A Question of Timing: The Bucks

[Dowdsy McDowds]

Since joining TNA/IW, Generation Me have continued to impress me.

They had a series of good matches with the Machine Guns for the titles but came up short and more recently they have been showing off their abilities as singles competitors, with Max putting on a great match with Kazarian for the X Division title, again coming up short.

The Hardy Boyz comparison is unavoidable and I was initially going to ask if people thought that the Bucks will eventually prove to be more successful than the Hardys, but then I thought of a big factor as to why this may not be the case. Timing.

The Hardys broke through in the midst of the Attitude Era when tag wrestling was at one of it's peaks and had a lot of varied teams they could work with: Dudley Boys, Edge and Christian, New Age Outlaws, Acolytes, Too Cool to name a few. This variation meant adaptability from one team and style to the next.

When they split they could also take advantage of working with competitors that had been part of the tag-teams they had faced previously, Edge being the best example of this.

So fast-forward to now and the Bucks are part of TNA/IW's most praised division and have used the familiar tactic of "blood is thicker than water" to put aside their differences for now. They are part of a storyline to rejuvenate what was once the most praised division of TNA/IW which could prove to be a success, although personally I feel it's too early to call it being a success or failure because it's in its infancy.

With these things in mind, I guess the main questions I'm wondering about are,

Could this current period be the type of springboard the Bucks need to establish themselves as a tag-team?

If the Hardys and Bucks were to switch eras, how do you imagine each team faring?

Could the Bucks eventually end up being more successful than the Hardys because of their age and safer* match environments?

OK I've said my piece, what are you guys and gals thinking?

* - There are dangerous matches in TNA/IW, but there are less chair-shots and TLC type matches at the moment.

 

[Rasha]

Could this current period be the type of springboard the Bucks need to establish themselves as a tag-team?

It's more likely that their involvement with the X-Division with stunt their growth as a tag team. They'll probably be used in singles matches or multi-man matches with individual winners more than a normal tag team would, therefore limit the opportunities they have to be regular participants in the tag division. That's not to say they couldn't still be a solid team that the fans are happy to see when they do tag up, but they won't be one of the cornerstones of the division.


If the Hardys and Bucks were to switch eras, how do you imagine each team faring?

A young Matt and Jeff would probably be considered the best tag team in the world if they were around today. There's little-to-nothing about their style or gimmick that would be outdated. And it's a fair assumption that, because of the way wrestling has evolved since they started, they'd have an even more dynamic moveset. The stuff they did in the Attitude Era was great for its time but the bar was much lower. I'm sure they'd be fine.

The Bucks would have been very exciting to watch because their style would have been pretty revolutionary during the Attitude Era, though you have to wonder if they'd be as dynamic due to the where the bar was set (as I mentioned with the Hardy's). However, their lack of charisma and a star-quality look would have been even more obvious. Could you really see them standing next to Edge and Christian and thinking they were on the same level? Even though the Hardy Boyz were never great on the mic, they at least looked like stars. I don't think Vince would have ever thought enough of the Bucks' look to push them much.


Could the Bucks eventually end up being more successful than the Hardys because of their age and safer* match environments?

No way. The Bucks will never get the "girl vote" the way the Hardy's did. You also can't discount how important Lita was to the Hardy's popularity. Also, their lack of star power is still a problem even in a much weaker era of wrestling. They don't even feel like legitimate equals to Beer Money or the Machine Guns.

And honestly, even if the the Bucks were on that level, the inferior success of this era of wrestling as a whole puts a cap on the "success" any individuals can achieve. Being the best tag team in TNA in 2011 is barely relevant to being the WWE's most popular tag team during the Attitude Era. And even if the Bucks go back to the WWE one day and suddenly figure out how to use a microphone, they could never touch what the Hardyz, Dudleys, and Edge/Christian did during that era.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

Could this current period be the type of springboard the Bucks need to establish themselves as a tag-team?

I think the idea at this time is going to be to use The Bucks primarily as singles wrestlers in the X Division. There's been talk about potentially investing more time in the X Division, certainly more than there's been in the past 2.5 years, and The Bucks do bring that youthful exuberance that could fit in. As far as their place in the tag team scene, they basically got beat by Matt Hardy single handedly this past Thursday. That simply doesn't look good from a tag team perspective. I'm sure they'll team up on occassion but they're not going to be the centerpiece of TNA's tag team picture anytime soon.

If the Hardys and Bucks were to switch eras, how do you imagine each team faring?

