Kevin Kelly's pearls of Wisdom

[Guest THE MIGHTY THOR]

KEVIN KELLY LOOKS AT THE BEST OF TIMES AND THE WORST OF TIMES

by Kevin Kelly @ 10:03:21 AM on 2/20/2004

 

 

A Tale of Two Shows

 

Where does this paragraph come from and what does it describe?

 

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way

 

Was it the opening statement from the most-recent WWE investor call?

 

No, Charles Dickens penned the classic "A Tale of Two Cities" in 1859 but when he wrote of the ills of French and English society in the 1700's, he could have been also writing of the world of Raw and Smackdown in 2004.

 

The English-born author whose style was guided by an interest in social criticism opened his classic novel with anaphora, the repetition of a phrase at the beginning of consecutive clauses. Love and family with diametrical opposition to hatred and oppression were the central themes of "A Tale of Two Cities". After watching Raw and Smackdown this week, those themes seem eerily reminiscent of the WWE just a couple of weeks before March.

 

Can we hear a soft bugle playing "Taps" off in the distance for the promise and hope that Chris Benoit was going to finally achieve immortality at WrestleMania? That ship has sailed and the funeral procession marches on until the body is laid to rest on March 14th. I love and respect Chris but I feel terrible for the treatment his career has received over recent weeks.

 

I wrote about it last week and more of the same this week. Benoit looks like an idiot, despite his great match with Shawn Michaels. HBK wins the great match but gets laid out by Triple H. Hunter is upset that he has to face both guys but I don't understand that logic. Do you?

 

This should be the time to build the guys he is going to face but Hunter has it just the way the champ wants it. As I also wrote last week, it would not shock me to see a "not over" Benoit win the title only to be judged "not over" by the Triple H-led puppet army who writes Raw and the Barry Bonds of pro wrestling gets the title back by default. He is the only guy remotely over on Raw and he isn't over at all.

 

Enough about that depressing quagmire on Mondays. How great was Eddie's win and the celebration that followed this week? Cole and Tazz were great, as they were silent, letting the moment speak for itself. Same goes for them laying out during the Angle heel turn. Way to go guys! By the way, that duo has past JR and the King as the best announcing team in the business and blown by them on the freeway as if they were super-modified by the guys at Orange County Choppers.

 

When the Radicals debuted on January 31, 2000, I would have never bet that Eddie Guerrero was the first one to win the WWE Championship. My money would have been on Benoit and by all rights, it should have been. But Eddie deserves to get a taste of the gold and I hope that he gets to digest the championship meal for quite a while.

 

I will never forget seeing a beaten and emotionally broken Eddie Guerrero solemnly walking up the terminal at LaGuardia Airport, coming to New York for an indy date just days after being fired from the WWE for another societal indiscretion. Now, a man who I worried might end his own life is on top of the world. Hate to sound preachy but God is Good…

 

Raw is a miserable rain-soaked cold gray day. Smackdown is the first warm day after a long winter.

 

The wrestling week truly is the best of times and the worst of times. Monday is the death of the protagonist at the guillotine while Thursday is the knowledge that he died with his life having meaning, just as in "A Tale of Two Cities".

 

credit:PWInsider

 

It's true what he said about RAW and SD being as different as night and day, the only guy that's over on RAW is HHHerpes(since everybody else besides Evolution and HBK are not allowed to get over) while SD they have Eddie,Angle,Edge,Lesnar,Cena and even Big Show carrying the show

[Austin3164life 0]

That was actually a pretty fun read, especially his thoughts on how Raw and Smackdown are like night and day. It is basically true.

[Guest BDC]

And yet management considers SD to be the second rate show of the two...

[Austin3164life 0]

They've always pushed Raw as their flagship show.

[k thx 0]

The thing is, lately Raw has been the better of the two shows.

 

As for the article, a tad too much pandering to the smarks for my liking.

[Guest wrestlingbs]

Maybe he is pandering to the smarks, but it doesn't make it any less true. Eddie's win and post-match SD have been great, but not so for Benoit. While I'm glad the WWE has decided to push Benoit to the main event, ever since he moved to Raw things have been getting worse and worse. Benoit isn't percieved as a potential World Champ by anybody on Raw. Not even the anouncers. HBK is being portrayed as a self-centered hypocrite who stole the WM main event from Benoit, yet he's supposed to be a popular face. The only one looking good throughout all this is, again, HHH, even though by all logical accounts the entire Raw roster should be hunting for his head since he's screwed them over so many times. But then again everyone else is booked as idiots on Raw.

[Lil' Bitch 0]

I'm glad Kevin got released. Now he can tell everyone how he really feels.

[Guest PowerPB13]

So what's the big deal about this anyway? Kevin is just echoing the online sentiment that already exists and telling people what they want to hear.

 

-Patrick

[Vyce 0]

I'm seeing nothing but a whole lot of truth in that article.

 

ESPECIALLY the part about the announce teams.

[Guest]

So what's the big deal about this anyway? Kevin is just echoing the online sentiment that already exists and telling people what they want to hear.

 

-Patrick

Why are your comments always so fucking negative?

 

Maybe Kevin Kelly is saying what he truly feels and not echoing anything. If he wants to put up an article he can do whatever the hell he wants.

[AndrewTS 0]

Sadly, SD is treated as second-rate by WWE themselves. It lacks "star power" and the show is pretty bad these days except for the main event situation.

 

Tag division? Screwed.

 

US title division? Big Show's been keeping the title warm for Cena for quite a while.

