Do WWE crowds just... suck!?

[JuviJuiceIsLoose]

I don't think it's fair to blame bad crowds on the younger fans. 20-25 years ago, the crowds were mostly kids and they went nuts throughout the events.

I think a lot of it has to do with location. Crowds in New York, Boston, Austin TX, Philadelphia, my hometown of Chicago, and Canadian crowds are awesome.

 

[Tre-Jigz510]

all i kno is out here here in the bay area we hav the best crowds,But u already knew that,case in point last yr the week of W.M all shows were held in San Jose.the crowd cheer and booed the whole nite
even during superstars and nxt,b4 it started every1 was up doing ric flair's Wooo! all thru the arena and wait 4 elimination chamber in Oakland besides 4 W.M thats goin 2 b the best crowd of the year and i can honestly say thats the truth,the whole truth and nuthin but the TRUTH!

 

[AngryCenaFan]

Yes it used to be a lot different, but in todays WWE they market to the kiddy demo and thus have turned their product into the ADD ERA, short matches on a regular basis, no complex writing whatsoever, no use of profanity, their product is hurting the guys with talent no question about it

 

[Jack-Hammer]

Never ceases to amaze me how truly ignorant some posters are. Instead of spouting off statistics regarding how much of the WWE audience is made up of kids or blaming the PG Era for everything, it'd make sense to actually know what you're talking about before actually deciding to post.

As the numbers show each and every week, the WWE audience is made up mostly of adult males. The only ones that don't want to accept that are the ones that want the Attitude Era back despite the fact it wasn't nearly as good as they make it out to be. Basically, it's the usual smark propoganda.

Also, why is it that people have to make a big deal about nothing? The WWE gets a crowd that doesn't seem as energetic as others. Some crowds are hotter than others. That's how it goes with any wrestling company. Last night's Raw crowd was into a lot of the show, they just weren't going apeshit all over the place. There are some instances of iMPACT! in which you could almost hear cricketts chirp because the crowd is so quiet. That does happen sometimes. Maybe some fans aren't as energetic about the show as others, maybe some aren't too thrilled with what they're seeing as others are, etc. It's just simply how it goes. It's not some troublesome sign that's unique to the WWE, it's just the nature of the beast.

 

[The_Reptile_]

Yes it used to be a lot different, but in todays WWE they market to the kiddy demo and thus have turned their product into the ADD ERA, short matches on a regular basis, no complex writing whatsoever, no use of profanity, their product is hurting the guys with talent no question about it

1. They've always been short matches. Always. I've seen episodes during the Attitude Era. They were just as short then.

2. Complex... complex writing? What? When? When was WWE ever complex about their writing? Attitude? Anything during Attitude that had nothing to do with Austin was fucking stupid! Maybe Undertaker and Rock, but that's about it!

3. How is profanity hold back the guys with talent again?

 

[Heel_09]

I don't think WWE fans suck it's just some place are more alive then others. There is no better place to go to if you want fans are are very emotional and into it then Montreal and Toronto. No better places on earth then those 2 cities for wrestling events.

 

[Archrival]

The thing that bugs me the most is that almost all of todays crowds are so damn silent during the matches compared to how loud they were in the Golden Era (I hope it was called that) and in the Attitude Era.

Then even jobbers seemed to get the crowd screaming but nowadays you can almost hear crickets or dropping pins when the wrestlers are giving it their all in the ring.

Sure, maybe wrestling was more exciting to the audiences back then than it is now, but though WWE is somewhat more lackluster in year 2011, it sure as hell doesn't deserve "dead" crowds. Maybe it's wrong of me, but I blame the fans.

 

[Hitman-HBK United Inc.]

I don't think WWE fans suck it's just some place are more alive then others. There is no better place to go to if you want fans are are very emotional and into it then Montreal and Toronto. No better places on earth then those 2 cities for wrestling events.

That's what I love about being a Canadian wrestling fan, the product changes, but the atmosphere does not! I went to a really shitty Raw back in '08, but I still had a GREAT time, because the Toronto crowds were amazing!!!

In the Attitude era, there was emotional investment in the product from people of all demographics. And while I strongly disagree that Austin and "maybe" 'Taker & Rock having great angles, goes a bit beynd that. Yeah, there was a lot of crap back then too, (most stuff involving Mark Henry, Show/Bossman), but the good always outweighed the bad, and the main event scene was always consistent, and the charachters were anything but one-dimensional. These days, that's not the case! And yeah, if you look close the similarities are there....but....the major difference....emotional investment! Watch it for free on TV, some will pay to see it live....nobody pays to see it on PPV.

 

[xsKiitz]

The WWE have probably realised this, and I think they're gone over the top with trying to 'connect' the superstars with the crowd. And it's damn painful to watch.

I mean, Vickie Guerrero is one of the main heat-seekers (niceoneme) just because everyone hates everything about her, but c'mon.
The woman is yelling "EXCUSEEEE MEEEE" even before anyone's even realised she's standing on the stage. And she's repeat herself 3 times before she realises nothing's changed and continues to speak.

Same can be said about Kofi. That guy ponders to the crowd WAY too much. Before every damn move he does he'll raise his arm or something and look at the crowd.

THIS IS IN BOLD BECAUSE IT'S IMPORTANT
Jerry Lawler.
Anyone else catch his segment with The Miz this monday? Terrible on the mic, and pretty much everything he said was a lame joke like 'Well I think the people in (insert city here) think you suck! Do you think Miz sucks!'
Just really cheesy petty crap like that.


It's painful to watch.

 

[cpac4]

I couldnt agree more. Crowds are so pathetic these days, it seems. In my opinion, if your not gonna "mark out" then dont come to the show. Your just hurting the program.

Anyone who does the "what" chant, should just be shot in the damn face. So annoying, and lame. I was particularly disapointed with my home area's crowd the other night. Milwaukee. Just pathetic. Maybe it was cause I was paying more attention though...idk.

Plus this area LOVES Austin, so of course the stupid ass "what" chants happened. Hopefully (and most likely) smackdown in Green Bay, will be better. Green Bay fans are just light years better than Milwaukee fans. Even though we all cheer for the same teams, and come from the same state. Green Bay area fans are just 100x better, when it comes to fandom. Milwaukee area fans just bitch and moan, and act like someone owes them something.

 

[LoudClearVoice]

Here's my take:

I don't mean to offend anyone but I think the young kids (ie children) don't care about the actual wrestling. All they care about is seeing their favorite stars in person and seeing that star win (like John Cena). Many of the children are too young to appreciate the technical aspect of a match or the actual excitement level.

Some of the parents who bring these kids to the shows, don't know anything about wrestling, they are just taking their kid because the kid wants to go.


There are always the knowledgeable fans, hardcore fans, or technical wrestling fans, who actually like everything, seeing the stars, the match, the promos, etc but those fans are in the minority.

Also, there are too many distractions for the little kids.

Concession stands, souvenir shops, etc. This distracts their attention.

Finally, I think it has to do with accessibility to the stars.

"Back in the day" when there was little TV exposure and no internet, the only way people could see their favorite stars was to actually go to an event. Therefore, when the fans were there, young and old, they were really into it. Nowadays, kids can simply go on youtube and watch whatever wrestlers they want or buy the DVD of any matches they want so when they're at the show, yeah it's cool seeing the stars in person but the match is "boring."

In the Attitude Era, the fanbase was predominantly the older crowd (teens and above) and the fans were into it because the wrestlers kept them engaged in the show AND because of the shocking things that were happening.

Anyway, that's my two cents.