Promoter

Okay, is it a long shot that Orton gives Flair his last title shot December 6 on raw in Charlotte? All I have to say is that would be probably the hottest pop we have seen all year if all the faces help Flair win the title for the last time. Batista and Orton helping him defeat HHH is a magical moment.

Off topic a bit, but if the wwe couldn't handle this situation without panicking how would Vince respond to Lennox Lewis/Brock Lesnar in a shoot for WM 19? Didn't they also want Angle to compete in the Olympics and face off against a boxer as well for Mania 19? You know that might have been the trick to turn these guys into true wwe legends if done right. As stated the things that generate the most interest in wrestling history have always seemed to stem from reality even if it wasn't. Muhammad Ali and Antonio Inoki/Gorilla Monsoon Bruno Sammartino breaking his neck Bob Backlund not submitting the title(folklore as original screwjob by Vince) More in Vince Mcmahon era: Cyndi Lauper and Roddy Piper dispute bringing Hulk Hogan and Mr. T into the fray. This started the Rock 'N Wrestling Connection. Well, Sgt. Slaughter in 1990 was a flop as Hussein's sympathizer. Hulk Hogan turning heel in wcw saying what he said which was pretty truthful. Bret/Austin saga that kind of lead to Vince Mcmahon which led to Montreal that was the basis for Austin toppling HBK and doing the Hart/Mcmahon saga of 1997 with Austin in the role. Oh yeah, let's not forget the addition of Mike Tyson which people did believe Tyson was going to return to ppv to fight in a wwf ring. Remember the boxing commission got into it? Don King was even on raw saying his lawyers and Vince's lawyers were negotiating to make a deal(it was only shown once on raw). Brock Lesnar and Kurt Angle's background and legitimacy mixed with the Olympics and shoots with the boxers might have jumpstarted the "aggression" era.

Except the fact that the WWE- oh I'm not going to bother. I said it already. If people choose to ignore it, that's their right. They're just wasting breath IMO. Carry on. I know what you said. However, how the wwe records things and how things actually go down can be different. You know like how they never acknowledged stuff like Bob Backlund losing the wwwf title outside of North America? There is a reason why they have taken off title histories off their website. As I said confusion. As for the Booker/HHH program it would have nullified Triple H's title by him acknowledging Booker wore the same title he was parading around with. He ran down wcw, yet he was wearing the same belt Booker wore. There is a reason why he had the title belt changed to a smaller scale version to differentiate the perception.

You know I was thinking maybe Batista would be better for the push myself, although it could just be the timing is better NOW then when they did it with Orton. I do remember a lot of people here saying that Orton should have broken away around Survivor Series. It could just be paced wrong and Batista teasing a break now is more acceptable.

