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LOOKING AT AND RESPONDING TO JIM CORNETTE'S DEBUT INTERNET COMMENTARY

Let me make it clear, in no way can I compare to Jim Cornette in terms of wrestling knowledge and experience.  The closest I’ve ever come to a wrestling ring is sitting in the crowd and I don’t see myself ever getting ever closer than that.  No, I’m just a 22 year old wrestling fan who’s watched this form of entertainment on a regular basis since 1996. 

 So while I can’t compete with Mr. Cornette in terms of what good booking should be, how to develop a star or really anything involving the backstage workings of an event, I can pick out a bitter ex-employee who posts hypocritical blogs against his former boss.  Sure, you could say that Cornette might be attacking TNA too, but he mentions WWE and the McMahons numerous times by name while never once mentioning TNA. 

(Mr. Cornette’s column can be read here.)

In Mr. Cornette’s first commentary on his new website, dated April 24, 2009, he speaks out against the WWE’s writing team and Vince’s vision of “sports entertainment”.  Apparently the leaked script for Raw struck a chord in Mr. Cornette’s soul.   The Raw script revealed what we already all knew, every segment, every motion, every word is written out in black and white for each and every talent.  It doesn’t matter if you are Chris Jericho or jobber A, Vince and company have it all written out for you to follow to a T.  Cornette contends that this strips the talent of their individuality.   He’s right.  It is an awful way to book a show, guys can’t get over on the microphone on their own and sometimes a talent is lost in the shuffle because they can’t make a poorly scripted promo work for them.

 I’m completely with Cornette on this topic.  From all accounts, this is a newer practice that was implemented after Chris Kreskie left WWF and Stephanie was placed in charge back in 2001-02.  Prior to that, workers were given the “bullet-points” and were expected to come up with their own material so long as they got over those bullet-points.   My problem comes with the fact that on January 3, 2008, a TNA iMPACT! script was leaked on the internet just like the Raw script.  A quick glance at that reveals that iMPACT is scripted and booked in the same exact way as Raw, including the use of the odd word “ballyhoo” in relation to the opening of the show.

 So where’s the hate towards his current company?  Unless TNA suddenly changed his booking practices, why isn’t Cornette taking his own company to task in order to improve their product?  Cornette should know first- hand that the worst thing any number two promotion can do is bring attention to the number one for their shortcomings (nor will your talents mentioning the number one company every other segment on your television show help your cause, did they really let Mick Foley call Randy Orton the best young talent in the business?   On iMPACT?  HELLO??!?!?!).  It just makes you look bitter and desperate. Cornette was in WWE when WCW was killing them every week.  The Billionaire Ted skits didn’t get Vince ratings, an improved television product did.

 I realize that TNA’s ratings have begun to climb upward, but its’ numbers still compete with ECW on Sci-Fi, not Raw  I realize also that according to sources, TNA is finally in the black whereas WWE’s income has been on a decline the past few years.   But no one knows TNA’s exact numbers as Panda Energy is not a public company and is under no obligation to release those numbers.  I don’t doubt TNA is making money, but let’s just say there is a big difference between going from $500 million to $400 million versus having $10 dollars and making $100. 

 The script issue alone raised my eyebrow, but then came Cornette’s closing paragraph that dealt with the manner in which WWE handles young talent.  There’s no doubt that WWE’s method of cultivating talent is flawed: pushed for two weeks, squashed for five before being pushed again etc.  But I look at the TNA champions list and I see Mick Foley as their World Champion, with Sting preceding him.   Two legends who are probably a combined century old and whose best days were over nearly a decade ago.  There’s AJ Styles as the Legend’s Champion, who, despite the general belief that WWE would “ruin” him given the opportunity, has already been jerked around so much by TNA with the start and stop pushes and awkward character developments that while his in-ring ability will never be questioned, his chance to ever become a mainstream headliner who appeals to all fans appears to have come and gone.  Team 3-D are the tag team champions, another act past their prime, but who still carry name value.  Bubba and D-Von (sorry Vince) are legends and the last of the golden age of tag teams, but should they still be at the top of the tag team scene?  

