The One and Only SmackDown Sucks / SolutionsThread

[reign 0]

I'll be the first to say that SD! is in the toilet right now but the blame falls on the brand split...Vince is obviously grooming new stars but the only place to do that is on Raw because of the talent there...having guys like Orton, Shelton, and Batista work with HBK,HHH and Flair with help them along a heck of a lot more than them working with just Eddie on SD!...having all the talent centralized on Raw will get those guys the experience they need to get both brands over further down the road...your thoughts?

 

 

Modnote: I renamed the thread title from "Smackdown WILL be Great Again". Any new threads started on why smackdown sucks or similar will be merged, unless there's a good reason to keep them. This means any news stories, too. If in doubt, put it here.

Edited June 4, 2004 by nikjohns

[Lil' Bitch 0]

SD is dying for starpower. I'd like to see some more established stars moved over to SD to help push the other young talent just like they did with Brock, Cena, Orton, and Shelton. RAW has everybody to work with while SD...well I don't like Eddie fighting EVERYBODY on the roster and Undertaker not putting anybody over. Remember when RAW used to suck so damn bad last year week in and week out? SD is going through that same phase right now. SD will be good again...one of the days.

[Guest Choken One]

Smackdown is dying a quick and painful death.

 

Bruce Pritchard drove WWF nearly to the ground in 1995...He's finishing the job now.

[SuperJerk 0]

Russo > Prichard.

[Krankor 0]

Smackdown is a festering boil. They do have some good young talent in Cena, Dupree, and Haas. But now that the cruiserweights have basically been thrown away there isn't much else worthwhile. Maybe by the Royal Rumble it will be watchable. That's a big maybe. If Mordecai sacrifices Prichard then that will prove they are on the right path for success down the road.

[Guest Man Of 1,004 Modes]

Smackdown being great again anytime soon has the same chance of me getting a job.

[Mole 0]

I don't watch Smackdown at all anymore and I am a "hardcore" fan.

 

The big problem isn't the stars, SD does have Eddie, RVD, Booker, Taker, Rey, Cena, hell even the Dudley Boyz. SD sucks because the storylines sucks. Raw is a lot better right now because of the storylines more so than the stars.

 

I'd much rather watch a wrestling show that has good storylines than established stars. ECW was hot during 95 and 96 because they had interesting/good storylines, not so much established stars.

[SuperJerk 0]

Smackdown being great again anytime soon has the same chance of me getting a job.

Surely an experienced buggy-whip maker of your caliber can find something!

[Guest Man Of 1,004 Modes]

Smackdown being great again anytime soon has the same chance of me getting a job.

Surely an experienced buggy-whip maker of your caliber can find something!

It's called being lazy Sgt. Stupid.

[Guest Salacious Crumb]

It has several mountains to climb before it's even watchable again. Just look at the OAO threads and the fact that they don't break even 4 pages anymore to see how bad it really is. Even during the Katie Vick days the OAO Raw threads were still getting a lot of posts.

[SuperJerk 0]

Smackdown being great again anytime soon has the same chance of me getting a job.

Surely an experienced buggy-whip maker of your caliber can find something!

It's called being lazy Sgt. Stupid.

Way to not get the joke, Corporal Comedian.

[Guest Man Of 1,004 Modes]

TNA PPV's get more responses than Smackdown. this week only 5 members were viewing the SD thread at a time usually.

[Guest Man Of 1,004 Modes]

Smackdown being great again anytime soon has the same chance of me getting a job.

Surely an experienced buggy-whip maker of your caliber can find something!

It's called being lazy Sgt. Stupid.

Way to not get the joke, Corporal Comedian.

Touche. Let's not drag this topic off course...Smackdown will rise from the dead like Lazarus....except it won't be until the year 2007.`

[MarvinisaLunatic 0]

Big Show coming back will help a bit but that won't make Smackdown great again.

 

The only thing that I can think of that would help is to go live. RAW has that anything can happen type atomosphere behind it because its live, Smackdown could use some of that. But I would hate for that to happen since I wouldn't get to see Smackdown because I don't get UPN.