Are you the new guy that was hired for the creative team on Smackdown? I think you got the credentials they are looking for. That mindset has brought them never before seen success, yet they fire editors who look at all the inconsistencies in this "show". They don't bother try to stick with the sports exhibition approach because it's too much headaches to be consistent with the wrestling world and the real world in their view. Yet, they are trying to bring back kayfabe "somewhat". Confused? I'm sure they are too! Perhaps they are in another identity crisis as they seem to do every 2 years so. If only they could keep it so simple Anyways..... Reading this whole thread was a headache. No wonder they are having trouble when even hardcore fans are confused over the "props". Linda Mcmahon once said in a conference that 2001's acquisition of wcw and implementation into storylines caused "creative confusion" and confused the fans who probably thought it was a chore to watch the "show". This is what I feel the company really did here with the title lineages. They merged the wcw titles with the wwf counterparts in 2001 plain and simple. The problem comes with all the marlarky surrounding it. WCW was killed at Survivor Series 3 years ago, but the wcw title was defunct and to fix the situation Vince re-named the title "the world title" which is what Triple H is wearing now. Vince was allowed to do this since he "won" the battle for survival between the wrestling companies(and historically the wwe title was a regional title and wcw had the world title lineage*yes I know the whole mess there, but I think they unified the title between Sting/Flair in 94 around Hogan's arrival). In reality he can do this. You see even the "tv show" gives the explanation if they bother to follow through on it. Jericho held TWO titles because he was carrying two world championships at the time. Triple H even wore the same damn title when he became champion at WM 18. Flair awarded him a NEW BELT to represent the two titles on raw and smackdown(another attempt to make Triple H the undeniable superstar champion). The belt was traded back and forth until Brock Lesnar took the title from The Rock. Triple H WAS the #1 contender of ALL WWE(that is how they were doing it in the prior months switching contenders between raw and smackdown) and Brock did not defend the title against Triple H causing a dispute. Brock went to smackdown, but as someone stated both promotions are still under the wwe umbrella. Now remember the undisputed title is actually two championships, but there was one belt representing it. Eric Bischofff brought back one half of the title to raw and handed it to Triple H and was able to do so under wwe law because he was the #1 contender of all wwe. Remember Taker went to smackdown and had to win a #1 contender's match to get a title shot against Brock Lesnar on smackdown. Triple H was the real #1 contender to said title. Once that title became stripped of its world championship status it needed its own #1 contender. Now, to make Triple H's title have some credibility they had to link it to the lineage it had with Ric Flair and wcw/nwa. That is a reason why Flair was the first contender on its re-instatement. That is why they used pieces on Confidential to sell the credibility of the title along with merging the IC title with it in case people saw it as inferior to the traditional secondary title(remember it was rumoured that title was going to be given to Trips?). All this came off as confusing, but the fact is Trips' title is the world title from wcw/nwa. The reason being that the umbrella wwe owns the damn title to begin with. They use the same marketing with the cruiserweight and US titles and as someone said differentiate not to confuse fans by breaking up the different era of said titles. It all goes back to the purchase of wcw. Anyone thinks Vince would have a US title or World title ibeing promoted if he didn't buy wcw? He would just make up his own new title names like the European title or Lightheavyweight title(which is another sore eye with the J Crown just keeping the damn thing for decades*in North America the cruiserweight title is more respected along with the US title over the European title).

Let's face it! They would botch this thing too even if Puder could work a match. The track record is pretty scary since 2000. With that said they put the two diva search girls in a match on ppv last month. Puder can't be any worse than them can he? Hell, Coach and JR were put into matches for crying out loud. WOW! I'm using Coach and JR as examples for future matches. This company is becoming pretty dreadful They had Trish call Lita the walking kiss of death. I think they should give that moniker to Stephanie Mcmahon and her creative team since she took over. Her one and only claim to financial and critical acclaim was WM 17, but I think Rock and Austin's 2 year anticipated rematch at Mania had something to do with that along with the wcw buy-out hype. Foget Puder/Angle being promoted. I'm waiting with great anticipation for Snitzsky/Heidenreich for WM next year to go with Taker/Angle and Orton/HHH. I think this show will have as much interest as WM 13 received imo.

I was one of those people not seeing the big deal at first, but after that crap they did with TE last week I'm going to have to agree they dropped the ball. They should have followed up on this by doing something. Hell, they are going to need something to sell Armaggedon.

That is the key word. They have not given any signs of this. If they have HHH do something similar to what you said on either Heat or the ppv it would still look foolish on the part of Maven. Why would he trust what HHH is telling him? Especially on game night? If they wanted to play this up I guess HHH could have planted dissension between Orton and Maven weeks ago. There is no sign of this at all and HHH's character especially at this moment wouldn't want to bring in someone like a Maven into the group after having problems with Orton who has come back to haunt him. I know where you're coming from, but I think if the wwe does a turn like that in this fashion it really would not help any of the characters. I still think Flair could be the deciding factor. Take note that RAW in the coming weeks(December 6 I think) will come from Charlotte, North Carolina or some other Flair country. They might be setting up something big for that raw concerning Flair.

Now that you guys brought it up it doesn't make sense for Maven to turn which is what they might do. Seriously, Maven would be taking the chance that HHH's team would be grateful for the gesture of helping them win. How could anybody have this train of thought when everyone on HHH's team is seemingly looking out for themselves? Wouldn't it be easier for him to have his own team win the match to guarantee himself power on raw? Of course, this is wwe logic here.

