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How could the wwe have changed so much?

slimmshady

Pre-Show Stalwart
Looking back over the last decade, a question that pops up in a lot of people's minds is how could the wwe have built such an enormous platform of success, only to let it collapse in the space of 2-3 years.
One obvious reason that you would say is, the loss of some of the greats. The rock, austin, hogan, lesnar and the list goes on. But when you add a question over how some of these guys were lost, I'm talking about the rock more specifically, you would see that it was all about fame, recongntion and more importantly the money. The fame and money that the wwe gained when the rock starred in the mummy returns as the scorpion king was enormous. However, as we all know there is always a consequence to fame and that was the rock, arguably, left the business he once worked so passionately for, in order to make a lot of money over at hollywood (don't get me wrong, I probably would have done the same thing. Having said that I would still return to the business occasionally in which dwayne has competely abandoned).
A similar story could be told of how brock lesnar used the wwe to build his reputation and fame in order to pursue his dream at UFC.
Another reason why the wwe has gone downhill over the last 5-6 years is due to the failure to produce new main eventers to replace the older ones. In my eyes, in the last 5-6 years wwe has produced and kept three new main eventers - Cena, Orton and to a certain extent, Batista. These 3 were the only guys I could think of that made their debut in the early 2000's and achieved main event status. In contrast look at the number of main eventers during the attitude era, the rock, austin, triple H, michaels, undertaker, kane, angle, jericho and the list goes on. What went so wrong?
My final reason why wwe has failed is the lack of variety and depth to the tv matches. Looking back at some youtube classic matches, I saw one that stood out to me and that was the 7 man tlc tag match for the world tag team titles on raw 2002. If you haven't seen the match then luckily I have some links for all three parts:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qkVObtRkAA8 part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Q2PpRsx2Ow part 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MhTQyBT7-nM part 3

Watch the match and tell me when was the last time wwe staged a tlc match for the main event of raw? We rarely ever see this kind of excitement at a ppv let alone monday night raw. Week in week out we see the same main event matches over and over again - against the same two or three opponents. Then the wwe have the nerve to call them main events. For example, we always see cena vs orton or legacy vs triple and cena etc. Now to me, a main event match is meant to symbolize something different and special from the rest of the matches during that show. Correct me if I'm wrong but I can recall only ONE COMMERCIAL BREAK throughout the ENTIRE TLC MATCH. Something that the wwe would never allow today.

You see a star is born when people can remember one thing about them that stays in their memory for eternity. For example, when the undertaker threw mankind off the hell in a cell cage years ago and when jeff hardy performed a swanton bomb from the top of a 20-30 foot ladder.

In concluding, I want to say that the fans are the ones to judge whether someone is a wwe main eventer or another failure. So by providing us with spectacular moments that stick in our heads, vince will gain new stars that he has been craving for ever since the loss of some his greats.

P.S. I highly recommend everyone to watch the entire tlc match. Your eyes will be glued.
 
I have to say, I couldn't have said it better myself. Every week on Raw, we see the same people involved in the main event. And it's always the same formula during the match so you pretty much know what you're going to see. The outcome of the match might difer every once in a while but for the most part, it's very predictible. You never really see anything new and exciting on Raw, ECW or Smackdown. Now, I heard the Raw Roulette is coming back in a few weeks so maybe that will lead to some sort of excitement but we'll have to wait and see. WWE needs to find a way to include their up and coming starts in new and innovative matches so that we can start to get excited about some of these stars. Kennedy I think was on his way up but I think politics got in the way and we all know what happened. Swagger and Dibiase seem to be on their way up and maybe they can become huge stars soon cuz the WWE really needs it rignt now.
 
Something a lot of people seem to fail to remember (Myself included at times.) Is that the WWE product started going down hill way before most of us remember at this point. There were times when Austin was still there, The rock was still there etc. etc. Yet the story lines and what they were doing with these people was baffling. The invasion angle comes to mind...

That's why Austin walked out so many times and ultimately ended up not wanting to have much of anything to do with it. I honestly believe in my heart of hearts Austin could have wrestled a few more years if he wanted to. Hell, he probably still could. He just saw the direction the company was headed and wanted no part of it. Good for him IMO.
 