 

Cruiserweight division? Up until recently, not much put into it. It's still basically a few guys wrestling here and there, and there's a title on the line sometimes. However, why the hell are they even bothering to call it the Cruiserweight Division? It's turning into what WWE once called it: the "light heavyweight" division.

 

Raw's got a few good matches these days, but the show is hard to call "good."

[CanadianChick 0]

So what's the big deal about this anyway?  Kevin is just echoing the online sentiment that already exists and telling people what they want to hear.

 

-Patrick

Why are your comments always so fucking negative?

 

Maybe Kevin Kelly is saying what he truly feels and not echoing anything. If he wants to put up an article he can do whatever the hell he wants.

I'm pretty sure it wasn't a knock on Kelly. I think Patrick was saying that Kelly's opinions are representing the Internet's general reactions. Calm down there.

[Guest]

I'm pretty sure it wasn't a knock on Kelly. I think Patrick was saying that Kelly's opinions are representing the Internet's general reactions. Calm down there.

I know it's not a knock on Kelly but every post the guy makes is negative.

[Guest PowerPB13]

What I mean is this: A ton of online wrestling journalists say this stuff all the time. So why is it a big deal when it's Kevin Kelly saying it?

 

-Patrick

[Jobber of the Week 0]

it would not shock me to see a "not over" Benoit win the title only to be judged "not over" by the Triple H-led puppet army who writes Raw and the Barry Bonds of pro wrestling gets the title back by default. He is the only guy remotely over on Raw and he isn't over at all.

What in the hell? This started off sounding like your average wwe.com article and then took a smark turn.

 

Is Kevin trying to burn his bridges or something?

[Guest]

Kevin Kelly actually worked with the company and thus there is your big deal.

[Guest PowerPB13]

Kelly once worked for WWE, yet I'm not seeing anything in his columns that I haven't seen written by other people. I mean, if the guy has seen and heard Triple H plotting the burials of other wrestlers, then he should say so. As is, it's just another opinion column among a whole slew of them.

 

-Patrick

[Jobber of the Week 0]

Sadly, SD is treated as second-rate by WWE themselves.

Is it really that much worse on Raw?

 

Tag division?  Screwed.

 

So is Raw's.

 

US title division?  Big Show's been keeping the title warm for Cena for quite a while.

 

See Randy Orton and how he's not going to be booked to drop the IC belt anytime soon. Equally predictable.

[Guest hunger4unger]

Kelly is an arrogant individual that has been rude to many workers outside WWE that have happened to be in the back. I refuse to read what he writes.

[Guest]

Kelly once worked for WWE, yet I'm not seeing anything in his columns that I haven't seen written by other people. I mean, if the guy has seen and heard Triple H plotting the burials of other wrestlers, then he should say so. As is, it's just another opinion column among a whole slew of them.

 

-Patrick

No-one ever said that the article took importance over others. Articles are posted here every day that mean nothing.

[AndrewTS 0]

"Is it really that much worse on Raw?"

 

No, they're both bad. I'm saying it isn't night-and-day as far as the overall quality of the show. SD used to be a lot better, but not so much anymore since WWE, if you remember, INTENTIONALLY decided to make it "more like Raw."

 

And as you stated, they succeeded. Matches were shortened, angles got stupider, more GM garbage is on the show, the tag division was ruined, the US title was ruined, and recently the WWE has been pushing the Bashams, Holly, and until he was injured (he was, wasn't he?) Billy Gunn. This Playboy garbage is going to be on both shows now. It is a lot more like Raw except for the Eddy situation.

[Guest PowerPB13]

The mere fact that it IS Kevin Kelly, former WWE employee, raises expectations right there. Come on, Kev...backstage dirt! Sightings of the Clique sticking pins into RVD voodoo dolls! Something to confirm or deny the rampant speculation that's all over the place on here!

 

As is, those columns may as well have been written by your average 'net fan.

 

-Patrick

[Austin3164life 0]

If he stated detailed accounts of the Creative Team plotting with Triple H against other workers, I wonder if the WWE could sue him, if he had a confidentiality clause in his contract. Tobacco companies do that.

[Guest Suicide King]

Yeah...I would think that Kelly wouldn't be anywhere near as accurate regarding WWE as he once might have been, due to his being fired/let go and all. The past few articles of his that I have read have really made me question his impartiality. He doesn't seem to possess just a bias, but a vendetta against the company that let him go. Then again, I could be wrong.

Edited February 21, 2004 by Suicide King

[Scroby 0]

I look at Kevin Kelly's thoughts like this...its a free country. I mean seriously he might have always been this way and just couldn't say anything like he's saying now since he was in WWE. He could have been the same way before hand, we really don't know and if you do, you can tell us so. Anyways I can see what he means about Raw and Smackdown being so differant and at least he's speaking so much of the truth and instead of holding back like so many of the guys that just get released out of the WWE do. To be honest, I bet you J.R. most likely feels the same way but can't say anything cause he doesn't wanna be fired again. I also bet you most of the lockerroom feels that way but can't say anything at all cause they need something to pay the bills with. Kevin is just speaking his mind, just let him speak it and either enjoy it or don't.

[DerangedHermit 0]

HBK is being portrayed as a self-centered hypocrite who stole the WM main event from Benoit, yet he's supposed to be a popular face.

HBK is a self-centered hypocrite.

[jester 0]

While Kelly's opinions might be just like a lot of Smarks, the fact he thinks Benoit is getting shafted isn't the real story.

 

The real story is that a former WWE employee thought this way. It shows the inner workings of the company, because according to the article, the decision makers at WWE DO NOT think that way.

 

It really shows how their view of the product is so far removed from ours.