I don't know man. This whole heels gunning for the title seems very odd. They never do this. There is a swerve perhaps somewhere in all of this and I don't think it's Maven. HHH COULD be turning face because when you look at all the scenarios he is placed in the babyface spot with whoever is in power of raw. Now that would tie into Bradshaw coming to raw as a heel. I'm just thinking back to the rumours around Orton won the title where it stated Orton would turn face and win the title, but turn back heel with HHH turning face. If Bradshaw comes to raw you will have an opportunity to put him in Evolution with HHH being kicked out. It sounds far fetched, but look at Bradshaw's character. He is the epitome of what Flair represents in terms of character. Batista and Flair aren't on even terms with HHH heading into Survivor Series. Hell, Flair wasn't even on raw which makes me think he will be apart of the tradition of "screwjob" at the event. I must say this is interesting.

Maybe the wwe is planning on giving him a big push around Mania where he gets the wwe title from Bradshaw! Yeah that will be the day

Intercontinental Championship: Benjamin wins as Christian will move up to where Edge is(or at least that's what I would do). Either way I see Benjamin. Undertaker vs. Heidenreich: Heidenreich with help from Heyman's Dudleyz Again, if they actually keep continuity. UT loses either way. Woman's title: Lita will win as she needs something to save face after all this crap Team Angle wins. Cena will be the crowd pleasing point of the match as he "injures" Carlito. Bradshaw retains unfortunately either way. Team Orton wins: I would not be surprised if Tajiri costs HHH's team the match. Okay, things can go many ways with the faces more than the heels winning to break up Evolution or continue the tension. If Trips and Orton are main eventing Mania 21 this will be the diversion. Hell, they can re-position HHH as the face and the other members as heels who re-join back up with Orton by Mania.

That's what I was thinking, actually. It's been 16 years --- the "most likely guy to win" should EVENTUALLY win. Hell, #1 has won repeatedly --- #30 never has. -=Mike I guess we'll have to wait at least another year for this to happen. No way they will have Orton come in at #30 and win. That will make him even less respected as a real main eventer. I think #30 can only work with a heel or a face that was either a surprise or injured.(watch Orton win from 30 with this creative team)