A TLC match for the RAW main event.

And now...we get Cryme Time vs Jericho and Big Show as a main event. How horrible that was....oh...wait...Shaq was a special enforcer...still bad.

Vince needs to pull his head out of his butt.
Although, right now he doesn't have much competition.
2002 I believe they were doing the invasion angle or just coming out of it. WCW and all that.
But yea, now when they don't really have any competition, they can afford to drop their product quality and save their good stuff for PPVs...although some of their PPV's lately have sucked too.
 
Something a lot of people seem to fail to remember (Myself included at times.) Is that the WWE product started going down hill way before most of us remember at this point. There were times when Austin was still there, The rock was still there etc. etc. Yet the story lines and what they were doing with these people was baffling. The invasion angle comes to mind...

That's why Austin walked out so many times and ultimately ended up not wanting to have much of anything to do with it. I honestly believe in my heart of hearts Austin could have wrestled a few more years if he wanted to. Hell, he probably still could. He just saw the direction the company was headed and wanted no part of it. Good for him IMO.

Now that is what I am worried about. The rock realised eariler that the company would eventually go to this direction so he cleverly left the business at the right time (I don't hate dwayne for leaving the company, I acutally applaud him for making a clever decision however I don't like the way he keeps a fine partition between himself and the wwf/e because we all know that it made him what he is today). Austin saw it a little late but nevertheless that is probably why he quit the business. Also the PG rating really hurts a gimmick like austin's (e.g. having a drinking contest etc).

Hey did you get the chance to watch the youtube videos I posted? It emphasizes my point in showing how much wwe has really changed.
 
A TLC match for the RAW main event.

And now...we get Cryme Time vs Jericho and Big Show as a main event. How horrible that was....oh...wait...Shaq was a special enforcer...still bad.

Vince needs to pull his head out of his butt.
Although, right now he doesn't have much competition.
2002 I believe they were doing the invasion angle or just coming out of it. WCW and all that.
But yea, now when they don't really have any competition, they can afford to drop their product quality and save their good stuff for PPVs...although some of their PPV's lately have sucked too.

He may not have any big competition, but we now publically know that vince is constantly becoming frustrated with the current wwe product, I mean with the lack of new "main eventers" etc. Going back earlier to the comment I made and the comment you have made about some ppv's sucking, honestly, the tag team tlc match that took place at raw in 2002 has got to be one of the best matches in the history of the wwe. Most PPV's these days just can't live up to that much excitement. If I got excited just by sitting at my pc and watching it, imagine what it would have been like live at ring side.
 
First off let me start by saying I do agree with you, on raw the main event scene is old and stale, HHH needs to either take a break form the main event, and allow some people to job him, or to take a break from wwe full stop. Hopefully however This DX angle will lead to a full on Orten/Legacy vrs DX feud, allowing Cena to Feud with someone new.....I'm babbling back to the point.

I think on Raw Wwe has done a poor job pushing the talent they have, but I don’t quite think its as bad as you make out. I think its fair to say CM Punk, and Rey Misterio have both been around enough to be called "main eventers" now, and you could even make a claim that in singles competitions, Jeff Hardy, and Edge didn’t get singles pushes till around 6 or 7 years ago.

As for those "Oh S**T" moments that stick in your head, and make new main eventers, that was a product of the attitude era. You just don’t get as many of the brutal matches/mega spots anymore.. damn "PG era", and TBH, I’m not sure I agree with you on this point anyway. Memorable moments dont just make new main eventers, Benjamins spot off the top of the ladder at WM25 was amazing, I’ll never forget that, but he isn’t a "main eventer".

People who in my mind are "main eventers" are people who constantly put on matches, at any level, from a match on super stars, to a Title shot at WM, that I enjoy watching. (Take orten vrs Primo on superstars recently, good match...I knew Orten would win, but I enjoyed watching it)

Wwe's problem at the moment is the list of people that fit into this category are either getting on a bit, or are getting stale, well on Raw anyway. HHH, Cena, Orten, Michaels, Miz, Swagger, Ted DiBiase. I guess I might…might, add the new Big Show in, but its not often I don’t fast forward him at least a little. If you remove HHH, Cena and Ortan that doesnt leave much of a main event Front.

