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What does wrestling need to get hot again?


JaymeFuture

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They were important aspects, and saying that what wrestling NEEDS to hit another boom period is to completely dump them is ridiculous.

I don't think it's ridiculous, I think it's naming the cause of the problems wrestling has had since then in general.

 

What would be ridiculous would be arguing in any way that a return to Russo-style booking might be the answer. I know that's not what you're saying, but still. The remnants of his legacy remain and they should be stamped out now. And remember, for every good attitude era bit we could name, there are TEN or probably more absolute dogshit moments like the Russo and Hogan "worked shoot" in 2000.

 

I actually think WWE have worked hard to undo a lot of that damage, but they could do more.

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I'm saying that they run something that's working into the ground and don't make any changes until they have started to fade in popularity, instead of predicting what's coming and trying to beat the trend. Everyone on message boards I posted on at the time could see a decline coming after Wrestlemania X-7, but I'm not sure WWE did.

 

If Chris Jericho had been portrayed on the same level as Steve Austin and The Rock in 2000, he could have carried the company when they left and WWE wouldn't have dropped in popularity, or if they had, it would have been minimal. HHH, the guy who actually was put in a position to carry the company during that time, also would have benefitted because he would have had a rival that was seen at his level. Yes, it takes more than new stars to usher in a boom period, but a boom period can't really be created with old guys. Even in exceptional cases like Hogan, Hollywood Hogan was such a radical reinvention that it was the equivalent of a new guy.

 

I'm still not sure that wrestling promoters understand that attempts to "recapture" something almost never work. You could probably count the cases where it has on one hand and have fingers left over.

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I think what WWE needs to do right now is just change the damn format. The show feels exactly the same right now as it did ten years ago. Starting with an opening promo, having a heel authority figure, a runover segment in the main event slot, etc.

 

It's dated.

 

They need to change things up. Present something fresh & new. Return the feeling of unpredictability. Even if that means starting with a new set, new intro music, new ring ropes, new guard rails, whatever. If you go back & compare the first days of RAW to RAW today, they're vastly different. Not just cause of production values either. But if you go back to RAW in like 2004 & compare it to today...it's like the same show.

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I think what WWE needs to do right now is just change the damn format. The show feels exactly the same right now as it did ten years ago. Starting with an opening promo, having a heel authority figure, a runover segment in the main event slot, etc.

 

It's dated.

 

Ten years ago ? You're being generous. The format and look has pretty much been the same since 2000 or so (and you could argue 1998 really, the only changes apart from Vince Russo crash TV booking era for 15 months have been cosmetics basically).

 

But yeah, totally agree.

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I'm pretty sure that it wouldn't be what led to a new boom, but I'd really like to dump an omnipresent GM figure and just have faction wars, and groups making their own matches between themselves. I already referenced him, but I really liked Foley as GM in 2000. He was partisan, sure, but he seemed to just be having a good time without any true animosity towards anyone. Stephanie's SD run was also fun. Just have someone being likable and keeping the trains running on time.

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It needs the next Hogan/Rock/Austin.

 

It also needs a viable 2nd national promotion as competition, though I don't think that's possible without there being another boom.

 

I agree with BillThompson that the boom is going to happen organically. It isn't anything that can be forced.

 

WWE is in a stable period, but they could be doing a whole hell of a lot better if they'd get out of their own way. Stop scripting promos, and if someone can't hang on the mic, put 'em with someone who can. If someone's getting over, get out of their way and facilitate it.

 

Shitcan the Hollywood writers. Wrestling needs to be booked by people that get wrestling.

 

The presentation needs to be drastically overhauled. Give King, Cole, and JBL the boot. I know they've got Vince in their ears every step of the way, and maybe that's the problem, but as it stands, they're unbearable and they get in the way of the matches and wrestlers.

 

A big thing for me is the music. If there's one thing that really shows how out of touch WWE is, it's their tunes. They're blasting Nickelback and that shit is for basic moms and dads wearing khaki shorts with their shirts tucked in. The Smackdown theme gets stuck in my head far too often and makes me want to put my head through a wall. The only good songs the company has used in the last few years are "Cult of Personality," which came out in the late 80s, and The Wyatts' theme.

 

A good point was brought up in the Current WWE thread about the women's division. They're leaving money on the table by not presenting it in a serious manner. The announce team checks out when Paige is on the screen. If they're gonna treat it like an excuse for a piss break, the audience is gonna follow suit.

 

Also, Cruiserweight division. They've got enough guys in the company that can haul ass in the ring to make it work, and there are plenty of dudes in the indies/Japan/Mexico to keep it fresh.

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I really liked the planned approach of the wrestling retribution project. Even though nothing came from the project. The presentation of the battle royal was terrible, but they had some interesting characters building towards the tapings and they seemed to have storylines which were meant to be serious. Serious storylines with a clearly structured beginning, middle and end is the way to go in my eyes. It will not work overnight, but a completely different approach to wwe is fundamental. Try a season concept with real conclusions. I know I will be quite alone with my opinion. Please excuse my poor English.