Okay, who else thinks the wwe is going back to the philosophy of shades of grey over "good guy/bad guy" again? If not why not! It's been long enough as this is what slowly brought them back. Hopefully, the creative team won't botch it up. It could also just be fluke or coincident. Anyways, what are thoughts about shades of grey booking and writing? I think it has more chances to make the product unpredictable and when they did do this it worked great. Using quick examples......for the present and from the past. "With HHH's own team wanting the title shots as well - maybe the stipulation should be changed to the surviving members get to run the shows. That way HHH might think it's wise to sacrifice Edge and Snitzky during the match - there would be strategy involved and make the match that more dramatic." I think it makes perfect sense for the Snitz and Edge to be on the team. Remember who made the match and why. Eric is no longer Evolution's little buddy anymore so he purposedly excluded Flair (who made demands and tried to question Bishoff's authorit) as part one of the punishment. Snitzky's included because he's the only other upper-tier heel (Christian being the other but has an IC match) on the roster. Edge has issues with Benoit and Jericho so if he happens to take them out then everyone's happy. It could also be a way to get either Edge or Snitzsky in Evolution. It never made sense not having heels vying for a heel held title and faces vying for a face held title. The bluuring of the lines adds certain realism and that "anything can happen" feel to the shows. If the faces win this sunday, I actually think HHH is going to be painted as a sympathetic character when the faces keep challenging him for his title week in and week out. The wrestlers shouldn't drastically change their characters, the "good guys" can still be the stand-up rule abiders, where as the heels can be the cowardly cheaters - some fans just like heels better, and others like most faces, but for example can't stand Maven. Let each wrestler connect with a niche of the fanbase and keep the black and white face and heel lines blurred. The hardcore wrestling fan might not like the change(initially) and the house show responses might be confused and quiet(initially) but if compelling storytelling is the result than I am all for it. The Hardcore fans will still watch the show, however new viewers might come aboard with more "grown-up*" storytelling. *By "grown-up" I don't mean more Necrophelia angles, but a more developed and interwoven storyline. For this to work - it this is even the goal - they need to keep track of wrestlers histories together and can't forget histories that don't make snese in their present angle, but explain it in a believeble way. The characters need to be consistant and their actions rational and explainable to their current situation. I like the "shades of grey" raw. Here's why: Everything just about everyone did fit with their characters. I loved Bischoff pulling the dick move by threatening to strip HHH of the title. Of course Snitsky doesn't belong in the World Title picture, but he's too dumb to know that. The look on HHH's face said it all. "You stupid baby kicking bastard - I'm stuck with you because of your uncle for Survivor Series, but I will beat your ass the first chance I get." Trips then going to suck up to Edge worked for me too, then the minute Edge rebuked him, he went back to the "okay, i'll deal with you too" vibe. Excellently played by the Game. Even Batista played his part well. I would have prefered to see him destroy some guys after getting all pissed off last week (hey maybe he could have killed all of the recently released jobbers!) but he had a good match with Randy. And the longing gaze at the big belt didn't give me a feeling that he was going to go after his boss, but more of a "some day" kind of thing. Anyway, the main event story lines are really working for me. Good move giving Benoit a blood feud to keep him busy for a while. Keeping him busy with Edge makes Randy a more believable captain. it worked in 1997 and 1998 when the wwe was lacking in talent. They had to rely on their storytelling to remain competition for wcw. Now they have potential of strong wrestling and try to be cute and hollywood where the fans have left in droves. In 2000, they had the right mix right up until KOR 2001 imo. The characters had more depth where it was possible for them to be more ambiguous. Look at Vince Mcmahon for instance in 2000. He came back to help The Rock and fans bought it even with his past. The reason being that we saw the "bad guy" side of Vince Mcmahon with his rivalry with Austin, but we also saw his "good guy" side with trying to fight for the honour of his daughter(who in turn rebelled against him). The fans thought Vince was in "good guy" mode when he came to the aid of The Rock. However, the old Mr. Mcmahon crept back and he turned on The Rock and it made sense. He wanted his family back together again and his "evil daughter and son in-law" created a dynasty. Vince's reason for turning on The Rock was that he never gave Vince a "thank you" for making him who he was(the past with being corporate champion and being his agent for a movie). You see that is ONE example. The problem is that Vince hires "canned" writers who did not make it in hollywood really. You hire failed hollywood writers and give them say over traditional booking and you are asking for trouble. The problems come in when these guys don't understand the characters and come up with stupid ideas. Austin's heel turn is a prime example of this. You know why Austin was getting cheered for crushing The Rock? That's his damn character and why he became loved in the first place. DTA was his slogan and the fans never really bought Austin being true to Vince Mcmahon. That's why at the box office(among other things) the heel turn bombed. His explanation made no sense. He said he was tired of the fans sponging on him and he never asked for their support. Well, duh that is the same kind of promos Austin gave in 1997. He proclaimed to Vince in an interview that Vince was not going to turn him into a good guy or a bad guy. Austin broke the mould and became the people. The wwe also started to break the other "good guys and bad guys" with this thinking. The writers tried to make Austin more homo-erotic and psychotic in an attempt to turn him more heel and it didn't work all that much because I think the fans just did not buy it. It was too much out of the character's realm. Goldberg wearing a wig as well comes to mind. It can be done, but the correct writers need to know how to make the shades of grey compelling and believable. Eric Bischoff's current character makes absolute sense after all this time. It should have happened sooner. We saw how Bischoff was a jerk in wcw. When he was kissing Hogan's tail he did so that it also benefitted him. He has let Trips run raw and has got absolutely nothing. Even Bischoff's humiliation by Vince at times does not make complete sense in terms of his long term character. They just need to have people under creative who understand characters and creating plots for unpredictable circumstances to happen. That is what's killing them the most. I think Erin and Rick have stated this well. That is why I liked how they went about the Orton/HHH AT FIRST. They have fumbled the ball though. I won't get into all of that right now, but it's also knowing when to do certain things with the right talent as well. They have to know when to apply the creative juices to the right people with the tools to pull off what they are trying to accomplish. An example would be the Vince Mcmahon and The Rock circumstance I brought up earlier. The angle worked because Vince had the tools and the timing was right. Now, if they had put Shane Mcmahon in that same scenario the whole thing would have flopped imo and not have anywhere close to the same impact. The booking of the match also played a part where Trips came off looking surprised and stunned, but happy at Vince screwing The Rock at WrestleMania. The added bonus was that a face had never lost in a main event before and there were two very over faces in the match. Of course, they drove the success of that angle to the ground with Vince always interferring in matches taking away the impact.