Smackdown on the other hand is much better with Punk, Jeff (off soon maybe though), Jericho, Misterio, Morrison, Ziggler, Matt hardy, and maybe Kane, although again like Show, im not the biggest of fans (I’ll not include Edge, but he is my fav wrestler, and Taker wont go near the title again, he wont want the schedule) all able to put on a good match. I could see any pair of these wrestles putting on at least a watchable Champ fued, even Morrison / Ziggler.

Raw need at least 2 or 3 more Upper Mid card wrestlers, like Ziggler and Morrison, who can dip in and out of the main event to keep it fresh. I think this was the idea with Kofi, and MVP, but MVP isn’t up to standard in the ring, and Kofi isn’t up to standard on the mic. There is still hope for Wwe in my eyes though, just make Raw more like Smackdown.
 
First off let me start by saying I do agree with you, on raw the main event scene is old and stale, HHH needs to either take a break form the main event, and allow some people to job him, or to take a break from wwe full stop. Hopefully however This DX angle will lead to a full on Orten/Legacy vrs DX feud, allowing Cena to Feud with someone new.....I'm babbling back to the point.

I think on Raw Wwe has done a poor job pushing the talent they have, but I don’t quite think its as bad as you make out. I think its fair to say CM Punk, and Rey Misterio have both been around enough to be called "main eventers" now, and you could even make a claim that in singles competitions, Jeff Hardy, and Edge didn’t get singles pushes till around 6 or 7 years ago.

As for those "Oh S**T" moments that stick in your head, and make new main eventers, that was a product of the attitude era. You just don’t get as many of the brutal matches/mega spots anymore.. damn "PG era", and TBH, I’m not sure I agree with you on this point anyway. Memorable moments dont just make new main eventers, Benjamins spot off the top of the ladder at WM25 was amazing, I’ll never forget that, but he isn’t a "main eventer".

People who in my mind are "main eventers" are people who constantly put on matches, at any level, from a match on super stars, to a Title shot at WM, that I enjoy watching. (Take orten vrs Primo on superstars recently, good match...I knew Orten would win, but I enjoyed watching it)

Wwe's problem at the moment is the list of people that fit into this category are either getting on a bit, or are getting stale, well on Raw anyway. HHH, Cena, Orten, Michaels, Miz, Swagger, Ted DiBiase. I guess I might…might, add the new Big Show in, but its not often I don’t fast forward him at least a little. If you remove HHH, Cena and Ortan that doesnt leave much of a main event Front.

Smackdown on the other hand is much better with Punk, Jeff (off soon maybe though), Jericho, Misterio, Morrison, Ziggler, Matt hardy, and maybe Kane, although again like Show, im not the biggest of fans (I’ll not include Edge, but he is my fav wrestler, and Taker wont go near the title again, he wont want the schedule) all able to put on a good match. I could see any pair of these wrestles putting on at least a watchable Champ fued, even Morrison / Ziggler.

Raw need at least 2 or 3 more Upper Mid card wrestlers, like Ziggler and Morrison, who can dip in and out of the main event to keep it fresh. I think this was the idea with Kofi, and MVP, but MVP isn’t up to standard in the ring, and Kofi isn’t up to standard on the mic. There is still hope for Wwe in my eyes though, just make Raw more like Smackdown.

