Wrestling's Hope

[Guest CoreyLazarus416]

I wrote this sporadically over the course of the past week or so at the wrestling board on Wrestling-Titans.com. Enjoy...?

 

 

 

WRESTLING'S HOPE

I don't think it comes as a shock to anybody that World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is doing poorly both business-wise and creatively. Live attendance is down, ratings are down, and Pay-Per-View buyrates are down. Word has it that morale is down too. On our television each week, we see Triple H and Kevin Nash, two stars that your average WWE fan (and even your bitter "smark" fan) couldn't care less about it seems, all over the Raw program, and Hulk Hogan and Vince McMahon, two people that have not been draws together or by themselves in quite some time, seemingly every other segment on the SmackDown program. The workers themselves, the ones who truly bust their asses for our, the fans, enjoyment, are limited in what they can do, as a ban on certain moves and styles has all but eliminated what made many workers stand out in their days prior to working with WWE full-time.

 

But, what might come as a shock is the current state, primarily in the creative department, of NWA Total Nonstop Action (TNA). Each week, it seems, there is one match that, if given the right amount of time, could give new fans a reason to watch again, and remind the current fanbase of why they continue watching. However, that match is usually then not given the right amount of time, and TNA instead gives more time to matches that the fanbase, the "smark" community, has no will to see (but a great passion to not see). Why is this? Why is TNA, a company that once prided itself on pleasing its core fanbase of the internet wrestling community (IWC), filling its shows with matches and segments that the fans do not want, and giving less and less time to the matches and segments fans do want?

 

Wrestling, in general, is in a slum. It has been ever since WCW was bought-out by Vince McMahon, although that's no secret. But, however, we've also been given some small glimmers of hope during the darkest hours. Much like how in the "Dark Ages" (1994-1996) there were those small glimmers of hope that made us all eagerly watch - Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart in the WWF, the formation of the Cruiserweight division and the formation of the nWo in WCW, and ECW altogether - there are glimmers of hope that are around in America's top two promotions, WWE and TNA, that will make us, the industry's harshest critics, continue to watch.

 

In WWE, more specifically on the SmackDown brand, we have Team Angle, Eddie Guerrero, and Yoshihiro Tajiri (yes, remember when he used to use his full name?). Now, normally, only Eddie would be much of a reason to keep watching out of the four (Team Angle consists of Shelton Benjamin and Charlie Haas). However, the feud between Team Angle and Eddie/Tajiri has been very, very good so far. And the best part? The feud has been all about the WWE Tag Team titles. There is no alterior motive, no seeking of revenge for necrophilia or past crimes. Just a sheer need to prove who is the better team. Eddie and Tajiri continue to improve as a tag team, using the "Cheat to Win" method that Eddie has been employing as a method of success ever since his rudo (heel) days in Lucha Libre (Mexican professional wrestling). Tajiri, once a golden heel in ECW and Big Japan Pro Wrestling, whose methods were based off of the heelish acts of Shinjiro Ohtani, has resorted back to the "in-your-face, but in-the-ring" attitude that made him popular in the United States originally. Team Angle has improved leaps and bounds as a tag team, which nobody can deny.

 

WWE's Raw brand has its shining moments too. While Triple H and Kevin Nash seem to be all over the show, much to the dismay of nearly every viewer, the undercard is beginning to become a better state. Chris Jericho, WWE's first Undisputed Champion, is proving why he is paid the money he is paid (although, to be fair, I am not saying that he is overpaid or underpaid) by both putting on good matches (when given the chance, of course), and by hosting Raw's "talk show" segment, the "Hi-Lite Reel." Jericho, using the moniker "The Highlight Of The Night" most recently, uses the "Hi-Lite Reel" to further others' angles and feuds, as well as start and further his own. Recently, the "Hi-Lite Reel" has furthered the Booker T/Christian feud over Christian's Intercontinental title (which was recently brought back from extinction at the WWE Pay-Per-View Judgment Day), as well as furthered a feud many have wanted to see since August of 1998 in WCW: Chris Jericho vs. Bill Goldberg. Along with Jericho, fellow Raw brand workers Booker T and Christian have also enjoyed success. Booker and Christian are currently locked in a feud, as mentioned before, over Christian's Intercontinental title, which he won via cheating during a battle royale over the belt. Christian, whose short time spent with The Rock has given him "the rub," is on his way to becoming a top heel on the Raw brand (however, in the eyes of some, he already is a top heel). Christian, Chris Jericho, and Booker T are the primary reasons to watch the Raw brand.

