Tag Team wrestling...

[Tully316 0]

I know tag team wrestling has taken a dive in popularity over the past 5 years or so, but I have been wondering lately why the WWE (aside from the fact that they can't do shit right) isn't able to book tag teams correctly anymore?

 

I mean, look how successful they were putting two nobodies like Road Dog and Billy Gunn together (and they were even getting over prior to joining DX). Or how about booking a powerhouse team like the Road Warriors? I think it would have been great if they wouold have booked Brock and Batista as a monster team out of OVW and had them get over as a team and then turn singles.

 

any thoughts?....discuss

[Guest Jimbo]

Well, for the most part, they just find two new, but crappy wrestlers and jam 'em into a tag team to cover their weaknesses, or if they have two guys that have some sort of conection, they stick them together as well because it makes their booking easier. If that is your general philosphy for creating tag teams, and you never give the teams much time in the ring besides little 3 minute matches, it only makes sense that the tag division will blow and no fans will be excited about. :-/

[haVoc 0]

I'm just really sick of all these bland look-a-like teams. Team French Vanilla, Bashams, Jindrak/Cade, the flying penis Shane twin brothers who were on Heat a few weeks ago.

 

There really isn't anything about them that sticks out. Plus, their not very good in the ring. Those Shane twins was only a one shot deal I think and they impressed me more then all the others.

[Youth N Asia 0]

Tag wrestling is very bad right now. The biggest pushed teams were the French guys and the Bashams...neither could get any heat at all, save for the little "USA...BOOOO!!!" that La Greenguys got.

 

I guess they figure on Raw leave the belt on the Dudleys forever till they run them in another angle for a drop and regain.

[Steviekick 0]

It's also kind of scary that when you look at Smackdown, the only tag team that's over with the fans is the Acolytes. I'm not counting the Guerreros because they are propably going to be broken up any day now.

[Guest Jimbo]

London/Spanky (what's their name again? do they even have one?) get a pretty decent pop on...Velocity :-/

[OldSchoolWrestling 0]

I think they are scared that if they put potential stars in a tag team it will be too hard to get them over as a single. Brock/Batista would have gotten over huge but Vince saw Brock as a quick rise to singles gold and probably the same with Batista if he hadn't gotten hurt so much.

[Guest The Last Free Voice]

The Problem seemingly is that no one really cares about tag team wrestling. The Tag division got so stale with the endless Dudley, EC, Hardyz tlc matches that it got burnt out and it still hasn't recovered.

[Guest BDC]

That and the tag matches haven't done anything other than the face in peril gig for a long time.

[Steviekick 0]

The Problem seemingly is that no one really cares about tag team wrestling. The Tag division got so stale with the endless Dudley, EC, Hardyz tlc matches that it got burnt out and it still hasn't recovered.

All they did was have great gimmick matches. After seeing them in TLC and such, who wants to see another ordinary match? They pushed the bar too high.

[Guest Coffey]

Well, the need to have the tag teams distinguish themselves more. I'm talking about basic tag team psychology. Heel tag teams switching without tagging. A babyface trying to make the hot tag and failing a couple times before finally making the tag. The ring getting cut off, with repeated quick tags. Double team moves & finishers, etc.

 

It would also help to give the tag teams names.

 

I mean, think back to early WWF days. You had tons of tag teams, and they all did the above.

 

Power & Glory, The Hart Foundation, The Rockers, Strike Force, The Killer Bees, The Legion of Doom, The Powers of Pain, Demolition, The Dream Team, etc.

[razazteca 0]

It's all Eric Bishoff's fought.

[Tully316 0]

I agree about the bland teams and lack of good team names.

 

Also, I think they need to get some really cool double team moves like when the Eliminators had the Total Elimination...that move was fucking wicked!

[razazteca 0]

Only team on Raw that has a special move is Dudley Boys. Spanky & London, Bashems, FBI, TWGTT all of Smackdown or Velocity do double team moves but most of the moves are transitional spots.

[Guest]

The problem now is that they have guys that only wrestle singles or tag team. Back 15 years ago they would have guys in tag teams that would wrestle singles matches every other show. Case in point would be Shawn and Marty. Sometimes Shawn would wrestle singles but at the PPV's he would always wrestle in the team with Marty.

[Toxxic 0]

Well, the need to have the tag teams distinguish themselves more. I'm talking about basic tag team psychology. Heel tag teams switching without tagging. A babyface trying to make the hot tag and failing a couple times before finally making the tag. The ring getting cut off, with repeated quick tags. Double team moves & finishers, etc.

Heel teams switch without tags every single fucking time anyway. It really annoys me, because the ref always come down on the face team when he doesn't see the tag but never enforces the decision on the heel team. The face-in-peril thing works fine with teams that are over - but precious few are. The Hardyz could do it best because they were both pretty small and would bump like fuck, meaning that not only were they over but they actually LOOKED like they were in peril. London and Spanky could probably do the same thing.

 

I think what really needs to be done is take tag teams that have actually worked as tag teams from OVW and bring them in as a tag team. You know, with a name and a double-team finisher and stuff. At least the Bashams have the Meat-Grinder, the Ball-and-Gag etc, people like La Res only have that appalling double-team spinebuster (aka The Death Of Spike), and the Bashams weren't even a tag team. I mean, the Dudleyz aren't exactly great wrestlers but they do know where each other are going to be when, which helps.

[Spaceman Spiff 0]

Heel teams switch without tags every single fucking time anyway. It really annoys me, because the ref always come down on the face team when he doesn't see the tag but never enforces the decision on the heel team.

That's the point of doing it.

[ChrisMWaters 0]

Hmm...I'm just wondering...

 

If the split wasn't still around, and the rosters were unified with both shows tag teams...would we still be complaining.

 

Because then, you'd have on one show:

 

-Bashams

-La Resistance

-Hurri-League

-Rikishi and Scotty

-Cade and Jindrak

-Spanky and London

-World's Greatest Tag Team

-To a lesser extent, Evolution...

 

You get the point.

[Toxxic 0]

Heel teams switch without tags every single fucking time anyway. It really annoys me, because the ref always come down on the face team when he doesn't see the tag but never enforces the decision on the heel team.

That's the point of doing it.

I know, what I meant was it's stupid how the ref ALWAYS calls against the faces and ignores the same thing from the heels. If you're watching in kayfabe it would look like the ref was actually on the heels' side, which surely isn't the point.

[razazteca 0]

There is enough talent why not bring back the 6 man tag team belts? I'm sure Dusty Rhodes can come up with some good concepts and angles for the division.

[Steviekick 0]

There is enough talent why not bring back the 6 man tag team belts? I'm sure Dusty Rhodes can come up with some good concepts and angles for the division.

The six man titles would be cool. THey could even switch shows every now or then (at the major PPVs).