Is WWE Trying Hard To Be Unpredictable?

[Pay Per Ghost]

With Y2J attacking Punk at the end of his match it FINALLY started the feud that we were all hoping would start soon, and surely this was in the pipes from the beginning.

Then the Undertaker coming down with no prior hoopla just made me think is the WWE actually trying to be as unpredictable as possible with the disadvantages posed by the internet and the frequent circulation of surprise returns and other news?


I am not saying their creative decisions are centered around what the internet gossips about but surely they have done what we expected them to (except for Mr. Funkasaurus) yet they have delayed it to the point we least expect it.

Sheamus winning can be another point because the right thing after Jericho's promo would've been for him to win.


Discussion.

 

[Headman]

I just think wrestling fans assume too much. I'm sure the WWE tries to swerve it's fans, but the decision to have Sheamus go over Jericho at the rumble could have been as simple as a Rumble win doing more for Sheamus at this point in his career than Jericho. I don't think anyone could argue with that, could they?

 

[Richard Blonoff]

I just think wrestling fans assume too much. I'm sure the WWE tries to swerve it's fans, but the decision to have Sheamus go over Jericho at the rumble could have been as simple as a Rumble win doing more for Sheamus at this point in his career than Jericho. I don't think anyone could argue with that, could they?

They will and you know it.

I think they have to try to swerve from time to time to keep the product fresh. Like with the surprise Rumble entrants. A handful of sites reported that both Road Dogg and Duggan were expected. They didn't get the pop they should have because I think a fair amount of people 1/2 expected it

Plus sometimes the IWC thinks they know everything and when they are wrong they automatically label it as a swerve. Was Sheamus winning the Rumble a swerve? Maybe, but in the weeks leading up to it many people predicted him as a final 4 participant and IIRC he had the second or third most votes in WZs poll on who people thought would win.

 

[Bookman]

I definitely think WWE is trying to be unpredictable. The Sheamus win, Undertaker's return, even Kane's return were all events that didn't get a ton of play in the IWC. My only worry right now is that WWE seems to be too concerned with being unpredictable. Unpredictability is an important part of wrestling but it should be predicated by solid booking and good in-ring competition. I personally think the Sheamus win was an example of WWE trying too hard to be unpredictable. Heading into WM 28, the biggest show ever, a guy like Jericho or Orton would have been much more suited to win the Rumble. They could have added Sheamus in after but instead they chose to give him the shocking Rumble win. In this situation the choice to be unpredictable will, in my opinion, not work out as well as being predictable because I don't think Sheamus has the promo skills or experience to carry a World Title feud into WM.

 

[Alastor]

We won't know for sure what the thought process of the booking team/Vince is. But recent weird pushes seem to indicate a desire to go against the expectations of the IWC. Brodus Clay being hyped only to debut as a comedic relief. Jericho returning and his antics for weeks resulting in a classic attack the champ to start a feud? Heelish Bryan being dissed by heel Cole on commentary and face commentators defending Bryan.

Seems they planned too many shades of grey at the moment. They may be more enjoyable but the shows need more black and white for the shades of greys to stand out. If everybody has 3 arms then nobody with 3 arms stands out.

 

[wcwnwoforlife]

they are doing shit thats been done like that ring inflated when bigshow and lesner then they do it with bigshow and mark henry shits getting boring as hell

if wwe doesnt pull something out of there ass soon im taking the shit off dvr i fastfoward the shit everyweek anyway least i can watch tna all the way threw

when wcw nitro was on you couldnt leave the tv set

rumble was bunk
mania gonna be bunk
smackdown is a bunk
nxt is a bunk
the product is a bunk

maybe wresting is just for 10 year olds and nerds these days

 

[somehetero]

I think this is the biggest problem with WWE creative today, and it all pretty much comes back to McMahon's ego.

The creative team puts together a great build up to a feud or return, or whatever. Weeks go by with anticipation mounting and fans getting excited about what could happen. Speculation goes wild on IWC websites, and eventually the intent of the storyline leaks or is widely speculated as the outcome.

That's when McMahon screws it all up by changing the outcome at the last minute just to make sure that no one "figured out" his result. This creates disjunction between the build up and the result, even if he eventually gets back around to what he was intending.

