A DRASTIC CHANGE IS NEEDED WITHIN WWE....NOW!
By Todd Oblak on 5/12/2009 7:12 PM
I keep inching myself closer and closer to not watching RAW on Mondays
anymore. I had hope for ECW once Christian won the belt, but since then
it's back to being the Swagger show. Does that guy bother anyone else
besides me....maybe I just can't take anyone with a lisp seriously as a
threat? I haven't seen SmackDown since the draft, I just read the
reports of the show and find myself not interested enough to view the
DVR recording. TNA is getting much more intriguing to watch lately, so
I keep finding myself watching those recordings over WWE each week.
What is wrong with the world's largest sports entertainment company?
Why do the shows keep getting progressively worse and worse? Better
yet, who cares about Judgment Day? Seriously?!? I want someone to
speak up and say (that is not going to the event, live in person) that
they care about what happens on that PPV this Sunday......I'll bet there
are not too many people. It's a throwaway show right now that I
wouldn't be surprised if it goes under 200,000 buys.
If I were a WWE shareholder and I had heard what was said on that call
about making new stars, then decided to sit down and watch RAW (the
flagship show of the company I was investing in) last night.....I would
be furious!
I know, McMahon and his crew keep saying "Suspend Disbelief", "It's a
story", "it's not reality", blah blah blah. Last night's show does not
make me think it's not reality....it makes me think the performers and
writers are stupid....or just think the audience is really, REALLY
dumb. There were only a few things on last night's show that make me
think any of those folks have half a brain. Cena never taking his eyes
off Big Show during his match with Miz is a detail that needs to be
focused on. The announcers never mentioning that the reason he was
doing that is because Big Show has blindsided him several times was
dumb. Where is the storyline development? Why did Big Show attack Cena
in the first place at Backlash? Because he messed up his chances with
Vickie? Are Edge and Vickie still "married"? Why would he help his
lover's husband beat the guy that was making fun of the whole triangle?
Do the backstories ever even get discussed in WWE creative meetings?
Does the idea of "WHY?!?" EVER come up? "Why are we gonna do this?"
Let's explain that to the audience for once. Then here's a new concept,
pick a story and follow through with it. What's the conflict, where's
the resolution? Put finality to stories before just moving on as if it
never happened.
I'm gonna take one night of storytelling and ask how WWE is planning on
selling the PPV, T-Shirts or increasing ticket sales at live events from
this: Orton calls out Batista (this is the main event of the PPV folks)
and asks him to join Legacy and be his lackey. Batista says no and gets
put into a match with Rhodes/DiBiase. Why? Don't get me started on how
deep WWE has buried Rhodes/DiBiase. Did they piss someone off? Orton
has been in the past 3 PPV main events and predominant roles in the last
5. Every month, DiBiase/Rhodes are the guys that get sent in to get
slaughtered 2 ON 1!!!!! That's right, these guys are supposed to be the
"most elite group in WWE" and can't beat 1 wrestler in handicap matches
4 MONTHS IN A ROW!!!! They are getting beat down left and right each
week by HHH, Shane & Batista.
Now, on the plus side of last night, Batista taking out Rhodes & DiBiase
before the match, then just wailing away on Orton 6 days before their
big match was brilliant. I didn't have to suspend disbelief (well I did
when Orton predicted that Batista would take out DiBiase before it
happened). So Batista is out there about to break one of Orton's ankles
and then the dumbest ending in RAW history occurred. The 2 guys that
were beat up earlier, that couldn't make it to the match that started 5
minutes ago and Orton had to go it alone.....miraculously both get up
and are RUNNING to the ring and wailing away on Batista.....they were
laid out and couldn't compete in a match and now they are running. Then
Orton, who was writhing in pain, grabbing his ankles seconds before,
jumps up and is standing just fine waiting to RKO Batista.......but when
he gets thrown off, he goes right back to the floor and is holding his
ankles again. BUT TO TOP IT ALL OFF.......Batista grabs the steps and
throws them at Orton, misses (of course) and stands in the ring
screaming for Orton to "Come On" like he's gonna limp back to the
ring......in reality, the guy that had that much of a brain before in
taking out the gang would've just walked out there and started pounding
on him again.....but the show was about to go off the air so they needed
to do something to leave you hanging.....right? Suspend disbelief? A 4
year old mentally handicapped child is sitting at home asking Daddy "Why
doesn't Batista just go get him?"
Suspend disbelief?!?!.....the main event of the PPV that I could've
originally cared less about started to actually get intriguing when I
actually thought Dave might have a chance to win the belt on Sunday if
he takes Orton out tonight....then it all went downhill and they took me
back to thinking everyone who writes the show can't add 2+2 and get 4.
I've called Vegas and my money is on Orton sneaking a win out with
Legacy's help. You know why? Because WWE is that predictable. Next
month though, well, um....they'll have a rematch and this time it'll
have a stipulation! Like Last Man Standing, Falls Count Anywhere, Cage
or something.....and we will get 4 more weeks of ridiculous build up.
Then someone will screw someone over and turn heel and they will start
feuding. Who cares if it doesn't make sense.....these fans are idiots!
They'll watch anything we throw at them. Remember Mae Young birthing
the hand? Katie Vick?
OK, I have to be fair. Burnout can come to anyone. Maybe they don't
realize how predictable the shows have gotten. BUT, if WWE could answer
a few simple questions, I'd be less reluctant to call them out on bad
writing:
1. If Vickie started as an assistant on SmackDown, then got promoted to
GM of SmackDown, then got moved to being GM on RAW, you are proving by
promotion of employees in business that RAW is the "A" show and
SmackDown is the "B" show. Why don't you just admit it and book
accordingly? Suspend disbelief that the live show is equal to the taped
shows? Why doesn't Vince ever show up on SmackDown? Why did Teddy Long
get demoted to ECW only to get re-promoted back to SmackDown once Vickie
got promoted to RAW? If Tommy Dreamer gets the ECW GM job and does
great at it, does he get promoted to SmackDown and Teddy gets the
demotion back to ECW again?