But my point is that we are seeing the same type of matches over and over again. Take khali and kane of instance. We all know what's going to happen next. They have a match at a ppv and that will either end the feud or drag it even longer. Now, not so long ago, the match that they would be having at a ppv (summerslam in this case) would have taken place at smackdown long ago. My point is, why wait till a ppv to put up a match?Why not do it the following week? That's why it is too predictable. I believe that's why it is as bad as I have mentioned it. If it wasn't as bad then why is vince stressing out? The reason why you said that punk, mysterio and a few others can be classed as main eventers is because wwe has drastically weakened the status of a main eventer and a main event match. They use the term way too much these days. What a main event was half a decade ago is completely different to what it is today. Even the singles matches were more exciting before than they are now. This is partly because of the PG rating, however what is the difference between showing the tlc match between jeff and punk next week on smackdown instead of waiting until summerslam (in terms of the rating). The only thing is a summerslam match will generate more money than a smackdown match in the short term. But aren't PPVs also PG? As far as I'm concerned, this PG crap is a load of bull. It's just an excuse to get more people watching, even if it is a bunch of kids. I mean would you let your kids watch it if they were exposed to someone hitting someone else with a sledge hammer (even though it is fixed).
 
Now that is what I am worried about. The rock realised eariler that the company would eventually go to this direction so he cleverly left the business at the right time (I don't hate dwayne for leaving the company, I acutally applaud him for making a clever decision however I don't like the way he keeps a fine partition between himself and the wwf/e because we all know that it made him what he is today). Austin saw it a little late but nevertheless that is probably why he quit the business. Also the PG rating really hurts a gimmick like austin's (e.g. having a drinking contest etc).

Hey did you get the chance to watch the youtube videos I posted? It emphasizes my point in showing how much wwe has really changed.

The Rock wanted to go make movies, I doubt it had much to do with his feelings on the direction of the company. The Rock actually went on as a active wrestler for longer then Austin. If anything The Rock saw it a little late but I think it's two different cases.

Chris Jericho winning the undisputed belts was a HUGE slap in the face to Austin and even The Rock, IMO.

Jobbing out The Rock to Goldberg was also insulting.

Yet who did they have come clean up house at WMXX when Brock and Goldberg were both going on their merry ways and said screw you to everyone? Austin, of course.

Basically, for awhile Vince refused to give Austin the credit he deserved and the stature he deserved for all he had done. By time Vince realized it, well, it was too late. This is was killed the Attitude Era IMO.

Not Austin leaving, not The Rock leaving but Vince. If Vince would have handled a lot of things differently a lot of those guys would still be around and it'd be a very different ball park right now. That's just my opinion though.
 
He used to let the fans decide who to give a push... not anymore really. People I think are really getting into MVP, Swagger, Morrison, The Miz, CM Punk and Hardy (they are surprising exception right now), Christian... throw these guys in more matches with HHH, Cena and Orton. Keep the proven but boring guys in the main even alot because they deserve it and sell mechandise, and elevate the mid card to the next level. You know what tho... Edge has been around longer than alot of these guys and he doesn't get old or boring? Do most of you feel the same way?
 
But my point is that we are seeing the same type of matches over and over again. Take khali and kane of instance. We all know what's going to happen next. They have a match at a ppv and that will either end the feud or drag it even longer. Now, not so long ago, the match that they would be having at a ppv (summerslam in this case) would have taken place at smackdown long ago. My point is, why wait till a ppv to put up a match?Why not do it the following week? That's why it is too predictable. I believe that's why it is as bad as I have mentioned it. If it wasn't as bad then why is vince stressing out?

Fair enough, the Kane and Khali feud sucks, its a pointless feud, because Khali is a pointless wrestler, the fact that creative are giving so much time to things like this, and pointless matchess between hornswaggle and Chavo (kids appeal) is causing the ratings to drop, and that whats stressing Vince out.

He doesn't care about the quality of his product. Well he does but only in so much as a good product makes more money, if this products was causing ratings to soar, and making him crap loads more money...he wouldn't be stressed about the stale main event scene on Raw I guarantee it.


The reason why you said that punk, mysterio and a few others can be classed as main eventers is because wwe has drastically weakened the status of a main eventer and a main event match. They use the term way too much these days.

Honestly I think your being on a little Hard on Punk, Jeff and Co. Sure they arent as Charismatic as the Rock, or Austin, but they were two of the best in the business. Yes maybe Vince screwed up by letting them go, but The Rock was to big for Wwe, there was no way they could keep him, he could make allot more money else where, he knew, Vince knew it, but to be a "recognised" actor he had to distance himself from wrestling (same way Mickey Rourke did when he was on for a passable Oscar). Sure he f**ked up with Austin, but you cant blame that for todays state, he was getting to banged up for a full schedual anyway, he would have been another Taker/HBK by now.

