Is a lack of teams actually hurting character development and ratings in WWE?

[Radical]

It may seem strange to say that a lack of teams could actually be hurting individual character development and thus interest and ratings for WWE but I think there is some merit to this claim.


I feel like WWE is under the impression for the last number of years that the only way to gain fan interest in the product is to try and build individual wrestlers up so the fans know about them and care about them and want to tune in to see what happens next to them.

Indeed, yes, that's what basically draws people in to re-watch any TV show or movie series is a connection to characters. But what MOST successful TV shows or movie series have is well defined TEAMS that individual characters are PART of OR fighting AGAINST and their character development comes from this relationship and conflict with the teams NOT just from random, helter-skelter feuds with other individual competitors.

TV shows like Game of Thrones make a big deal about what team or group characters are part of and the fighting that goes on for one side to gain power over another side, sometimes with surprise twists in who is an ally or enemy.

Movies series like Marvel's Avengers pits individual heroes against often a team of enemies. Sometimes the individual heroes work together, because they find it is in their best interests, sometimes they don't see eye to eye and some in-fighting causes them to be at odds, but adds to the drama and character development of the individuals while they are part of different teams.


Back to pro wrestling examples, teams or factions don't ALWAYS workout to develop each and every member but they often make the show overall more interesting because they are a key focal point of the show and have many ways in which they can make things interesting.

Big factions along they way have been huge interest points of the most highly rated times in WWE. The teams like D-X, The Corporation with The Rock, Ministry of Darkness, McMahon-Helmsley Regime, Right to Censor, Evolution, The Nexus, The Shield all were able to make weekly programming interesting because of the dominance they initially showed and the obvious push-back that other characters would do when they got in their way.



And the last one I mentioned, The Shield was only 3 members, not like the bigger factions that had 4 or more members in the past.


But now, I look around and aside from Tag Teams, which obviously have to be small teams, there is hardly a team or stable to be found!

It's just a bunch of random, individual wrestlers trying to make a name for themselves all by themselves but thrown into different situations where they team up one night with someone and then face them the next week, or something along those lines.

NOT to say that you can't have individual character developments or LONE WOLVES. But, honestly, what makes Baron Corbin the "Lone Wolf" ANYMORE of a lone wolf than ANY OTHER wrestler in WWE who isn't part of a tag team? NOTHING. Because there are no teams or factions of interest in the WWE anymore.


If you look at the ratings in WWE this year from SmackDown and Raw you see that SmackDown has been around 1.6 - 1.9 million viewers most nights with a few tops into 2 million viewers. Raw has been mostly low 2 million plus viewers but has dipped down below 2 million viewers last few months more than a few times.


I'll add to this that I think part of why the Cruiserweight Division isn't doing so hot is because it's ALLLLLL too many individuals trying to make a name for themselves. There is almost NOTHING for a casual fan to latch on to because it's just a bunch of random matches taking place with very, very weak storylines for a few wrestlers to try and bring some interest to it all.

Imagine Champion Neville breaks out next Raw with two or three henchmen from the heel side of the Crusierweights and just DESTROYS ALL other Crusierweights either in the back or in the ring that night. In the ring he declares "This is the era of the reign of Neville, King of Crusierweights, and NOBODY can stop us!" Just like that, more interest in the Crusierweights because you know babyface wrestlers will step up and THAT'S where they start making a name for themselves and get more character development.

This can work, of course, not just for Crusierweights but a major faction in the rest of WWE on Raw and SmackDown.

Now there is the Miztourage on Raw, which is at least SOMETHING. But they aren't DOMINANT enough to be a full interest. They need to really be ruthless with more attacks or dominance or add MORE wrestler to the Miztourage before they can be a better draw.


Anyway, my point is, I think WWE misses the point too often these days trying to just get wrestlers over by themselves in random feuds but seem to forget how interesting and good at character development it was to have a big, dominant faction part of the show especially if the leader was or was gunning for the top championship.



So, my questions to you are:

Is a lack of teams/factions actually hurting character development in WWE?

Is a lack of teams/factions part of what is hurting the ratings in WWE?

Do you want to see more teams/factions in WWE today? If so, how would you like to see them incorporated and who could be part of them?

 

[Jeff Deliverer of Mail]

I don't think it's hurting characters development but it leaves a bit of a void for a -Major Conflict- in any of the shows. With a good heel stable you always have that evil pulse in the background that hangs over the show. What will they do next? Who will join? Who will stand up against them? Personally, as much as I love a little nostalgia, I'd like to see some brand new ideas come forward for stables. Like a large one for a change, 6 or 7 wrestlers join up and dominate for awhile. The Bullet Club could debut and be new for a lot of viewers (me) and would help Gallows and Anderson immediately.