I noticed they took out the feedback sections for raw and smackdown. That was the closest thing smarks had to a forum on that website to let the wwe know what was good and bad in some fans' minds.

You got a point, but remember there is supposedly a "voting competition" going on here and assuming they are not trying to rig this some contestants might see pushing Puder is playing favouritism or that the wwe has chosen who they wanted already. To the fans who actually really care about this whole TE thing it may come off that way as well. Of course, this is assuming the wwe wants to be really legit with this contest and have fans actually believe their votes count. I suppose if Puder wins he has a ready made angle right off the bat which we know they won't use. I mean they had the angle with Holly being a prick and never used it. Sidenote, there is a point about Kurt Angle's wwe character talking and not Kurt Angle. That in itself is another problem I have about today's wwe. It's missing the shoot element in interviews that use to get people's attention. The shades of gray in other words in blurring the smark and mark lines. That's why Triple H's promo last week was interesting because do we know for sure that he was just in character or was that really HHH saying what he really believes.

It goes back to what I said. In the real world what is the big deal? Angle still looked like he schooled the guy. Perception is a big thing in wrestling. I agree Meltzer is wrong here. Now if they want to run an angle with UFC that is a different story, but as stated the UFC fanbase would think the company sold out. I bet UFC would make tons more money doing that than what they are doing now though. I think the wwe does need something of this nature to bring back fans. In the 80's Mr. T(tv tough guy) was a hook with Hogan. In the 90's Mike Tyson was a hook with Austin. I think Vince Mcmahon had the right idea with the Lewis/Lesnar and Angle/Moore stuff for Mania 19. That is something out of the ordinary that the mainstream would pick up.

Well, at least Sid somehow got fans to turn on babyface guys like HBK and Hogan. Hogan's was funny though in the Rumble.

Maybe Holly took advice from Big Show. Remember he injured Lesnar before Survivor Series and ended up with the strap at the show?

Bret Hart probably does have a point about being the best ever in terms of not hurting anyone during his career. Hopefully, the minor league doesn't create any more guys like Holly(who is neither a draw or great worker).

What's wrong with Sid? i think the guy had way more personality than Snitsky and He??????ch. Although for some odd reason I'm warming up to He????ch(not in the Michael Cole way though ). He's playing the role decent. How about doing the greatest moments of Sid posts? I'll start. The Barber shop clown act. Getting upset that "I'm not a movie star like hollywood Hogan" promo after the WM 8 press conference. Attacking Jose Lothario and powerbombing his son on a table(ecw ecw at the time in wwf). Sid/Diesel as one of the worst/boring title feuds EVER.