2. What role does Chavo have? Is he Vickie's assistant? Did they ever
say that on TV and I missed it? He made a match last night on her
behalf, right? Is he still an active wrestler pursuing titles?
3. Is everyone retarded when it comes to Santina? Could Chavo really
not rip the wig off if he wanted to? This whole thing is lame....if
Santino ever wants to be seen as a real competitor, he can't......HHH,
HBK, Undertaker, Austin, Rock, Hogan, Edge, Angle.....all stars today,
never dressed like a woman on TV.
4. Are they trying to make Miz's character come off as Rock wannabe?
Or is he doing this on his own? I'm having trouble distinguishing
between what is his character that just makes me want to change the
channel and what is really him. It's not that I want to watch him get
beat up.....I'm not intrigued by some punk that thinks he's something
big that he's not and calling himself a chick magnet....that's the guy
that comes to the bar alone, boasts all night and the girls call him
"that creepy guy" and then he goes home alone....at least before, he had
Morrison to be funny with. You don't want to watch him get his ass
kicked, you want him to leave you alone.
5. MVP steps up to the main event level 2 weeks ago, which was
cool.....now he's back to a filler tag team match this week. Speaking
of last night's matches. A Diva tag team match that meant nothing, a
midcard tag team match that meant nothing to the US title picture but
the TAG TEAM CHAMPIONS don't get a tag team match? They don't even get
to be on TV together.....Carlito came out solo and then lost to Kendrick
and Kendrick announces he's looking for a partner. Let's go ahead and
put this out there right now. It better be Noble. Kendrick is funny in
this Pillman-esque role as the crazy underdog. Noble is hilarious when
given the opportunity. Both are of the same stature and can work a
crowd with their words. PLEASE let them be a team and help each other
get over. Give some guys that aren't Mike Knox/Kozlov size a chance.
We've proven that Knox & Kozlov are not gonna get over, just like
Snitsky before him, etc.
6. Is it just me or do you groan when the Divas come on now too? I
mean, they used to wear less clothes and were halfway entertaining in
the late 90s and early 2000s....but now? They all wear similiar outfits
and attempt to wrestle, which would be fine if their wrestling was
fluid.....and they had any kind of storyline whatsoever. Why should I
care who is the champion? Oh, do anyone of them have unique moves? Or
is it all generic 1980s Nintendo wrestling? Maryse goes for a DDT but
Mickie hits her with a DDT and wins.
7. SmackDown and ECW are not exempt. Do you want to know why WWE can't
create new stars? They don't care enough to try to develop anyone that
doesn't have name value already. Dolph Ziggler still tells us his
name....is that because he's so forgettable? Curt Hawkins....they don't
even care enough to update his WWE.com profile since he split from
Ryder. Ryder's profile just shows pictures of him in his new
headband....is that his new gimmick? Because that worked so well for
Kenny Dyskstra right? We just thought we'd rehash it with someone
else... You know why Umaga got over huge at the beginning? Because
Samoa Joe (the Samoan Submission Machine) was getting over huge in TNA
at the time and WWE stole the idea and made Umaga (the Samoan
Bulldozer).....just like they did with Demolition during the Road
Warriors days. If we can't sign the real deal, we'll copycat.....
Explain to me what has been done to TRY to give the following performers
a fighting chance and have SOME personality: DH Smith, DJ Gabriel,
Ezekiel Jackson, Paul Burchill, Zack Ryder, Curt Hawkins, Dolph Ziggler,
Jesse, Mike Knox, Sim Snuka. Each one of these guys come across on
television as being generic. Not one person listed above will sell a
t-shirt or be on a PPV in the next few months and it's not all their
fault. They have been given absolutely nothing to work with. Paul
Burchill has been given the most mic time of all of them, which is sad.
Ziggler is 2nd which is sadder. Have those above pissed anyone off and
they are being punished and I don't know about it?!?
Overall, Wrestlemania was a flop of a show and they have done much
better in past years. WCW is dead and I hate that. ECW is dead and
they should just change the name of that show to something else. 3
Brands is a joke. There is too much confusion between the touring
groups that it's hard to follow. All the titles? Well, if I can't beat
Orton for the WWE title, I can just go to SmackDown and win the World
Title there or vice versa.....know how many people in WWE have held one
of the 3 World Titles before? Take a guess? 22 different male
superstars on the current rosters have been champions (counting Vince
McMahon). Know how many male wrestlers there are in WWE? 64 (counting
Vince & Shane). Yep, 1/3 of the male wrestlers in WWE have held the
World, WWE or ECW championship (ok, I counted Tommy Dreamer even though
he didn't technically win the WWE version of the ECW title, but it still
counts!)
To finish my rant, I really do want the WWE to succeed. I do, I really
do. I hate that the company I have grown up watching is doing so
poorly. Hey that is what Vince said "Fair to poor in the first
quarter", right?!? Well, it's time to start winning at something and
the best place to start is take some risks on trying new things with
your athletes. Where are the factions? Where are the tag teams? How
about some genuine feuding over the second-tier belts? On SmackDown,
two former World Champions are feuding over the IC belt.....why? Do
either of those guys need a belt to get their program over?
Need I say more, really? I'm begging you WWE, drastic change is
needed. NOW!