 

TNA has had its major up's and down's since forming in June of 2002. Faced with financial crisis after financial crising early on, the company gave its fans everything it could in terms of match quality in fear that the next show might be the last. Dave Meltzer, noted wrestling journalist, has called the TNA feud between AJ Styles and Jerry Lynn the "most constantly entertaining feud of 2002." Coming from Meltzer, who watches more wrestling from more promotions in one day than many of us will see in a lifetime, that means quite a bit. However, things took a turn for the worse once the 15th show aired. No longer were the top workers the ones who put on the best matches. No longer were the longest matches the best on the card. No longer was BG James without a job. Ron "The Truth" Killings, TNA's first breakout star (and formerly K-Kwik in the World Wrestling Federation, now WWE), lost the title to Jeff Jarrett. The X-Division title was put up for grabs in an invitational ladder match, which Syxx-Pac (Sean Waltman, formerly X-Pac/The 1-2-3 Kid of the WWF, Syxx of World Championship Wrestling) won after entering the match in its final moments, grabbing the title as per the stipulations of the match. Ever since TNA Week 15, the shows have been off and on in terms of overall quality. While one show may be a classic, featuring nothing but good matches and solid storyline development, the next week could be an outright bomb, rivaling the worst televised wrestling events in terms of sheer outright stupidity.

 

But, much like WWE, TNA does it have its own shining moments. Raven, a former star of WWE and the now-defunct promotions of WCW and Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW), is the top draw for TNA, and has never failed to deliver something that will please TNA's fans. AJ Styles, former 2-time NWA X-Division champion and former NWA World Tag Team champion (with Jerry Lynn), is back into the NWA World title chase along with Raven, gunning for Jeff Jarrett's title. D'Lo Brown, a former European and Tag Team and Intercontinental champion in the WWF/WWE, and also the former tag partner of AJ Styles in TNA, is also back on the chase for Jeff Jarrett's NWA World title. "The Fallen Angel" Christopher Daniels, Elix Skipper (a former WCW Cruiserweight and WCW Cruiserweight Tag Team champion), and Low-Ki', collectively known as the tag team Triple X, are the current NWA World Tag Team champions, putting on classic matches with the likes of Jerry Lynn, The Amazing Red, The Spanish Announce Team (Joel and José Maximo), Chris Sabin, Jonny Storm, and Shark Boy. Chris Sabin, the current NWA X-Division champion, is becoming more and more popular the more he is featured on TNA programming, and is currently involved with the SEX (Sports Entertainment Xtreme) faction (whose members include: Glen Gilberti, Sonny Siaki, Mike Sanders, Don Harris, Ron Harris, Christopher Daniels, Low-Ki', Elix Skipper, David Young, and Desire), a top angle involving "Wildcat" Chris Harris (half of the former NWA World Tag Team champions America's Most Wanted, with partner "Cowboy" James Storm), and is set to square-off with US independent wrestler (and Shawn Michaels/Rudy Boy Gonzales protegé) Paul London the week London returns from his tour of Japan.

 

Now, the question that also arises is "will these glimmers bring the industry back to where it was just 5 years ago?" The answer is a resounding (and, unfortunately, very truthful) "no." The industry will need a major overhaul, with another promotion to rise to the level of WWE in terms of public awareness and popularity, so that WWE and the second promotion can have an off-air feud for ratings, viewers, press, and buyrates. These glimmers of hope, albeit future legends in the sport of professional wrestling, serve the purpose to make us continue to watch while the industry itself is hardly watchable. But, until the next crop of workers comes up to take over the industry, keep watching, keep believing.