Jericho's return is a perfect example. All the promos leading to Jericho's feud with Punk over the whole "best in the world" stuff were GREAT. Jericho finally returns, but doesn't actually let us know why right away. Though this was likely done to stretch out the Punk feud and give Ziggler time to get into the title picture, it still worked with the story. Jericho used it to make himself a heel without giving away his intentions right away. Great writing. Then McMahon derails Jericho's momentum by having Sheamus go over in the rumble just because the internet fans knew Jericho was likely to win. Sheamus could have EASILY been thrusted into the title picture at mania at the Elimination Chamber PPV by having him dominate and lose to Bryan at the end in a screwy manner. And truthfully, he would DEFINITELY have been put in the elimination chamber match had he not won the rumble. Now, the championship build-up between Jericho and Punk will likely happen during the elimination chamber, which basically makes all the previous writing with Jericho moot.

So what if we knew Jericho would win? McMahon has said himself over and over that he rarely listens to the IWC because we're a small portion of his target audience. Why change a GREAT storyline and derail it just so we don't see it coming?

Ego. He wants to be smarter than everyone else.

If you don't think VKM has changed storylines at the last minute just because they've been figured out by the IWC, then you haven't been paying attention for the last 5 years.

 

[Tha Wolfpac]

People do generally complain that the WWE has become predictable and recycled. But i think it's safe to say that WWE has picked up it's game and really has kept the fans guessing, watching, waiting and wondering what's going to happen next. So this unpredictability is i'd say a factor in this new breath of life into the WWE along with the new crop of developing stars. So in my view trying hard to be unpredictable is a smart move by the WWE, and the current product is reflecting that anything can happen, anytime in the WWE.

 

[Tha Wolfpac]

Jericho's return is a perfect example. All the promos leading to Jericho's feud with Punk over the whole "best in the world" stuff were GREAT. Jericho finally returns, but doesn't actually let us know why right away. Though this was likely done to stretch out the Punk feud and give Ziggler time to get into the title picture, it still worked with the story. Jericho used it to make himself a heel without giving away his intentions right away. Great writing. Then McMahon derails Jericho's momentum by having Sheamus go over in the rumble just because the internet fans knew Jericho was likely to win. Sheamus could have EASILY been thrusted into the title picture at mania at the Elimination Chamber PPV by having him dominate and lose to Bryan at the end in a screwy manner. And truthfully, he would DEFINITELY have been put in the elimination chamber match had he not won the rumble. Now, the championship build-up between Jericho and Punk will likely happen during the elimination chamber, which basically makes all the previous writing with Jericho moot.QUOTE]

It is common knowledge that Jericho is a fully estabished superstar, that can believably thrust himself into the main event picture quite easily. So in simple terms, Jericho didn't need the rumble win. Sheamus is a young fast growing superstar, who's pops are becoming more deafening every time he is out there performing. With Sheamus winning, he has established himself even further and we still are able to receive the CM Punk and Jericho feud which was evident from last monday's RAW. So in my eyes, WWE has made the right moves.

 

[satanklaw]

Really? people are complaining about the WWE being unpredictable? wasnt that the best part about the Attitude Era. Don't read websites like this and you won't know what a swerve would be. I am glad they changed the Rumble if that is what they did. Why watch it if you knew Jericho was gonna win? Can't people just be entertained anymore? I am enjoying Brodus it is different and he is still a monster, and i have a feeling this will show more and more in the coming weeks.

 

[Headman]

It just seems to me that a lot of people got it wrong and are now calling it a swerve so they can protect their ego and pretend they still have some sort of inside knowledge of what's going on inside the WWE. A Jericho win may have seemed obvious, but maybe, just maybe that's what the WWE wanted you to think. Being that this is a decision that effects Wrestlemania I'm pretty sure Vince's finger prints can be found all over this decision and it doesn't shock me one bit that Vince used Jericho to misdirect fans. I highly doubt no matter what ends up being reported by the wrestling media to cover their own asses that the WWE had a knee jerk reaction to internet reporting and changed the main event soley because of that.

 

[M]

They are putting a lot of effort into making sure the whole "anything can happen in the WWE", and they should be!
I like it when they give us something unexpected, it's a cool and refreshing difference from the norm and adds an extra incentive to stay with the product.
The people on sites like these get upset over them having too many unpredictable swerves because they're human, humans don't like being wrong, it upsets their brain and reduces them to closed off, psychologically challenged people obsessing over needless things, and have nothing better to do than trying to impose their views on others..
silly humans...