To say that todays main eventers are "drasticly weakened" because they are SCSA, or the Rock is harsh imo.

What a main event was half a decade ago is completely different to what it is today. Even the singles matches were more exciting before than they are now. This is partly because of the PG rating, however what is the difference between showing the tlc match between jeff and punk next week on smackdown instead of waiting until summerslam (in terms of the rating)The only thing is a summerslam match will generate more money than a smackdown match in the short term. But aren't PPVs also PG? As far as I'm concerned, this PG crap is a load of bull. It's just an excuse to get more people watching, even if it is a bunch of kids. I mean would you let your kids watch it if they were exposed to someone hitting someone else with a sledge hammer (even though it is fixed).


Honestly I think your looking through Rose tinted glasses here. Sure they could have a TLC match next week, but what would they do at summer slam? Or would you have someone else fight Jeff at summer slam? I don't believe the quality of matches has gone down that much in the last 10 years, not your bog standard singles match on TV anyway. I'll see if I can find a standard main event on youtube to put up here, not a one off TLC match (and there where one off matches, but a normal one).

Your right the PG stuff is crap, and it is just to get more people watching, but if it had worked, Wwe would be well chuffed.

Off to look for youtube clips that I'll hopefully post soon,

EDIT -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxTTa_RLP0Y - Hogan vrs Lesnar for a shot at the rock at summerslam 02, I'm sorry but I'd rather watch Punk Vrs Morrison any day.
 
I don't work at WWE so I don't know for sure but I have heard over the last 3-4 years the WWE has been filling their creative department with writers/producers who worked in network television (I know the RAW creative team is filled with people who worked in other aspects of entertainment).
If thats true then it makes perfect sense because the company is being directed by people who may be creative, but don't know jack shit about wrestling so they put it on the backburner.
If wrestling isn't the focal point of your flagship show, then why would I watch it over something more entertaining like How I Met Your Mother, if its the physical aspect I like then why would I watch it over something like UFC.
If you can't build a storyline to give a good payoff at the end how are you supposed to make people interested in your show, or how are you supposed to build new stars if you kill their momentum in a five minute squash match against Cena or HHH (Miz literally lost all his momentum (and he had alot of it) the second he had his match with cena). Whoever is behind the creative aspect of RAW obviously has no clue how to contstantly build suspense and disbelief on a weekly basis, or god forbid how to book a match that keeps you interested beginning to end. The sad truth is I couldn't care less about 95% of the roster, if Kofi left the WWE today I wouldn't give 2 shits, and I like Kofi. This isn't the wrestlers fault though, its whoever is booking them and driving their character behind the scenes.
The last decent storyline was Orton/HHH and because of that abortion of a main event at WM25, I just want the feud to end a quick and painless death but instead I get a very slow and very painful death to feud I haven't cared about in almost 6 months.

Lastly, every week feels the same as the week before, nothing gets built up and you just don't care if you catch the next weeks RAW (in 98' it would get built so well that you could barely sleep for a week waiting for the next RAW). It's obvious they are just following the same tired formula because they can't come up with anything new and interesting.
 
IMO you are a stupid ass TNA mark who want to see wwe fail and tna to rise which it will NOT you are always on the TNA boards posting shit like "TNA WILL BEAT WWE SOON" i bet you $1000 that WWE WILL BUY TNA BETWEEN THE YEAR 2012-2020 and when i hear the news WWE HAS PURCHASED ITS RIVAL TNA WRESTLING! i will laugh in you and all those TNAites faces! so go take your demerol you white cracker ****** son of a bitch FUCK YOU CRACKER! AND FUCK TNA! THAT PROMOTION WILL GO DOWN SOON! YOU BEST BELEIVE THAT CRACKER! WATCH OUT FOR 2010-2020 I CANT WAIT FOR THE NEWS WHEN IT COMES OUT!!!!!:lmao::lmao:FUCK YOU CRACKER!!!:lmao::lmao:

simmer down bud and learn grammar while you are at it.
 