[Guest Choken One]

sadly...Instead of being the logical #1 contender (he beat eddy last fall...former two time champion) and i'm willing to accept that Angle "forgives TBS" and re-hires him because he'll do anything to take Eddy out and get the title off him...That's what SHOULD happen...

 

He'll revert back to the Gimmick Impressionist character for a few laughs and completely dissolve all the hard work Brock and Kurt did to make him look invincible again all for naught.

[SteakGrowsOnUecker 0]

Smackdown helps me get to sleep every Thursday night, and thats the god honest truth. This coming from a fan who began watching WWF after WM IX and sat through 1995. They just don't seem to care anymore and quite frankly neither do I at this point. But as I've said elsewhere Chavo Classic has been the only thing to entertain me over the last weeks and because I've loved wrestling for a long time, so I'll continue to sleep well every Thursday to Smackdown.

[Guest Dazed]

So what would it take for them to make SmackDown! watchable? What changes should they make? The only constraint is that you can't fire or kill anyone, or move anyone from Raw - yet.

[Guest Dynamite Kido]

First off they need to establish a crew of Main Eventers for the show. Obviously put Eddie in there along with Angle(when healthy), Booker T, RVD, John Cena(must go back heel), Big Show, Undertaker(who you COULD use intelligently to put people over). After this they could develop quite a mid-card if they simply would recognize the CW division as a positive. They could use Mysterio more along with Paul London(They would bring the house down if they started a feud with those two), Jamie Noble, Akio, etc. Also they have another mid-carder/possible main eventer in Charlie Haas, but that is gonna depend on how he is handled. Rico could be a good enough character if you put they would put the effort into his character, and they have a proven heel in Dupree hoping that he can get better in time. If they could do these things it would be a step in the right direction that could be fixed by shipping a couple over from RAW(I'm thinking Jericho, Hurricane, and Val Venis) with maybe a new signee or OVW guy here and there and the show could be back to the way it used to be in no time. Honestly, I am surprised that they haven't use one show for their "soap opera" style wrestling and the other for workrate and see what gets a better response and then base how they set up shows like that.

[Guest Goodear]

Right... my plans.

 

1) Get the god damned new people on the show. Why the hell is Morty not in the ring every damn week? Why isn't Mark Jindrak coming off a new gimmick on the main show? Why has Paul London been with the company for six months but I've seen him work like twice? Why in the name of Zeus' buthole is Eddie still working with the damn Bashams? The cast needs some freshening and the way to do that is to get the newer people on the air. Sure they might suck, but it will at least be an opportunity to draw veiwers since 'hey I've never seen this guy before'.

 

2) Move the damn stories along. Everything is so sloooooooowly paced it drags the energy of the program into the crapper. Chavo's turn on Eddie took like a year of build... Layfeild changes gimmicks but never wrestles again because it might show off some changes in the character. FREAKING DO SOMETHING. Remember when Big SHow and Brock broke the ring? Do more of that stuff... it makes the people that know whats going to happen want to watch. There hasn't been anything worth turning on in what seems like months now.

 

3) Fuck the cruiserweight division okay? Their mostly heatless anyway and don't do the things that the WCW division did to get themselves over. If freaking Rey Mysterio can work with bigger guys, everyone else can too or they can be moved off the show. Then if you want to have an 'amazing' cruiserweight match (when was the last time we had one of those again?) you just make them fight. I won't loose sleep if freaking Kidman never wrestles again. Sorry.

 

4) Kurt Angle sucks in his role. Sucks major. Get rid of the whole figure-head role crap and let the wrestlers sell themselves.

[Guest Trivia247]

The more we hear the likes of Bruce Pritchard and Arn Anderson is effecting those smark friendly Roster members the more it becomes incresingly apparent that some of the oldschool is good...but some is just .... Plain.... BAD!