 

[Mustang Sally]

Sure, they're trying to be unpredictable. Regular series TV shows run 22 new episodes a year; that's all. WWE has to create about 100 new shows a year (50 for each brand) and has to try and keep things fresh for legions of fans who follow storylines and demand to be entertained. The worst thing for the company would be to make things so predictable that everyone knows what's coming; they'd lose their audience in a hurry.

Of course, tons of fans (many of whom patronize this forum) detest everything new WWE comes up with.....they demand new angles, yet hate it when something new comes down the pike. There's apparently no satisfying them, yet WWE keeps trying.

Personally, I'm amazed at the number of times I've been wrong about things I was positive were going to happen.....and I love being wrong. When I saw Sheamus and Chris Jericho as the final two guys in the Rumble, I had absolutely no doubt Jericho was going to win. It's amusing to see the number of folks on this board who have criticized this outcome.....I thought it was great. I suppose many of these people are the ones who look at an event after it happens.....and claim they knew all along how it would go down.

As long as WWE keeps surprising us, they'll always have a product that sells.

 

[kurt_angle_no1fan]

There are a lot of ***** in the IWC and for some strange reason it seems WWE are more focused on getting one over these ***** than actually producing a product with logic. Predictable is better than illogical. WWE are damned if they do and damned if they dont though.

On a side note, Jerichos tweet yesterday fucked me right off. Gloating he said he would 'say something' when he attacked Punk on Monday. I thought this boyband throw back said he would do it on Sunday?

 

[Nick Black]

Really? people are complaining about the WWE being unpredictable? wasnt that the best part about the Attitude Era. Don't read websites like this and you won't know what a swerve would be. I am glad they changed the Rumble if that is what they did. Why watch it if you knew Jericho was gonna win? Can't people just be entertained anymore? I am enjoying Brodus it is different and he is still a monster, and i have a feeling this will show more and more in the coming weeks.

Someone didn't read the thread thoroughly.

People aren't complaining that they're trying to be unpredictable. The idea is that WWE is noticing how predictable they are and are trying to fix it.

They're doing well. The Kharma return, Taker return, Jericho/Punk, and Sheamus RR win show that they're really trying to make the product better, and they're clearly doing that. I went for a few months without watching RAW or SD! and rather just looking at the Wrestlezone spoilers. I'm now re-hooked on WWETV and I honestly can't expect anything to happen in particular, so I just have to wait and be entertained.

 

[achillesforever6]

Was it that much of a swerve that Sheamus was going to win the Rumble? I mean for the past weeks leading up, he was going on how he would win it and looked very strong in anything that involved a rumble like atmosphere.

I just think it wasn't that much of a huge swerve, he was a favorite and he won the Rumble.

 

[Headman]

Was it that much of a swerve that Sheamus was going to win the Rumble? I mean for the past weeks leading up, he was going on how he would win it and looked very strong in anything that involved a rumble like atmosphere.

I just think it wasn't that much of a huge swerve, he was a favorite and he won the Rumble.

I don't think it was much of a swerve either. It seems that the Jericho-marks had themselves so convinced that he was going to win the Rumble that anything else could only be explained by a shadey backdoor WWE plot to make them look foolish. Ignoring one dumb statement from Jericho about the world ending, Sheamus was always a top contender to win the Rumble. I had it down to Miz, Sheamus, Barrett & Jericho. A lot of other people did too, so this was about as big a swerve as the Giants beating the Patriots this sunday. Had Justin Gabriel won the Rumble, that would be unpredictable.

 

[DeathClutch]

The problem with WWE has been since 2002-2012 the show hasn't changed apart from visually the staging is different and characters have been revamped but the shows all feel the same, their is nothing different that stands out, all the matches are the same and the same guys are constants on RAW and they rarely ever job so if you missed say 2-3 Raw's per calander month you wouldn't miss much.

What WWE needs to do is take a leaf out of WCW's Nitro's book back when it was good and cater to everyone, they had the Nitro girls, they had edgy storylines and they also had gimmicks for the kids and WWE doesn't catar too everyone.