 It is even more humorous hearing Cornette wax poetic about WWE’s inability to create talent when you consider how much of TNA’s talent roster relies on former WWE, WCW and ECW stars.   While fans have differing opinions on John Cena, he’s still a “fresh face” in the sense that he came up in 2002, was marked as a future main eventer by WWE and eventually fulfilled that prophecy just a few years later.  He was given the proverbial ball and ran with it and no matter where the money comes from, young or old pockets, he draws and is instant profit for his company.

 Now let’s look at TNA’s two “fresh faces” that were supposed to carry the company for years to come, Styles and Samoa Joe.  As mentioned before, Styles has been the victim of numerous start and stop pushes.  He is a three time NWA-TNA Champion but two of those reigns came in the early days of TNA and most current TNA fans might not even recall those reigns.  The most recent reign came in 2005 at Hard Justice when he defeated Jeff Jarrett before going on to be defeated just one month later at Slammiversary.  He’s still considered the “future of wrestling” but he’s also 30 years old, which is just a year older than Randy Orton and two years younger than John Cena.  But no one needs to talk about their career in terms of the future because they are the present.   

Then there is Samoa Joe, who much like Styles, is excellent in the ring, but has been the victim of numerous start and stop pushes and questionable character developments.  After being the tough guy who just wanted to beat your ass, now he carries around a knife and may or may not be killing guys.   The debut of new “attitude” had a curious effect on the way some fans viewed him.  While fans once looked at Umaga as a rip off of Joe, Joe’s new “savage” character was almost viewed as a rip off of Umaga.   The new face tattoos didn’t help either.  Joe is a one-time TNA champion, having won the title back in April of 2008 before he eventually dropped the belt to…Sting in October.

Finally, my other gripe with Cornette is his accusation that WWE is shortening careers through convoluted matches.  Well, here’s how Cornette put it:

Injury rates soar as people who have never been in a match come up with ridiculously complicated stipulations and gimmick-laden bouts that are impossible to perform safely, all the while knowing THEY'LL never have to risk their necks actually executing the sh**.

  I’m sorry Jim, but are you sure you’re not subconsciously attacking TNA here?  While WWE pumped up the violence and what they let talent perform during Wrestlemania time, the “WWE Style” has been criticized for being overly slow and plodding if anything.  Vince eliminated many of the more high risk maneuvers in the wake of the many broken necks that were the result of the Attitude Era. TNA is the company that uses the high spots to get the marks off their seats and chanting “This is awesome”.   I still don’t understand what the hell a King of the Mountain match is.  C’mon Jim, you’re better than this!

 The bottom line here is, while I am upset that Cornette chose to attack WWE while ignoring the same flaws in the company he works for, the old adage still applies, two wrongs don’t make a right.  WWE and TNA both need to change their philosophies in order to provide us, the viewer, with a better product.  WWE needs to remember what made them successful a decade ago, cutting edge and mature storylines that were unpredictable.  The average fan can predict the average WWE title feud in their sleep.   TNA needs to remember that it needs to be different from WWE.  While their numbers have surely shrunk, the fans that stuck around for the dying days of WCW are still out there, the ECW fans that prayed Vince would let ECW truly be “reborn” are still out there (just look at the early 2.5 ratings for the Sci-Fi show versus the 1.3 it gets now).  Even the former WWE fans that left after 2002 are out there.  It’s no coincidence that the post Rumble Raw pops a high rating every year.   There are fans that want to return to wrestling, but neither company gives them a reason to.  Let’s hope 2009 is the year both companies finally give them one. 

In the words of Max Kellerman, “Love mail?  Hate mail?” Send it to Joseph.Bellear@Gmail.com.