A face stable could even join up and be a super force to fight the massive evil of the new stable. Anyway, I'd be all for new stables in WWE, it gives us something different at least.

 

[#tamale]

Is a lack of teams/factions actually hurting character development in WWE?

Is a lack of teams/factions part of what is hurting the ratings in WWE?

No. If this were the case then Russo's WCW and TNA angles would have thrived.

Do you want to see more teams/factions in WWE today? If so, how would you like to see them incorporated and who could be part of them?

Doesn't matter as long as it makes sense, and the people that are in it are interesting. We have a few of those. If you want storylines in the way of a Marvel shared universe that's why Survivor Series exists (which was fantastic in 2014 and 2016).

 

[Spidey Revivey]

The Russo stables are an extreme example, though. Evolution and countless other WWE-based groups were pivotal for getting characters over. I agree that a lack of teams does make the product a tad bit boring. When a stable spearheads a prime wrestling show, it leads to numerous opportunities and branching narratives. And I definitely want to see more groups, particularly large groups that take over shows. It makes more sense for a bully character to have a bunch of lackeys helping him win championships than it does for a bully to trade wins with a fan favorite. So yeah, I'd want Kevin Owens part of said group, and I'd want to see him team with a select few who feel victimized by the higher ups.

 

[#tamale]

The Russo stables are an extreme example, though.

There are many non-Russo stables that have not thrived.

The Cabinet
The Corre
League of Nations
3MB
The Alliance
King Booker's Court
The Hart Dynasty
Mexicools
The New Breed
The Spirit Squad
X-Factor
3 Minute Warning

The OPs argument is that because there is lack of teams/stables in the WWE the ratings are dropping and there is no character development which I don't buy. I would welcome more teams/stables if they have interesting characters within them because that's what draws audiences.

 

[Spidey Revivey]

There are many non-Russo stables that have not thrived.

The Cabinet
The Corre
League of Nations
3MB
The Alliance
King Booker's Court
The Hart Dynasty
Mexicools
The New Breed
The Spirit Squad
X-Factor
3 Minute Warning

A majority of the stables you listed actually helped get superstars over. 3MB helped a guy like Heath Slater a fuckton. Most of these did. Not sure what your definition of thrived is. Without The Cabinet, JBL would have just been a guy in a suit and cowboy hat. Booker would have been even worse for wear with only his king costume. Spirit Squad was excellent fodder for DX.

Do they all have to be wearing gold to fit into your idea of success?

The OPs argument is that because there is lack of teams/stables in the WWE the ratings are dropping and there is no character development which I don't buy. I would welcome more teams/stables if they have interesting characters within them because that's what draws audiences.

Well, yeah, as a guy that likes interesting things I welcome interesting characters too. Not an awful opinion to have.

But I'm not sure what you're looking for. You gave examples of teams you don't consider successful, but they all had interesting characters and a purpose. Most of these even had their own merchandise and made a bit of money. But you don't welcome them, obviously. If word got around that WWE were creating their own Bullet Club lead by Finn Balor, fans would be more interested than seeing Balor float around, wouldn't they?

At least we'd know WWE thought about them. I'm not saying it's a quick fix, but I personally would rather see a group of nobodies joining forces than seeing them do it solo. And if it just so happens one guy benefits and gets a bit more character depth, than it's worth it.

 

[George Steele's Barber]

Like managers and valets, I think teams/factions allow wrestlers with deficiencies to hide those deficiencies. I see quite a few singles stars and some tag teams that seem to serve no purpose other than to fill time. Before the Miztourage, Bo and Axel seemed to fit this mold. Now they aren't exactly blowing me away with their recent performances but at least now they seem to have a fit that may impact the story in a meaningful way.

 

[Radical]

The OPs argument is that because there is lack of teams/stables in the WWE the ratings are dropping and there is no character development which I don't buy. I would welcome more teams/stables if they have interesting characters within them because that's what draws audiences.

The second part of your message actually helps add to the point I actually was making.

I didn't say there lack of teams/stables is THE ONLY reason ratings are dropping, but I do think it contributes to why they aren't particularly strong. And, I didn't say there is NO character development.

Obviously, there is character development but exactly as you are saying I would welcome more teams/stables if they have interesting characters because it's what draws audiences. And, along the way it helps develop characters.

That's all I'm really saying is that more teams/stables would be welcomed.

It does lend itself to open up more opportunities for different match-ups, angles and storylines. And can much quicker build a wrestler doing nothing much into a more interesting character part of a storyline.

I mean, even right now, WWE is teasing a Shield reunion and that's getting some buzz. Even if that is re-hashing an old stable, if it is getting any buzz it means fans look forward to teams and powerful stables emerging on the show.