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I don't know if one could say that 1992-1994 was a boom period for the WWF, but it certainly wasn't a struggling cycle. It was a time of stability where things were running smoothly without the dangers of bad ratings or the highs of insane merch and PPV numbers.

 

I'm pretty sure they were struggling during this time, actually. It was far from a boom.

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I really liked the planned approach of the wrestling retribution project. Even though nothing came from the project. The presentation of the battle royal was terrible, but they had some interesting characters building towards the tapings and they seemed to have storylines which were meant to be serious. Serious storylines with a clearly structured beginning, middle and end is the way to go in my eyes. It will not work overnight, but a completely different approach to wwe is fundamental. Try a season concept with real conclusions. I know I will be quite alone with my opinion. Please excuse my poor English.

The season concept I can jive with. I think Chikara has done an okay job with it but someone can take it a step forward. Now whose got the balls to do "series" ala American Horror Story.

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Some of the early Attitude era comedy was good. I remember enjoying the Vince/Mankind stuff like when Mankind went to visit him in the hospital.

 

That was when the era was in full swing - and look at the talent involved, it would be hard to swing and miss. Early attitude era involved Crackhead Bob in long skits. Most people repress moments like this. I try.

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there's no "formula" really, but two things that jump to mind are:

1. Remember that no matter what other comedy, skits, angles, etc. you have going on the real thing this business revolves around is FIGHTS. I know it's a PG era and it's all about putting smiles on faces, etc. but people ultimately watch wrestling to see some fights and in recent years they've done a shitty job of remembering that. Just look at Ambrose on Raw the other night. People are raving about him in part because he was just a house of fire...attacking Rollins, then coming back and attacking Barrett. 99% of the time they run that segment differently....we easily could have gotten the typical "face chaces the heel out of the ring and then stands there sneering" that WWE is so fond of now. Instead we got guys actually inflicting violence on each other. So yeah, they need more of that.

2. Have faith in the talent. Let the talented guys do their thing. Stop micromanaging everything, stop scripting guys to the point that their own personalities are completely hidden. It's to the point where the best promos in the last few months have been on RAW or PPV post-shows on the Network or on fucking Instagram of all places. When Big E puts up a video on Instagram that shows 100 times the personality and wit that we see from him on TV it becomes obvious that the company is stifling some of these guys' personalities. Guys like Rock, Austin, Foley, Angle, etc. would have never gotten over during the boom if they hadn't been allowed to go out there and infuse their own personality with their characters and just riff.

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Wrestling is always at it's best when it is topical. Hulk Hogan was an action hero in spandex. Rock and Austin were the Anti-Heroes in spandex. What type of hero is popular in the current vernacular. Who are our heroes?

 

The top of the car has to have the epic feel about a struggle for dominance or a cause. Cena feels bland because he doesn't have a cause. Heck the authority angle seems bland because their cause is weak. If they went straight super villian and said yeah we don't like this guy because he sucks and we want to be in control with our people and screw what everyone else thinks, this is for our benefits and our pockets people might be truly up in arms and want to tune in and see someone do this.

 

buit the problem is that reality era they are trying too hard for the grey area. Trying too hard to blur right and wrong. There should always be that one KERNEL or truth to what they are saying but when you play too much to the truth you end up somewhere in the grey and grey areas are bad tv. You take any series, and your antagonist might have a point but we should understand the protagonist that much better so that it doesn't matter. Take for instance Breaking Bad, we know the walter white is becoming this monstrous evil but we are along for the ride and we identify with them in their struggles or somethign in them that says "Hey, I understand where he is coming from"

 

Let's face it most of the people who watch wrestling will never know what it truly means to be a champion. It has no meaning to them, and that is fault of breaking kayfabe, where it doesn't mean anything. There is no urgency in winning the title, we are just expecting something to happen.

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As a wrestling fan there isnt too much id want to see. I want Raw reduced to 2 hrs and to cut down on backstage stuff and have more time on the wrestling matches like it used to be on Raw.

 

We need less WWE styled wrestlers & more wrestlers with different styles ie southern etc.

 

I think what made wrestlers work back then because you had to bust your ass to get a spot in WWE instead of just being given spots today with their reality shows or training camps. People worked for loads of companies to improve their craft so they looked so polished when they got a shot at the big time which is sadly something I dont see today.

 

We do need a decent writer who knows about what works. Maybe if we had people wrestle with their heart instead of their brain we could be able to get back on track but I do feel Vince is kinda lost in todays world compared to how great he used to be.

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I don't know how hot this would make the product, but piggybacking on what others have said, the idea that most of the guys on the roster are there to simply put on a show sucks. One of the great things about NXT is that everyone there has the same agenda: win and impress enough people to make the main roster. Once on the main roster, however they immediately stop caring about excelling and it's about entertaining. Everyone on the roster should want to be WWE champion and it should show in the ring.

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