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The recent firing of Paul Heyman has brought forth many questions and
theories from wrestling analysts and fans alike. The events that
transpired over the course of this past week were inevitable. I for one
am amazed Paul Heyman has lasted as long as he did in World Wrestling
Entertainment. He experienced the highs of being the head booker for a
hot product at the time for Smackdown to the lows of watching his
brainchild in ECW become the 2006 version of Heat. He worked with, and
was praised by some of the top talent in the industry over the past 5
years. Sound familiar? Well it should.
World Championship Wrestling. In 1991-1992 Paul Heyman’s Dangerous
Alliance dominated much of WCW. Due to political backstage problems he
was let go subsequently after the Dangerous Alliance disbanded. Many
consider the Dangerous Alliance one of the greatest gatherings of talent
ever, but due to the incompetence of booking were never promoted right.
Fast forward to 2006 and the re-emergence of Extreme Championship
Wrestling created a short-term rebirth of fan interest in the product of
professional wrestling. Characters like Sabu, Sandman & Balls Mahoney
were given a national stage. A new star in C.M. Punk was made and
veterans of WWE such as Test, Hardcore Holly & most prominent Big Show
experienced career rebirths. Once again due to poor booking the product
quickly took a turn for the worse and the image of ECW, already beaten
to the ground, was spit upon and left to crumble in the ashes of
forgotten memories.
The one thing that made Extreme Championship Wrestling so great was the
passion that it invoked from its performers and fans alike. Performers
who were not of WWE image were cast aside and never given a chance to
show their worth. The excuses were always the same: not Big enough, tall
enough, not strong on promos, doesn’t fit the WWE image. A passion
exuded in one Paul Heyman. His passion was to put on a strong wrestling
product rid of the current storylines and gimmicks that festered in the
WWE. Horrible gimmicks like Doink the Clown, where workers like Kevin
Nash were the focal point. Strong work-rate had taken a backseat to
ridiculous storylines and gimmicks.
Disgusted with the product Paul Heyman ushered in a new era of pro
wrestling. An era of hardcore wrestling and 3 way dances. They were the
counter culture to WWE and WCW. They also showcased technical wrestling
and lucha libre in a way no other promotion would in the U.S.
Once again, I invite you to look at the current product of professional
wrestling. Over the top outland gimmicks such as Cryme Tyme, Umaga,
Spirit Squad and Boogeyman while the focus of champions has not been on
work-rate but strictly image (Batista, John Cena & Bobby Lashley). Vince
McMahon and WWE has further driven away the aspects of what made pro
wrestling great and created a product that is hard to even define to the
casual fan. Begging for an alternative, we turn to TNA.
TNA can have all of the elements that ECW once did in their era. Workers
who were told they were too small, not good enough talkers, didn’t fit
the wwe image or were let go for whatever reason have all landed in TNA.
The focus (for the most part) has been wrestling in TNA. They have a
group of talent who are good pro wrestlers, not gimmicked entertainers.
They have a rabid, cult-like audience as ECW did with the fans at the
Manhattan Center and ECW Arena. They have homegrown talent in AJ Styles,
Abyss and most prominently Samoa Joe. What they are missing most of all
is the passion. They are missing the passion to be different, to eclipse
the WWE and force them to once again revolutionize their product like
they did in 1996. In comes Paul Heyman.
A master manipulator Paul has always been able to focus on the strengths
and hide the weaknesses of a performer. Disgruntled from his WWE firing,
the shattered image of his ECW tenure, and his lasting legacy with pro
wrestling fans Paul Heyman can help to once again revolutionize the
product of wrestling. Told once before that his image of what a product
should be were not concurrent with the current image of professional
wrestling Paul went ahead and created a new image for which was later
duplicated and toned down by the WWE.
I ask you Paul what are you waiting for? TNA is everything ECW once was.
Strong workers, a rabid audience, relationships with Mexican & Japanese
promotions and most of all workers who have a passion for the industry
and a disdain for the current product. This is not TNN, this is Spike
TV- Who have a strong relationship with TNA, and are also disgruntled
with the way business was handled during their last days with WWE; A
larger budget than ECW ever had. A built in cult audience in TNA. They
are the new face of professional wrestling.
Now is the time Paul to lead the revolt. Now is the time to let your
creative juices flow and challenge Vince McMahon to change the product
of what pro wrestling is seen as in the eyes of the common man. The
talent is there. The TV audience is there. The passion is there, all
they need is a madman to lead the charge at the old geezer. I for one
hope you are game.
Chris Glavin
http://www.k12academics.com