IMO you are a stupid ass TNA mark who want to see wwe fail and tna to rise which it will NOT you are always on the TNA boards posting shit like "TNA WILL BEAT WWE SOON" i bet you $1000 that WWE WILL BUY TNA BETWEEN THE YEAR 2012-2020 and when i hear the news WWE HAS PURCHASED ITS RIVAL TNA WRESTLING! i will laugh in you and all those TNAites faces! so go take your demerol you white cracker ****** son of a bitch FUCK YOU CRACKER! AND FUCK TNA! THAT PROMOTION WILL GO DOWN SOON! YOU BEST BELEIVE THAT CRACKER! WATCH OUT FOR 2010-2020 I CANT WAIT FOR THE NEWS WHEN IT COMES OUT!!!!!:lmao::lmao:FUCK YOU CRACKER!!!:lmao::lmao:

WoW... lmfao.

Just for the record, I think I've posted in the TnA boards... maybe 3 times max? And it certainly was nothing along the lines of what this guy is spewing out. I wonder what this kid is on, I need some of it. :lmao:
 
The enormous platform you speak of, was obviously the Attitude Era. It was compelling right? Made you watch week in and week out? Glued to your tv because you wanted to see what crazy shit was going to come on next?

We all loved it, it was compelling shit. But the only reason that Vince pulled out those stops, is because WCW was kicking the WWF's ass at the start. You had the nWo, one of the most popular stables in history. That was the threat right there. People wanted to see what the nWo were going to do. So to combat that, Vince had to slam his foot on the gas, and go balls out. First question, who does he have to compete with right now? TNA still has a ways to go before Vince gets truly scared.

I truly dislike it when people say oh PG Era sucks and what not. So there isn't as much scantily clad women and swearing as there used to be. That doesn't mean the product sucks. Sure on Raw there is a clusterfuck in the Main Event, but oh well. Triple H needs his time up there. (Don't give me he married the bosses daughter, he was a main eventer and champ before being with Steph, so shut it) Cena is the face of the company, he obviously needs to be up there, and Orton is one of the top heels in the company, I doubt anyone would say get him out of there. Sure there needs to be an injection of young blood in the ME, but there are no real storylines to occur right now, the stars of the ME are in their own feuds, it would be too random and thrown together right now to make it believable.

Smackdown is the place to be for a younger and more mixed ME. How are Jeff and Punk drastically weaker than Austin and the Rock? Austin and Rock were two of the biggest stars in the company. Jeff is arguably the most popular face of the company, and a heel Punk is working exactly like I thought it would. They aren't as big as Austin and Rock size wise? Neither was HBK, but he won the title. If you can perform well for the crowd, you will be in the ME given the right push. I see talent when I look at the Smackdown ME, I don't know what you see though. Just smaller guys?

You want more gimmick matches taking place on tv? Vince did that because he had to, he wanted to keep ratings going as high as he could. He doesn't have to do such things anymore, there is no real competition that he needs to push the pedal to the metal and go all out. For now he is content with putting out steady programs, as stale as they get, and keeping his performers safe as best he can. Sure a TLC match or a ladder match or something would be fun, but is it truly necessary for it to be a great show? The Attitude Era was awesome, but it gave us a platform of expectations that won't be reached unless Vince decides that we need to go balls out. Even then, that would be if USA allows such stuff on tv. I like the way the product is going, new blood is coming around, slowly being injected into the upper mid card and Main Event scenes. All you need is compelling story telling in the ring. If possible, which would you take, Kurt Angle vs. Bret Hart, or would you take a TLC match on tv? Gimmick matches aren't necessary to make a great show, just compelling stories, both being told in and out of the ring.
 
I always wondered how WWE could go from an upper PG-13 attitude, to a PG television show. People always talk about how "kids buy the shirts" Well, I'll tell you, I was buying the rock and stone cold shirts back when they didn't suck up to children. They were talking pie, flipping the finger, and drinking beer.

