Okay, so my Raw review this week ended up being nothing more than a cheap shot at the WWE. I felt frustrated at the overall substance of the show and, for once, being an ‘columnist’ took a back seat to being a disgruntled fan. Before I take a wider look at the broadcast and the ramifications therefrom, I must thank the reader who emailed me his disappointment at my lacklustre review and suggested wrestling sites should “withhold my wages” until I write a proper one. You really think anyone would pay me for this crap? I do this because I love the sound of my own voice and the sport of wrestling. But mostly the ‘my own voice’ thing.
Firstly, a look at the positives from Raw.
Regardless of the crowd’s reaction to Eugene, the opening segment worked because the fans were into it and it got people talking afterwards. If anything, Eugene is one of the only wrestlers being handled in a traditional booking style right now and it shows. His storyline with Kurt Angle is simplistic, easily absorbed and should be used as a template for rectifying other WWE feuds that are suffering from ‘work/shoot’ fatigue. Compared to some of the other recent garbage, Chris Masters against Shelton Benjamin was a good, solid WWE match. I didn’t mind Masters winning but I’d be concerned if Shelton started losing to guys like Snitsky or Conway on a regular basis. Plus, I have a sneaky suspicion that the privilege of breaking the Masterlock will go to an established star with no reason for it, rather than being used as Benjamin’s avenging moment. Edge delivered his best promo to date showing a lot of the fire that’s been missing from some of his previous efforts. Matt Hardy looked good in his slightly drawn-out win over Snitsky though I do feel they should have held off his ring return until his Summerslam match with Edge. Or at least have him go nuts on Gene and get disqualified to demonstrate his pent up anger. I’m still not going to predict a winner in the Raw Diva Search but not through apathy this week. When the first round was aired a while ago, I picked out Ashley, Leyla and Elisabeth as the three that seemed to have that same spark that last year’s winner Christy Hemme had and I fully expect each of them to be offered a spot on the WWE roster for a trial period. Then we’ll see. The ‘face off’ between Hogan and Michaels, although presented as a shoot, benefited from being sensibly structured to allow HBK the most time on the mic and Hogan the metaphorical last word, despite Shawn’s superkick to Lawler.
If you’re wondering how I could derive more than a few good points from the show when I wrote such a dismissive review then you need to look at the bigger picture. The current state of the WWE is so neglected and careless that a few good matches or segments aren’t nearly enough to paper over the cracks in the direction of the company and Vince needs to reassess his product’s chosen future and the machinations put in place to affect it. As I’ve said before, to assume that Vince has handed over the reigns of the writing to a creative team with no previous wrestling knowledge is an unfinished thought. He has decided to produce a wrestling show that focuses as much on hyperbolised drama and segments as it does on in-ring action (if not more) and these new writers are simply a brainstorm that feeds ideas to this end. Even if Vince were employing a creative team with wrestling experience he would still want suggestions that fit into his vision of the promotion’s foreseeable output and it is this that requires his immediate attention.
For me, the first key word is sacrifice. When you watch a TNA or ROH match it is obvious to see that the balance of wrestling and storyline is in favour of the technical minutia that compromises a pro contest whereas the WWE promotes as much entertainment as wrestling, and that’s fine. In the past Vince has made no bones about averring his product as ‘sports entertainment’, and made an awful lot of money in the process, but when he sacrifices wrestling for the sake of creating memorable television moments then he alienates a large percentage of his fans. Specifically in relation to that old expression that “you can’t please all of the people all of the time”, he has resolved to pander to those who he has identified as his most profitable market (merchandise buying, veteran loving ‘marks’) at the expense of the ones who question his decisions (Internet ‘smart’ fans). It is difficult to determine why Vince sees this as an either/or situation. I consider myself a fan of wrestling matches and yet I feel the WWE would lose a lot of its appeal if it ceased running emotive storylines or relationship-driven interviews. If Vince continues with this plan of reducing the ‘sports’ in ‘sports entertainment’ then he has to realise that there’s a multitude of choice out there in the world of entertainment and the majority, if not all, of his WWE superstars would be out of their league without wrestling as the vehicle for their talents.
In a previous column, I wrote that, given the WWE booking duties, most fans would give away for free quite a few PPV quality matches just because they would lack the restraint and preparation necessary to wait for the pay off. Take a look at the list of performers who wrestled on Raw (Eugene, Angle, Benjamin, Masters, Conway, Viscera, Rosey, Hurricane, Keibler, Antonio, Romeo, Victoria, Hardy and Snitsky). I’m not counting Jericho or Chad Patton as that was a segment and not a real match. Okay, in my opinion, that equates to ONE main eventer, FOUR mid-card wrestlers and NINE under-card performers. That’s just not good enough. Here’s a shortlist (excuse me if I omit your favourite) of talent that could have been used in a proper match on the show if required (Jericho, Cena, HHH, Flair, Hogan, Michaels, Carlito, Big Show, Kane and Edge). Now I’m not suggesting that all or most of these wrestlers used in some capacity would guarantee a great two hours but in comparing the two lists it does seem as though Raw is presently functioning with a second-string wrestling roster. Add to this the fact that one of the used wrestlers was a part-time worker (Keibler), four are mired within the forgotten tag team ranks, one is being severely de-pushed (Benjamin) and three (Conway, Viscera, Snitsky) are either lost under the stench of their own gimmick or way too overused considering their abilities. Even if the writers suddenly read ‘wrestling for dummies’ and wanted to put on decent matches, I’m not sure the standing of the performers utilised would be sufficient to keep an audience interested.
I mentioned TNA earlier. Whilst I have no problem with people using my recent frustrations as ammunition against the WWE and for TNA, I personally don’t feel the need to rate something purely in measure of comparisons. The reason I watch and write about the WWE more than any other is because it is my chosen favourite. I try to keep up with TNA as much as I can but it’s not always casually possible as it’s sporadically broadcast here in the UK and on a two-month delay. In wanting a more wrestling-orientated format for the WWE, it sounds like I am endorsing the TNA mindset but it is not as simple as that and the WWE has to address its problems as disparate and singular. Conversely, the last thing I want to see is TNA following WCW’s mould and try to out WWE the WWE. I welcome the near purity of the competitive endeavour in TNA and my misgivings about the promotion stem not from personnel or product but from a less than perfect business structure which will restrict their marketing opportunities in the future. It is more than likely that a strong TNA is exactly the kick up the ass that Vince needs but my caution lies in constantly assessing TNA’s progress in relation to the WWE. The two are different. And neither should try to be the other.
Lastly, I also received an email containing the line “if you don’t like the WWE then stop watching it”. A fair point, and a pretty good indicator as to why divorce rates are so high thesedays if you think I should abandon the WWE when things aren’t going as smoothly as I would like. I’ve seen bad wrestlers come and go (and even be made champion) and I’ve witnessed angles and ideas that have made even a sick bastard like me think twice before extolling the virtues of free speech but this is the first time in nearly fifteen years of following the WWE that I feel the gift has been devalued because the wrapping is so expensive. In spreading his product so thin to cover the widest possible area, Vince McMahon has lost touch with that which hooked us in the first place and it will take a certain amount of humility to put the WWE back on the right track.
Failing that, screw the WWE – let’s start a Yahtzee e-fed (“the ‘Voxinator’ throws a high straight, it could be all over JR”).
Lee