If they were to switch eras, I think it'd be something of a lousy time for both of them. Tag team wrestling isn't nearly as strong now as it was 10 or 12 years ago. There's just not really as much emphasis put on tag team wrestling in this day and age, so The Hardy Boys probably wouldn't attain the heights in 2011 that they did in the late 90s and early 2000s. WCW is gone, tag team wrestling is hardly even relevant in WWE and even tag team wrestling looks to be taking a back seat in TNA right now. As for The Bucks, they'd have been slaughtered in the Attitude Era. Let's face it, The Bucks do not have the look of stars. They look like a couple 165 pound high school freshmen tryin' to scam chicks at the mall. WCW circa 1998, Bischoff would've probably worked out some way to make them part of 3 Count with Evan Karagias, Shane Helms & Shannon Moore. In the WWE at the same time, Vince wouldn't have given them a second look. In those days, if you weren't at least 6 feet tall and about 225 pounds, Vince wouldn't give you the time of day. And in ECW... HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Could the Bucks eventually end up being more successful than the Hardys because of their age and safer* match environments?

Not a chance because, as I said, tag team wrestling just isn't the force it was. Looking back in the early 2000s, The Hardy Boys are thought of as pioneers. One of the last truly relevant forces in tag team wrestling to come along this past decade. The Hardys won the tag titles in the WWE when they really meant something, they also won the WCW World Tag Team Championship. They were pioneers in the TLC matches. Their feuds with Edge & Christian and The Dudley Boys rank right of there with feuds like The Von Erichs vs. The Freebirds & The Four Horsemen vs. The Road Warriors. GenMe could win the TNA tag titles 20 times and they still won't be looked at, historically speaking, as being better than The Hardys from an overall perspective.

 

[Karilas]

Interesting topic, pretty much gotta agree with Rasha, except the minor niggling comment about Beer Money and MCMG, I firmly believe those two teams could hang with the best.

 

[Dowdsy McDowds]

As far as their place in the tag team scene, they basically got beat by Matt Hardy single handedly this past Thursday. That simply doesn't look good from a tag team perspective. I'm sure they'll team up on occassion but they're not going to be the centerpiece of TNA's tag team picture anytime soon.

I agree with a lot of what you said, but one part I would contest would be about them getting beat by Hardy. I wouldn't say this will hurt them that much to be honest because for a team/superstar to take that next step, sometimes the way to do it is to initially make them look weak so that when they do overcome the odds it gives it bigger meaning. Remember the first few months of the Front Line V Main Event Mafia storyline? I don't think the Front Line came off as looking very strong at that point, but they needed to start that way for the story arc of them improving to work.

Let's not forget also that the Hardys were in a couple of similar matches with Brock and Undertaker but that didn't ruin them.

Now I'm not directly comparing Matt Hardy to Brock and Taker, but he is in somewhat of a similar role in a storyline, that of a heel needing to look dominant so that the fans will buy into them as a proper threat. Immortal are currently lacking a ME competitor, so trying to make Matt look like he could fill that gap I can understand. If this also means that Matt ends up putting them over at the end of the story, then that could be very symbolic and be a great benefit to them.

 

[WWWYKI777]

I don't think its even fathomable to be more successful than the Hardy bros in the wrestling industry

The Hardys have their own unique signatures/finishers , and even hand gestures. They also are signifigantly larger in terms of both height and weight. These things actually matter you know

So I think Hardys > Bucks in success in any time frame

I think the best the Bucks could realistically hope for is a bunch of tag title runs and X division title runs

 

[Dowdsy McDowds]

I don't think its even fathomable to be more successful than the Hardy bros in the wrestling industry

The Hardys have their own unique signatures/finishers , and even hand gestures. They also are signifigantly larger in terms of both height and weight. These things actually matter you know

So I think Hardys > Bucks in success in any time frame

I think the best the Bucks could realistically hope for is a bunch of tag title runs and X division title runs

While this is true, the Guns are the same size height wise and only marginally heavier, putting on weight isn't a tough thing to sort out either. Confidence will play a part in how they develop as well as what kind of gesture they may adopt, as the gesturing of the thumb to themselves isn't that great. Again this comes back to time though, perhaps a gesture they adopt will be born from a significant win. I'm glad they aren't rushing themselves to come up with one for the sake of it.

Also going back to the height/weight thing, this is just a guess but I think the roster on TNA/IW just now is probably smaller in both height/weight categories than the WWF was overall when the Hardyz were starting out. Jeff also took a while to bulk up, if you see the match where he beats HHH on Smackdown for the IC title, he is pretty much just a ragdoll.

Don't write off their chances just yet

 

[Dagger Dias]

The Hardys and Bucks come from two different eras. The Bucks would not do nearly as well as the Hardys did, as the Hardys were far better at TLC and Ladder matches. The Hardys got over from insane matches, they would not be able to have those under today's era's regulations. Both teams would come out looking worse if they switched eras due to them having been in the right federation at the right time.

 

[WWWYKI777]

Well I mean as singles competitors in a world title scene I just don't see it happening with the bucks , I just thing the best they can realistically hope for is to be like I said be multi time tag/X division champions

Also I left out how the Hardys even have their own logo for merch purposes , that helps them alot too