But, I'm getting off topic. I slightly remember watching that TLC match 7 years ago, and it refreshed my memory when I saw it on the ladder match DVD. It's one of the best main events of Raw all around. Why? It was a great match, went about 30 minutes, and it was jam-packed with great action. But, it's one of the only main events at the time, where the competitors would main event. Back in 2002, these guys weren't main event guys. A few of them would, but this was a match where they took a crap shoot, and won big time. You'll never see it pulled off again.

But to how WWE changed, there are many reasons. Instead of catering to the teenagers and young adults, WWE only cares about the 8-13 range children. They don't look at the loyal fans, who have bought the product for years. They only care about the kids, who just started watching last year. Also, there is no doubt that the world has gotten very PC, This could also play into it.

The WWE has sure changed greatly in the last decade, but I always look at it like this. In the early to mid 90's, it was garnered to children, just like it is today. So, if history repeats itself, It will have a lot more of an attitude to it within the next few years.
 
That'sa good point. That match featured:
Kane
Chris Jericho
Christian
Bubba Ray Dudley
Spike Dudley
RVD
Jeff Hardy

Now at that time, Kane and Jericho were the only main eventers. Jeff, RVD, and (to a certain extent) Christian eventually got there, but at the time they took 2 legit stars and 5 midcarders and threw them into the main event, and it worked. They need to try more experimentation with the main event scene, especially on Raw, as it has become very stale with Cena, Orton, and Triple H. They're sticking to what they know, and sometimes the safe bet is the best one, but they won't create new stars without throwing them out there to either sink or swim.
 
In concluding, I want to say that the fans are the ones to judge whether someone is a wwe main eventer or another failure. So by providing us with spectacular moments that stick in our heads, vince will gain new stars that he has been craving for ever since the loss of some his greats.
Vince doesn’t care who the fans think should be in the main event. If he wants to put someone in the main event then he is going to do it because that’s what he wants. Vince does what Vince wants. Fan reaction might influence his decision but ultimately he will do what he wants do because that’s what he wants. An example of this was The Great Khali, fans hated him (and it wasn’t the good hate either) yet he still pushed him to the main event and even gave him one of the top titles in the company. Like I said fan reaction doesn’t really matter anymore because Vince will do what pleases him and if it means pushing someone to the main event that fans don’t want in the main event then he will do just that.

As far as your question of how could the WWE have changed so much it all goes back to how times have changed since the days of the Attitude Era. Once upon a time Vince was willing to do just anything and everything if it meant getting higher ratings than his competition. I guess you could say he was somewhat careless with the things he was doing but at the end of the day Vince accomplished his goal of beating WCW and bought them out. After the buyout there was absolutely no competition and no one near the level of the WWE so Vince was able to do whatever he wanted because people were going to watch his product since there was basically no one else to watch. He monopolized the wrestling industry knowing that fans were most likely to watch WWE since there was no one else out there to watch and that’s why we get today’s product. I personally like the product we get for the most part but I do wish some aspects were better. But like I said everything goes back to how times have changed and there being no real threat or competition. Once there is some competition that is a threat to Vince then I am sure he is going to do anything to make sure he is always on top.
 
I apologize for my harsh comments about jeff and punk, particulary, but I didn't mean to be offensive and critical of those two individuals. I was trying to describe my personal view of the current status of the wwe as a whole and nothing individually. In fact, as individuals I believe the wwe is just the same as it was in the attitude era. Guy's like jeff still give the same amount of effort as they did when they started. Now as a whole, lets face it, the company sucks. Cena, orton or triple h are names that you see on the main event card week in week out.
Now going with the point that ChiHawks David made about the PG era still being no different from the attitude era except for the use of strong language, well the PG era has actually hurt the business and will continue to do so. Think about it, matches are now being driven to decrease the amount of bloodshed (which is fair enough). Also matches such as the inferno match, buried alive match, casket match technically just don't fair up with the rules of a PG rating. Therefore, you could argue that we have lost out in potential great matches because of the restrictions implemented due to the PG rating.
 

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