I'm not saying have gimmick matches every week, but bring a title in that gives us something different, like the Hardcore title did, I'm not saying bring it back as I can't see WWE doing that, but bring in some championship like the FCW 15 (but have a belt rather than a medal) for thus who don't know what it is, it's a title that each match is 15 minute iron man matches, it just gives something different too the show, or maybe a submission championship just to give the illusion of something different and this might get some of the guys in the back thinking what new submissions can I invent to stand out.

BUT since the chances of WWE implementing any of the above the only thing I would advise is keep off the forums and dirt sheets and anything that happens will be a surprise.

 

[AndThat'sTheBottomLine]

If Jericho hadnt said what he said on the RAW before the RR i wouldve been happier that Sheamus won. I do however love that WWE has revamped themselves here lately. And I cant wait to see what happens in the coming weeks.

 

[Mistwaver]

I agree with the OP. It's so predictable now. Every time they have a title match for the Heavyweight Championship I always say to myself "I bet this is going to end with a DQ" and it happens every single time. And the sad thing is even the PPV events aren't much better.

The 30-45 second Brodus Clay and divas matches have also got to go. I like Brodus Clay, but come on - start putting him in competitive matches. We know he can fight, there's no sense in putting him in matches where he wins with 2 moves.

They've also got to start making things more believable. The things that have been happening lately are instantly interpreted as fake as can be, rather than being at least somewhat believable.

Really makes me miss WCW to be honest.

 

[Headman]

I agree with the OP. It's so predictable now. Every time they have a title match for the Heavyweight Championship I always say to myself "I bet this is going to end with a DQ" and it happens every single time. And the sad thing is even the PPV events aren't much better.

The 30-45 second Brodus Clay and divas matches have also got to go. I like Brodus Clay, but come on - start putting him in competitive matches. We know he can fight, there's no sense in putting him in matches where he wins with 2 moves.

They've also got to start making things more believable. The things that have been happening lately are instantly interpreted as fake as can be, rather than being at least somewhat believable.

Really makes me miss WCW to be honest.

Man, people have been wearing their rose color glasses when it comes to WCW lately. If you want believable WCW has never been that place. WCW was a magical world where contract signings took place in Vader's white castle of fear filled with midgets and the rest of the cast from madmax. And where bad guys who took exception to Sting and British Bulldog surfing at the beach would throw cartoon style bombs at them only to have it backfire and blow up Vader and Sid instead. Or where Hollywood D-listers and NBA washups could get in the ring and main event ppvs or win world titles. And then there's the fat chick thrilla! Awwww yeah! That wasn't the end of WCW. Those events spand an entire decade. WCW on it's best day was worse than WWE is now.

 

[George Steele's Barber]

GSB's laws:

1. If I predict something and it comes true than WWE doesn't do anything fresh, creative or original anymore.

2. If WWE does something I didn't predict than they are just trying to be unpredictable at the cost of quality.

That is all.

 

[Headman]

GSB's laws:

1. If I predict something and it comes true than WWE doesn't do anything fresh, creative or original anymore.

2. If WWE does something I didn't predict than they are just trying to be unpredictable at the cost of quality.

That is all.

That pretty much sums up this entire thread. Thank you very much. There's a lot of wisdom hidden on these boards that so many fans choose to ignore.

I also wonder why people are angry about being "Swerved" when Jericho fails to win the Rumble, but didn't mind being "swerved" when Punk walked out of Chicago as WWE champion on his last night. Could there be some internet darling bias going on?

 

[kdk5680]

I think unpredictabillity is overrated. When you go to a mvie, you know the good guy is going to win, you know the virgin will survie the killer, and you know the guy will get the girl(usually after one or both of them have an epiphony about themselves). Good story is good story is good story. Peopl just need to relax and enjoy the ride instead of bitchin all the time, trying to second guess whats going on, and WWE needs to say f**k the IWC and stick to story lines no matter if everybody knows whats going to happen. The best story lines used to play out over months if not years, instead of being rushed just because someone is screaming get on with it already(Cena hell turn is perfect example of them doing it right, its coming but its taking the time it needs so, IWC, STOP TRYING TO RUSH THEM).

 

[BaconBits]

A certain amount of unpredictability is absolutely 100% needed to keep the product fresh. Do they do too much sometimes? Sure. Not everything is going to work. Errbody makes mistakes.

I just think fans today are more spoiled than ever and the internet exacerbates the problem.