 

Now We know Vince has essentially washed his hands of Smackdown and is concentrated on his newly resurrected Raw program (Which about this time last year was abyssal and Smackdown Ruled which of course why Vince was on SD and no where near Raw) So he hands SD creatively over to Oldschool wrestling official Bruce "Brotha Love" Pritchard. Now.. What does this genius do? Basically shit on the Cruiserweight division to the point where he May HOPE we just want the Cruiserweight division Killed after its being tortured over and over by the likes of Jackie and Chavo Classic (Which is actually quite humourous with by the way) If true what we hear he does indeed which to disband the Cruiserweight division. And probably the only times we will see the remaining Cruiserweights is to be those nameless jobbers to the Big named wrestlers. (ah the old days of circa 91 SNME and Prime time wrestling, where the wrestlers faced Jobbers)

 

Now we hear Arn Anderson is essentially making excuses of the probable Punished RVD and basically wanting the team of Holly and Gunn to be pushed over him. Now im one to give any and everyone a chance. Gunn and Holly seem to be a decent enough tag team. But there is no way in Hell you can convince me that their chance should come at the expense of RVD. Perhaps He sees through the pain killer mist that Gunn and Holly is the next Brainbusters or something...and RVD looks more like Sid with a pair of scissors...but Come on damn it. RVD is confirmibly a guy that people want to see who people buy tickets to go to shitty shows just to SEE him! And this is what they do as discipline. "Ok RVD instead of like docking your pay or giving you a stern talking to, we are gonna take your spot away and give it to Dwayne Gill."

 

Im not hearing anything Good that Johnny Ace has been doing for the company either, however he hasn't done anything to horribly yet. So if anyone got any info and like to add some thoughts to good ol Animal's lesser known brother lets it out.

 

You know its one thing to not care if your taped show is just so crappy some special on Lice could probably beat it. But its another thing to let oldschool fade to black too set in their ways to change guys Run a program which the majority of new guys who wrestle a completely different style.

 

Vince what the hell are you doing to us?

[Guest Dazed]

3) Fuck the cruiserweight division okay? Their mostly heatless anyway and don't do the things that the WCW division did to get themselves over. If freaking Rey Mysterio can work with bigger guys, everyone else can too or they can be moved off the show. Then if you want to have an 'amazing' cruiserweight match (when was the last time we had one of those again?) you just make them fight. I won't loose sleep if freaking Kidman never wrestles again. Sorry.

 

I'd dispute that, and say "have the cruisers work a faster, CW style, instead of being heavyweights but smaller." They need to get away from the women's division style of "champion vs. flavour of the month", with the roles changing every month or two.

 

Other things.

 

Taker, Booker, RVD, John Cena and Rene Dupree seem a million miles away from Bradshaw and Eddie, in terms of card placement. They need to be put into more important roles. There's zero excuse for RVD to be in a thrown together tag team with Mysterio, and not putting him on TV for no reason at all. The only reason RVD should be off TV is if he's a detriment to the ratings.

 

I'll second what Goodear said about the plot. There's no need to go back to Russo's 15 heel turns per show, but it's like there's no surprise. Chavo hints at a heel turn on Eddie, and then it gets more and more obvious, and then he... turns heel. The end.

 

In fact, there's very little happening in terms of actual storytelling and feuds. Why do Cena and Dupree hate each other? Because they fight. Why do they fight? Because they hate each other. Same with Booker and the Undertaker. So much time was put into Eddie & Bradshaw that everyone else was left behind.

 

They need to go back to simple storytelling and feuding, and making everyone seem important. Rey Mysterio is a huge asset to the show, so there's no reason to have him squashed by Bradshaw. In fact, no squash matches at all. Same with anything created just to humiliate, show up and make fun of the heels. Make them feared, instead of ridiculed. Just look at Jamie Noble.

 

There's no room for egos, either. Taker and Holly refusing to play ball? Fuck 'em. Nobody is more important than the show. Even now, when they are desperate for star power, a few well placed Taker jobs, and then send him on his way. He's popular, but does no good for the program. Talking of which, his 20 minute entrance is wearing very thin. Why not clip it, so the fans in attendance get to see it all, but we don't have to?

[Guest Man Of 1,004 Modes]

It's really not so much the MATCHES are out right bad, but, outside of Eddie/JBL and UT/Booker, are there ANY FEUDS GOING ON?! Or anything important?

 

It seems like they just throw shit against the wall to see what sticks, randomly matching up people no matter what (Eddie vs. the BASHAMS?!) and just doing nothing to make an attempt to get better.

