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Growing Pains

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Hoff

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Ah, to be young again.

 

In my teens, and into my twenties, I was a Monday night fanatic. I was a religious zealot, and my god was two hours of main-event caliber wrestling action. I was an addict, and my drug of choice was Monday Night Raw. I didn't just want to see it -- I *needed* to see it. I would do anything to get home by 8:00. If I was with friends, I left the group behind. If I was with family, I whined until I got my way. And if I was alone, I got my ass home with plenty of time to spare. You see, Monday Night Raw was a way of life. It was the hottest show on television, and it stayed hot because it was good. The show kept its viewers hooked from start to finish with fast action, high drama, and slapstick comedy. It was the ultimate variety show, and it was true must-see television.

 

I'm not a young man anymore. I'm in my mid-twenties. I hold a full-time job, I pay bills, and I foot my own room and board. I've truly grown up. Not to say that I don't have a lot of growing to do, but the fact is that the things that enamored me as a child may not elicit the same responses these days. And, as much as I'd love for my schedule to revolve around the TV listings, I simply don't have that ability. However...

 

Recently, my personal schedule has changed, allowing me the chance to watch Raw every week. After a long absence from regular viewership, this has become a big deal for me. I make the effort to be home in time. However, the recent shows have left me wondering why I should care. There have been some bright spots -- mainly involving Edge, in my opinion -- but the majority of the show, I have found lackluster and uninteresting. However...I'm not a young man anymore.

 

I'm asking for opionions. I want to hear from the 18 and under crowd. Are you feeling it? Is Raw really holding you for two hours? D-X and Head were kind of juvenile concepts, but as a teenager they had me hooked. Are the youth of today hooked in the same manner? Are Eugene and Mama Benjamin making the kids bust a gut? Or is the show really as bad as we adults seem to believe? Part of me wants to believe that I've just grown up and grown old, but I have a feeling that it's not me that's out of touch -- it's the WWE. But there's only one way to know for sure.

 

Here's hoping that the fans of tomorrow aren't losing interest today.

 

-Hoff

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I'm far from being 18, but I know what you're going through. Several years ago I was watching a RAW and thought, "Why am I wasting my time with this crap when I have to get up for work tomorrow?"

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I had covered this in the thread talking about the state of the current fanbase:

 

The WWE's problem is getting something started and then cutting it off at the knees to go back to the same ol, same ol.

 

-Cena gets hot, so they nueter him.

 

-They want to make Randy the star, so they have him lose a feud to the one guy that could have made him a star. EDIT: TWO guys actually, HHH burying him doesn't help either.

 

-They want Lashley to seem like this big monster, so they make him look weak every which way. (Survivor Series, world title battle royal, Rumble, NWO)

 

-Edge FINALLY becomes the star they want, so they give him the lamest title reign in recent memory.

 

-Rey is the most over guy in the company, so they make him look like the biggest idiot loser around.

 

-Shelton becomes crazy over, so they start jobbing him out and give him a mamma.

 

-RVD has been over forever, so they job him constantly. How many times has the lord god king of kings himself beaten this guy, anyway? (Include Rumble eliminations, did he eliminate him this past year and in 2002?)

 

-Angle is always nuts over, so they piddle fuck around with heel/face turns.

 

the WWE just can't get it right with their booking, so why should we bother giving them our time...as soon as something gets hot and catches fire, they put that fire right out by going back to what makes THEM feel comfortable...it's almost like they're too timid to take chances when those chances could make them money and give them a prosperous future.

 

Those names I mentioned, even Angle as the token veteran in the mix (and I suppose Rey and RVD to an extent), THAT'S your future right there, and honestly, if booked properly (even Cena and Orton), I think that's a pretty nice looking upper card, no?

 

If a plane carrying Angle, HHH and UT were to crash today and kill them both, the WWE would probably go belly up, because those are the three guys that could build any of those guys mentioned up to super stardom.

 

The shit with HHH/Cena was ridiculous Monday, but that's already been discussed ad naseum on the forum.

 

 

I'm a creature of habit when it comes to Raw, been watching Monday night wrestling since the Primetime days (20 something years)...I go out of my way to catch SD because it's the best wrestling show on free TV right now, Raw is background noise anymore.

 

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