It just adds to the on-going interest level of the show. You are never going to have every single wrestler in a stable or team or doing something really interesting but a significant stable or two on Raw and SmackDown can help.

 

[AegonTargaryen]

Well, I agree with the OP. It's just too boring without a dominant, dominating, aggressive faction on a show.

To begin with, let's distinguish between Dominant factions, a la The Corporation, The Ministry of Darkness, Evolution, NWO, and just 3 random nobodies put together such as 3MB, The MizTourage, or JBL's cabinet.

While reading the OP, I was overcome by feelings of wistfulness and nostalgia, as regards The League of Nations. Now I know they weren't the most successful or electric bunch, 2 yrs ago.

The reason for my nostalgia is that it's been over a year since the brand split, and things are and have been just very repetitive, and utterly lacking in vitality and intrigue.

That's the very exact reason why the OP's premise is correct.

Just take a look at the characteristics of the product we've seen since the brand split:-
1)Singles wrestlers vying for titles,
2)Singles competitors in random feuds, some bad, some of note. (Joe-Rollins, Reigns-Strowman)
3)Women and tag-teams facing each other in protracted feuds, with little, almost negligible variety.
4)Most of these title and non-title feuds resulting in a dozen(or so) matches on TV and PPV, which is basically like bread-and-butter and nothing else to go.

That is why, it was so much better when Roman Reigns faced Sheamus as part of the LON, because even if they had three matches in two months, sometimes, you had a Raw episode when Reigns had to go against Rusev, and at times a Handicap match.

Or when Reigns was feuding with Styles and they had the Usos join Reigns.

Factions, conflict, opposition, rebellion, and intrigue are only possible when you have a variety of titles and wrestlers and situations meshed into a great, chaotic fabric, a la 1999 with McMahon, Austin, Rock, The Corporation, and The Ministry. That's what creates compelling TV, drama.

And that is exactly what a roster split in two precludes. Imagine it's 1999 and they put Austin, Rock and Foley on Raw, and Taker and HHH on Smackdown. You wouldn't have witnessed what you did. A year full of chaos, conflict and intrigue. Austin vs McMahon entrenched into a multi-layered, chaotic maze involving The Ministry and The Corporation lent their saga much vitality and suspense.

In a brand-split scenario with 4 titles each, you have two wrestlers or teams, an A and a B going at it ad nauseam for 3 months at a stretch, and it just gets boring.

It's paradoxical because on the one hand, it creates more opportunities by way of more titles, a better focus on feuds, and yet you have problems like protracted, boring feuds, and floundering superstars like Sami Zayn and Tye Dillinger, while Styles and KO or Mahal and Orton feud for months, too much of the same.

As for this question by the OP:
Do you want to see more teams/factions in WWE today? If so, how would you like to see them incorporated and who could be part of them?

I definitely don't want to see The Club, because neither of Finn Balor or those bald guys stimulate excitement in me, but have so far only provoked ferocious yawns.

Also not interested in a revivification of Bray Wyatt or his Cult.

Probably don't want Shield either. Roman Reigns is fine on his own, and inarguably, the guy who'll make for compelling TV for years to come.

I was intrigued by the prospect of Joe and KO forming a team, with HHH as their mentor or boss.

I would say I want something fresh, something different, something tremendous, so it's up to the Creative to decide what they can do with those on Raw and those on SDL.

 

[Radical]

As for this question by the OP:
Do you want to see more teams/factions in WWE today? If so, how would you like to see them incorporated and who could be part of them?

I definitely don't want to see The Club, because neither of Finn Balor or those bald guys stimulate excitement in me, but have so far only provoked ferocious yawns.

Also not interested in a revivification of Bray Wyatt or his Cult.

Probably don't want Shield either. Roman Reigns is fine on his own, and inarguably, the guy who'll make for compelling TV for years to come.

I was intrigued by the prospect of Joe and KO forming a team, with HHH as their mentor or boss.

I would say I want something fresh, something different, something tremendous, so it's up to the Creative to decide what they can do with those on Raw and those on SDL.

Your entire post was well written and pretty well thought out. I mostly agree with it. I do think, however, if WWE was up for it, having dominant factions and following interesting feuds and conflicts can still happen in the brand-split era.


But actually, I just want to hear your thoughts on a few points you made.

In terms of not wanting to see any revitalization of a Bray Wyatt family or cult, what else is there for Wyatt's character to meaningfully do? I don't know your thoughts the value of Bray Wyatt and I think he has value but it has been badly hurt by how poorly WWE Creative and booking has done for him, but the fact is the man is still quite young and the character has lots of potential value if used properly. He can be on his own just creating his own chaos by himself for a while. That's fine. Hopefully along that way, getting some big wins to give himself credibility. But a Bray Wyatt who just is a lone wolf randomly attacking or targeting wrestlers without gaining any sort of following just seems a bit odd. How would you propose they handle that?