 

Despite a complete backlash in ratings, WWE is dead-set on continuing the Bradshaw love-fest, even though the SD ratings have gone DOWN practically every week for 2 months, and the PPV he headlined drew dick. Of course, in Hoss-land, if you're 6'5" or taller, you're guranteed one Main Event run...just be thankful everyone forgot Jon Heidenreich.

[ChrisMWaters 0]

Personally, I say that Smackdown should somehow combine the storyline feel of the Attitude Era (without a lot of the ridiculousness) with a kinda serious, NWA feel about it. Have the board of directors appear only for things like major decisions about title matches and such, have less spontanious in-ring matches made...things like that.

 

Also, as mentioned before, a point system for wrestlers would be good. My idea for it would be every match you win by pin or submission, you gain a point. Everyone by Countout or DQ, half a point. Losing is the same way. It's doubled though if you beat a champion in a non-title match.

 

That' just my theory though.

[ChrisMWaters 0]

Of course, in Hoss-land, if you're 6'5" or taller, you're guranteed one Main Event run...just be thankful everyone forgot Jon Heidenreich.

A-Train I don't think has had one.

 

Neither did Adam Bomb back in the day.

[haVoc 0]

A smart man once said, "Put everyone in a room and roll a grenade in.”

 

That man was, Bobby "The Brain" Heenan!

[Guest Goodear]

I'd dispute that, and say "have the cruisers work a faster, CW style, instead of being heavyweights but smaller." They need to get away from the women's division style of "champion vs. flavour of the month", with the roles changing every month or two.

 

I would agree with you if the WWE employed people that did work that style. But Funaki, Nunzio, Noble, and Chavo Jr. are all pretty much mat workers to begin with and aren't really built to do a whole lot of flippy stuff. Rey is the only real ariealist in the division (other than maybe London but how would I know?) and he's not even really in the division anymore anyway. Maybe its just me but when Benoit, Eddie Guerrero and Jericho can all win World titles... the point of the cruiserweight division (to pop the crowd early to warm them up for the larger 'faces' they'll see later) is pretty much lost anyway. The super heavyweight push thing is such a thing of the past now anyway that its hardly a detriment to disolve the division and let the chips fall where they may. I'm not going to cry if Shannon Moore gts squashed every week anyway.

[evilhomer 0]

Talking of which, his (Undertaker) 20 minute entrance is wearing very thin. Why not clip it, so the fans in attendance get to see it all, but we don't have to?

Unfortunately, with his tv appearances being "rare" and us being "privileged" to be seeing it, he'll continue with the long entrances. Plus there's no way around a long entrance for the character he plays and no chance in hell that he would accept a clipped entrance. The Storm's & Funaki's get clipped entrances, not legend giving us a privileged treat.

 

 

I'm somewhat enjoying Smackdown but it's B show status really brings it down for me. With all due respect to the great talent they have, none of them are established main eventers. It simply has a feel of a developmental show where young guys are fighting with mid-carders. I love the hell out of the main event push that Eddie, Book and others have received, but since they didn't move in over or up to established main eventers, it has a feel that the bar was lowered, rather than them raising up to it. Taker is the only established one they have, but his part time rare appearances make him look like that semi-retired former star whose just playing out the string, not someone who really matters.

[humongous2002 0]

SD is dying for starpower. I'd like to see some more established stars moved over to SD to help push the other young talent just like they did with Brock, Cena, Orton, and Shelton. RAW has everybody to work with while SD...well I don't like Eddie fighting EVERYBODY on the roster and Undertaker not putting anybody over. Remember when RAW used to suck so damn bad last year week in and week out? SD is going through that same phase right now. SD will be good again...one of the days.

SD is not dying of starpower, they have superstars but the bookers/management would rather give them the night off because Bob and Billy are "crowd favorites".

[TheBigSwigg 0]

If you're going old school, at least do it right. Put Cornette in charge if you're gonna go old school. It's sometimes retarded, but at least it's understandable and watchable

[Guest Dynamite Kido]

SD is not dying of starpower, they have superstars but the bookers/management would rather give them the night off because Bob and Billy are "crowd favorites".

Ummm.......you do watch......right?