I don't see what the big deal was(although it was interesting and funny nonetheless). To the untrained eye it would seem the guy got a little "in" on Angle, but got punked in the end. What the wwe would miss in opportunity is developing a character for the guy off this. I guess Angle got a lesson. The wwe screwed up with the TE stuff. They are putting these kids out there to do stuff where it's about popularity and not skill, yet they put them in situations that need pro wrestling skills. The thing is they are not pro wrestlers. With Big Show they are put out there to sell the slam without any real training it seems. Besides how is showing them getting slammed by Show and showing fear in promos going to help them. It's like the TE segments are being used to get Kurt Angle and Big Show more over than anything. It's funny with Kurt Angle though. He was reaming them for not earning this opportunity and he should be one to talk with how he fast tracked to the wwe without going through the ringer like the real vets such as Austin or even HHH. Come to think of it Big Show had things handed to him as well in wcw with the big gold belt upon arrival. I wonder how Kurt would have done if he was put in some of the positions of old school wrestlers who had to prepare for such things and didn't have all the matches prepackaged like it is today. Hell, even as early as the early 80's. At least it has people talking in a good way and not all the negativity that the Diva Search created. It at least has potential to make the company money if everything goes down well. I would have loved to see Kurt Angle in there with that guy who lied about his age. He seemed real intense.

Holly again? This guy is worse than Ahmed Johnson for crying out loud. The guy's track record of turning everything bad continues.

Well. I'll jump in here and although this is money in the bank in my mind I'll give it for free since they would not do this although it is realistic even with the politics. Give me the book until WM 21 and this is how things would look. I guess I would start with Survivor Series and I would have JBL retain and the faces winning the survivor series match for raw as the main stuff off of the shows. RAW I would have the backlash of the faces running raw for a month lead to the break up of Evolution. I would tell Vince that the group is no longer needed for Triple H and is a main reason he has not been drawing as well. There is no unpredictable nature surrounding Triple H because of his back-up with Evolution. The 4 Horsemen worked with Flair because they use to save his ass from losing the title. Triple H is a dominant heel as it is AND he has stable to protect him. It was fine in the beginning because people kind of wanted a new 4 horsemen. Kill it dead already. I would run Flair vs. Triple H and actually have Flair go over with the help of Randy Orton, but HHH gets the title back and is done with having back-up. Turning Flair face in this fashion would help restore some of his respect and be a guy fans can come to the arena to cheer. They don't want to boo him, so why do the opposite? It's not like he is heel Flair circa '86 anymore working matches. Maybe they can lead to Foley/Flair at WM 21 in legend vs. legend match like Hogan/Rock(not the same, but you get the gist). The thing with HHH is that he does seem kind of lame without a backdrop and since this is about being REALISTIC and what the company would approve I suppose I would keep the title on HHH. You know what Triple H needs? He needs Stephanie Mcmahon by his side again. This would cause heel heat on the internet and in the arenas with them getting back together. HHH will have much more heel heat having the head of creative with him. You see the hate he gets with this without it even being on screen by net fans. If it is possible I would get Brock Lesnar to fight with Triple H for Mania 21 as I think Brock MIGHT be able to be a big time face if the wwe uses his nfl stint in a spin. Of course, he could get booed and if it turns HHH into a big face no harm done. Stephanie Mcmahon may also be a face with the way she was written out to begin with. Bottom line they need to drop Evolution and put Trips back with Stephanie. At least he seems more vulnerable with Steph in his corner since she is not back up like Evolution. HHH can face off against either Edge or Chris Benoit and use the WM XX backstory. It all depends how the fans react to Triple H moving on without Evolution and being with Stephanie. Jericho is another option with their past history including WM 18. Forget this Orton headlining WrestleMania idea. I got a better idea. Build him up to face off against The Rock at WrestleMania 21. He should NOT get another title shot against Triple H by fouling up his Rumble victory. Allow Orton to NOT reach his destiny and have The Rock return and mock him about it. Yes, I know the fans will turn on Orton and that is what I would suggest. This will set up Orton's character to have REAL motivation to prove himself. The title route is coming off too forced and he IS not ready for it. You know what they have to do with Rock? Follow the blueprint of Hulk Hogan in 1992 with his feud with Sid. The Rock returns to say good-bye to his fans as rumours of his retirement are abuzz across hollywood and in the wwe. As the time comes closer have The Rock announce his retirement. Orton/ock in Los Angeles and let him be the prick we know he can be by bragging he ran out The Rock from wrestling and that he is the real third generation star that didn't sell out the business his family helped to build like Rock did. This would be the real deal this time around when he says he's a legend killer and his character is fixed from the damage they have done since SummerSlam. Another guy I would heavily push is Hossan. I don't know how this guy is in the ring though. You build this guy to run roughshod on the wwe and around WrestleMania 21 BRING BACK HULK HOGAN to face Hossan. The backdrop of LA is good because of Hogan's 3rd title win against Slaughter for WM 7. Have Hossan be the first wrestler of his nature to defeat "Real American" Hulk Hogan. Pay Hogan the big bucks to do the job and you have a monster heel in your hands. If not then have him face off against a major face from smackdown who wants to represent smackdown in hopes of being the one to finally have him go down. If that idea gets shot down there is always Chris Jericho I liked the idea about creating heat between raw and smackdown and the two best guys to represent their brands in an athletic display are Kurt Angle and Shawn Michaels. Angle and Taker do not need to face each other for the title at the event(more on that later). Now with Evolution being disbanded you need a stable and I think a Canadian faction is the way to go. Have Edge and Christian form a group with La Resistance and Trish Stratus. Fellow Canadians know how the wwe can manipulate things here with the Ontario natives using the Quebec natives. Trish can be the Liz, while the two teams can be Macho and Hogan. Smackdown This will not be popular and I can't believe I would have ever suggested this, but keep JBL with the title and have him drop it to Cena in the main event. Have Cena be a mystery entrant in the Royal Rumble and win it. I mean a real surprise here where he takes the place of someone and goes on to win it. Have Cena represent the "streets" and JBL represent corporate America and bang you have a different spin on Austin (anti-establishment) against the corporation (Vince's corporate champion) and hopefully it can garner the same kind of interest. I would turn Eddie heel and you do this by having him feud with Undertaker. That is how you can use Taker and give him the opportunity to have a classic match at WrestleMania that he wants. That is how you get Eddie's heat back that he had in 2003. I already stated that Kurt Angle and HBK should be built up from Survivor Series like the Goldberg/Lesnar stuff last year. You better make this match happen sooner than later while you got the chance. It also helps prevent them using politcs to bury a newer star like a Cena or Hossan. To add more intensity between raw and smackdown I think Bischoff should pull a move of signing the wwe tag champions on smackdown. Make raw the exclusive home of tag team wrestling and build a real damn division. Unify the titles at WM 21. Okay, this last suggestion probably wouldn't go through, but I would still suggest it and to replace the void on smackdown I would increase the importance of the cruiserweights and push their style as unique in all of wwe. I also like the idea of MMA or another division with that type of style to differentiate smackdown more. That's it for now.

