Yes, readers and smarks alike will say “But what about …,” and I'm sure my email box will be flooded with a whole litany of characters and a lengthy diatribe as to why a given star in a given memorable moment should be in contention for such a coveted spot, but are they? Are they really? I suggest this because the potential to literally turn the business on its head – to, with one singular move, wipe the table clean and start anew – is rarer than what you might think. I can already see the emails coming about Brock ending the streak, Punk's 'pipebomb' and/or Austin's '3:16' King of the Ring speech. All were memorable in as much as Snuka sailing from the top of the cage, Shane McMahon being simulcast from the last episode of Monday Night Nitro in Panama Beach, Florida, or Bastion Booger actually being a character. Okay, perhaps not the last one, but you get the idea. But what happened in those first seven seconds this past Monday night on Raw, and long before it was announced that Shane would be facing Undertaker for control over Raw, was something transcendent, and therefore a set of criteria that the others = even the hauntingly deaf silence that shrouded the Super Dome as Brock ended the streak – does not meet.
Specifically, as Shane-O-mac's music sounded, instantaneously electrifying the fans there in Detroit all the while making the collective IWC have a simultaneous shit-gasm (its a thing; no ... no, seriously, its a thing), all that we knew about the WWE – its models, its woes, its many successes, and the myriad of complaints about it remaining that sole super power directing not only the business side of the sport forward through metrics, merch sales, and infinitely larger production costs, but the artistic direction of it as well. All of this, the very depth and breath of a sport that has been a cultural mainstay in some form or fashion in every civilization that has existed since the dawn of man, stood, as the WWE archetype of what any and all wrestlers should be – broad shouldered, 6'5 or better, 250+ pounds, on the head of a needle as Shane made his way out from the Gorilla position and down to the ring amid the exaltation of the fans. Like Moses piercing the darkness of a ten year night, Shane, perhaps unbeknownst to him, became the champion of the people, or the potential destroyer of worlds. So let's explore that, shall we?
Why .. why now when the ratings, though showing marginal increases in the 8 and 9 o'clock hours remain lackluster, network buy-ins still yet to hit their intended mark, and the WWE unable to recapture that highly coveted, yet ever elusive casual fan? Why does Shane-O-Mac has the capability all of a sudden to revolutionize the sport that has witnessed great bookers like Watts, Barnett, Graham, Gagne, just to name a few, and even greater talent that drew crowds in droves where and when the characters were compelling enough to do so – Shane McMahon, a figure within the sport whose accolades reach only as high as leaping off the Titantron, or flying through a glass window? To answer these questions, (brace yourselves here), we must open that Pandora's box unleashing the IWC in all its many inconsistencies and idiosyncrasies.
Before we do, however, know that I want this to be an interactive article in as much as it can be given this particular medium. I want you, the reader, before continuing on to switch over to your twitter and post a simple survey – What is wrong with wrestling. Don't offer any predetermined options in the survey, but a blank field. Wait a day for the timer to run out on the survey and read the responses. Having done that, continue reading. Don't worry, I'll wait ..
Okay, did the survey yeah? And was there any consistency to it? No? And therein lies the problem. Be it such overused phrases as 'bad booking,' 'mishandling of talent,' or what have you, in the end you might as well say 'Thanks Obama' as you shake your head in disgust in attempting to sort this quagmire out.
But it gets worse the further you dive down the rabbit hole as current or former writers for the major promotions, beloved broadcasters like Jim Ross, or even notable stars in the sport like Steve Austin, Sid Vicious, Glenn Gilberti, Ric Flair, or Mick Foley, among so many others that cannot get on the same page as to what works and why. And it isn't for a lack of bitching. There are over a thousand wrestling based podcasts that do nothing … nothing but bitch about what is wrong with the sport in terms of artistic direction, pacing, production, or general methodology. Because of which, it would be perceivable to suggest that some type of consensus could be had going strictly by the numbers. Alas, no, no there isn't ...
The sport of wrestling remains a microcosm of our greater society for all the good and bad that comes with it. From the data that I have collected over the past few months in personally trying to wrap my head around the larger disconnect that exists, I have concluded that no one has a fucking clue what they are talking about and yet want to frame the conversation in such a way that it is impossible to discover what the problem(s) is, and how to fix it.
For example, Jim Ross has suggested bringing back enhancement performers (jobbers) as a means to end 50/50 booking (a given talent winning one week only to lose the next thus killing any upward momentum that a talent might have in a given moment – insert Bray, Ziggler, Reigns, Sheamus, or whomever here). Seems 1980ish, but there's merit to this thought even when it defies the historical formula that dictates how and why someone gets over win, lose, or draw; a subject that I covered in a previous article – The 4 C's of Professional Wrestling. But fair enough, Jim typically knows what he is talking about having worked the business as long if not longer than I have been both an avid fan of, and journalist for the sport of kings.
