of these guys belong in a tag team. I thought about pairing one of them with Ted DiBiase, who I also think belongs in a tag team but since he's on the shelf with an injury, I decided to throw these two together. Barreta is more of the carefree goofball whereas Tyson is the more serious wrestler. Tyson has great mat skills, and Trent is the reckless hi-flier. I even came up with a name for this one...T-N-T! They're both on the smallish side but they could have some GREAT matches with the current tag champs, Primo & Epico.
Johnny Curtis is another guy who is going to need a partner if he isn't put into a singles program with an experienced babyface vet whom he can go over. I've got several ideas for utilizing the creeper character he's apparently developed on NXT (I don't watch the show; I cheated and looked it up on Wikipedia. Shhhh!)
Throw in THE USOS and PRIMO & EPICO and you've got the makings of a pretty decent tag team division. It could happen, but this is World Wrestling Entertainment we're talking about here so...I'm not going to hold my breath.
Still it's fun to speculate. That's all I got for now. Discuss!
Sunday, April 1, 2012
The Rock won?? Somebody call my momma!
In honor of the late, great Brandon Lee, I'm going to give you this review of WrestleMania XXVIII rapid-fire style (and if you understood that reference, that means you're awesome).
SHEAMUS def DANIEL BRYAN (Wins the World Heavyweight Championship)
Before you huff and puff about how short it was REMEMBER a title belt is a GIMMICK. It has been a gimmick ever since Bruno beat Buddy Rogers for it in 48 seconds. My concern is for Daniel Bryan. The WWE has a track record for burying it's top heels after they lose the championship (see The Miz).
KANE def RANDY ORTON
I wasn't expecting much, and I got more than I expected so, THUMBS UP!
BIG SHOW def CODY RHODES (Wins the Intercontinental Championship)
Team player finally gets his "moment"; fine by me. Hopefully, this means Cody Rhodes moves on to bigger and better things.
KELLY KELLY & MARIA MENOUNOS def BETH PHOENIX & EVE TORRES
No one with a last name that hard to spell should win anything. Ever.
UNDERTAKER def TRIPLE H
Shawn Michaels still Mr. WrestleMania even though he wasn't wrestling? The answer is "Yes."
TEAM JOHNNY def TEAM TEDDY (If you really want to know who was in it, look it up)
Was really hoping for a face turn from The Miz, but happy he got the pin.
CM PUNK def CHRIS JERICHO (Retains the WWE Championship)
Winning isn't everything. In this match, it meant nothing. Chris Jericho was the better man tonight, and possibly the MVP of the whole f'n show.
THE ROCK def JOHN CENA
Ummm...why?
That's all folks. Discuss!
SHEAMUS def DANIEL BRYAN (Wins the World Heavyweight Championship)
Before you huff and puff about how short it was REMEMBER a title belt is a GIMMICK. It has been a gimmick ever since Bruno beat Buddy Rogers for it in 48 seconds. My concern is for Daniel Bryan. The WWE has a track record for burying it's top heels after they lose the championship (see The Miz).
KANE def RANDY ORTON
I wasn't expecting much, and I got more than I expected so, THUMBS UP!
BIG SHOW def CODY RHODES (Wins the Intercontinental Championship)
Team player finally gets his "moment"; fine by me. Hopefully, this means Cody Rhodes moves on to bigger and better things.
KELLY KELLY & MARIA MENOUNOS def BETH PHOENIX & EVE TORRES
No one with a last name that hard to spell should win anything. Ever.
UNDERTAKER def TRIPLE H
Shawn Michaels still Mr. WrestleMania even though he wasn't wrestling? The answer is "Yes."
TEAM JOHNNY def TEAM TEDDY (If you really want to know who was in it, look it up)
Was really hoping for a face turn from The Miz, but happy he got the pin.
CM PUNK def CHRIS JERICHO (Retains the WWE Championship)
Winning isn't everything. In this match, it meant nothing. Chris Jericho was the better man tonight, and possibly the MVP of the whole f'n show.
THE ROCK def JOHN CENA
Ummm...why?
That's all folks. Discuss!
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