Actually, I think the wwe has been trying to change, but it's half assed or done stupid. I mean they have lost a multitude of fans and not just the hardcores who are left. They have been trying with stuff like Benoit and Eddie as champion. They have brought back the old school Taker. There was increased work-rate in matches. They brought back the nWo. They brought back Flair and Hogan. They have been doing things, but I honestly think they have lost how to execute things to keep fans stayed tune or its pure politics backstage that is screwing things up. Then there are things they think fans want which is obvious not wanted such as death in wrestling like Paul Bearer where they had to do damage control. JR once said that the company is not connecting with the audience like it once did and that is the bottom line. The core business is NOT doing gangbusters in the U.S. Hell, the internet is nowhere as hot or big as it was during the boom era. People have stopped caring. It's just that the audience of wrestling is so big that there is still enough fans to keep it going in bad times. That is how it survived 10 years ago. I truly believe most fans who complain about things don't do it purposely. It's just they want to believe things can get better because it has happened before. I think the wwe is trying with things like the WM XX phone polls to see why people have stopped caring and even asking Patterson to give his insight why raw is struggling a few weeks back. The thing is you are right about Vince probably believing what he is doing is right. The problem is that I don't think Vince is THAT concerned with the money aspect as before because he has a public company. 1996 and 1997 was a different beast with his family's business and life on the line fighting for the entertainment audience. I mean having Triple H as champion since his return from injury in 2002 and having his daughter as head of creative can't be making him money like he was before and if it was all about the money he would have demoted them already.