Next, 'Disco Inferno' Glenn Gilberti suggested in a podcast Monday that matches are too long, and that from a survey he's read that people will instinctively start impulsively flip the channel after six minutes. This, where others like Flair, Jericho, Raven, among others have lamented that the greater disconnect lies in the fact that the boys cannot get over due to short television matches where and when they haven't the opportunity to build that in-ring psychology in order to truly shine. A pertinent anecdote upon this particular thought process would be Christopher Daniels recounting his time in TNA under the Russo reign on the 'Creative Control' podcast.
Daniel's lamented like many of the boys over the past decade that the creative direction of his particular character wouldn't resonate to fans in its given form. Per Daniel's recounting of the conversation with Russo on the matter, Vince suggested that the Fallen Angel's work in-ring would define him which brought umbrage to Daniels where he was given three to five minute matches – obviously not enough time to work the crowd into a lather either as a heel or working underneath. So I would have questioned Glen's methodology on this had it not been for him expounding upon such thoughts a day later on MLW's Konnan and Court podcast where he suggested that the great disconnect that exists today is that the business is more match driven – all the various trade craft and nuances that build the overall psychology married to the process of getting from start to finish – rather than character driven, which I wholeheartedly agree with, and have been preaching about for years.
But is character development enough? And, more to the point, can it be that divining rod that leads the sport back to the promise land? I wouldn't hedge my bet given the state of the WWE and it's historical inability to cultivate 'natural' talent that wasn't already formed in the likes of Andre, Hogan, Savage, Flair, Dusty Rhodes, Harley Race, etc, who earned their spot while honing their talents bouncing around the regional territories.
Such a finishing school does not exist in any form nor fashion in the modern era which has led to the ever growing divide between universal appeal and niche based wrestling. To that end, desperation to survive is a great motivator which is why the WWE is doomed to fail in this regard. Be it former wrestler Scotty Riggs, or even Rip Rogers, both of whom chided me on Twitter with – 'the boys are getting rich by doing what they are told.'
If this is true, and inevitably it is with guaranteed contracts and a lack of options to go elsewhere at the same pay rate and/or incentives, where does the motivation exist to will oneself to the gym, to practice their promo skills, or to find new ways of reinventing themselves when their character becomes stale? Currently the only options are that a given talent is put into the NXT roster or sent home. But is this enough motivation?
“You do as your master does.”
This was the punchline for a joke I once heard about a dog that continually failed obedience training due to constantly trying to hump females within its proximity. As the joke went, the owner read all the books, watched the videos, and practiced the techniques with his dog to break him of this habit but to no avail. After countless monies spent, and hours wasted, the owner threw his hands up in disgust while staring at his dog asking 'Why, why won't you learn? And if you have learned, why won't you do as I am instructing you?' Obviously the dog responded – You do as your master does.
And therein lies the disconnect with the WWE talent that isn't readily being treated to upward mobility. Yes, most of it, as has been passively excused time and time again, is due to avoiding drawing heat from road agents or McMahon himself. Titus O'Neil could attest to this on a very real level, but beyond that, there is no incentive in it for them at this point. The WWE, like a long over due woman, has been nesting for the past ten years with little to speak of in producing a promise one within that time frame which has lead to all the problems in the here and now. The utter lack of perceived competition has molded the WWE, its staff, and its creative teams in a rigid formulaic pattern that cannot, and will not change without some type of shock to the system.
“... No chance, that's what you got. No chance in hell. No chance, that's what you got. No chance in hell.”
Enter Shane McMahon – son, brother, international businessman, and potential shock to the system. All that air in the Detroit coliseum on Monday that was sucked up in one quick and decisive breath by those in attendance, was done so subconsciously, and methodically as Konnan shared on this week's edition of MLW's Konnan and Court as he suggested that they (the fans) cried out in that moment to Shane as their hope for something more … something different.
And Shane very well could be that, like Moses leading his beleaguered people out of the desert and onward to the promise land. The dynamics of all that is at play here is truly pivotal in moving the sport forward, backwards, or straight into the ground. Let me repeat that so you can understand the gravity of what is at play here … The dynamics of all that is at play here is truly pivotal in moving the sport forward, backwards, or straight into the ground.
That, right there, whether or not you perceive it as such, or even put much stock into it, what happens in the next few moments leading into WrestleMania, and then coming out of it can literally change the dynamics of the sport. Now allow me to explain how … (Part II to be posted tomorrow) Don't you just hate cliffhangers?
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