 

[AegonTargaryen]

In terms of not wanting to see any revitalization of a Bray Wyatt family or cult, what else is there for Wyatt's character to meaningfully do? I don't know your thoughts the value of Bray Wyatt and I think he has value but it has been badly hurt by how poorly WWE Creative and booking has done for him, but the fact is the man is still quite young and the character has lots of potential value if used properly. He can be on his own just creating his own chaos by himself for a while. That's fine. Hopefully along that way, getting some big wins to give himself credibility. But a Bray Wyatt who just is a lone wolf randomly attacking or targeting wrestlers without gaining any sort of following just seems a bit odd. How would you propose they handle that?

I agree, Wyatt and his character do need followers, because as a singles heel, how does it make him any different than Strowman or Joe. Only, the latter two win or have won far more than Wyatt, who has a long record of losing every feud after all his glorious promises.

But if they had to revivify the Wyatt family again, wouldn't the fans want something new? So whom do you bring? I see no one besides Rowan and Harper, who aren't doing anything of significance anyway. And also there's Sanity from NXT with Eric Young, but then they're their own faction, why would they align with Wyatt?

And suppose they align Rowan and Harper with him, where do you go from there? Haven't they already done the beat-XYZ-guy-up, declare-a-war, have-three-matches, lose-the-feud routine with Wyatt and them, so many times?

 

[Psykohurricane55]

i think the problem isn't really the lack of team or stable, it's the presentation in general. The fact that they treat these shows as entertainment show instead of a wrestling show is one of the big problem.

I just went to a Live event last night and i saw more character development during the whole show then i would see every week on smackdown or raw. For god sake, Aiden English for the most over heel on the show. That guy was getting such a huge negative reaction throughout is match, it made me think, why aren't they using him more on smackdown. Same goes with Luke harper who got a really huge ovation in the same tag match.

That live event made me realize that they really need to go back to basic to get the fans interested in watching the product. I think that Raw would really benefit from putting squash matches throughout the three hours instead of putting a lot of boring talking segments all over the show.

Smackdown on the other end, just need to continue on putting on a great wrestling show every week and not fall into the same traps that raw fall in most weeks.

The other thing that would help the product i think is to switch 205 live and main event. Tape 205 live before Raw would help with fan reactions and in a way give then a way to program the first airing on the show on another day instead of being stuck after smackdown. At the same time Main event being tape before smackdown would help the undercard wrestlers that seem to be forgotten because of the lack of time they have for smackdown.

Finally, you got you're lost cause like Bray Wyatt. It's no secret what i think Bray failed on the main roster. It's not the WWE creative fault at all if the character failed, it's all on Bray Himself because it didn't believe in his character. The Bray Wyatt Character is the type of character that you need to keep keyfabe if you want it to be succesful. As soon as you're telling people that he's not a real cult leader, he's just somebody playing one one tv, the character just dies. In Wrestling, casual fans want to believe that those characters they see are real, that's wrestling 101. So when somebody like Bray Wyatt goes on a radio show and talk like a normal person or use social media as himself instead of his character which by the way seems stupid anyway because how doubt that Bray wyatt would have access to the internet on his compound. It takes the mystique of the character and casual fans just see somebody playing a character.

What made wrestling great in the 80's and even during the attitude era is that you could believe that these characters that you're seeing on tv where actually who they we're in real life. Today, you can't say that about roughly 2/3 of the rosters right, which is sad because it takes the magic of what pro wrestling was. They need to learn from the past to be successful right now. Let those guys and girl go out there and improvise a little bit, see who's got it and who doesn't. That's the best way to figure out which guys will work with the audience and which one won't. They need to threat those tv shows more like live events right now and less like a tv product, but with them being a publicly traded company, i think that Vince is too scared of letting his performers take chances anymore and while it's helping the investors, it's not helping the company as a whole.

 

[Radical]

Finally, you got you're lost cause like Bray Wyatt. It's no secret what i think Bray failed on the main roster. It's not the WWE creative fault at all if the character failed, it's all on Bray Himself because it didn't believe in his character. The Bray Wyatt Character is the type of character that you need to keep keyfabe if you want it to be succesful. As soon as you're telling people that he's not a real cult leader, he's just somebody playing one one tv, the character just dies. In Wrestling, casual fans want to believe that those characters they see are real, that's wrestling 101. So when somebody like Bray Wyatt goes on a radio show and talk like a normal person or use social media as himself instead of his character which by the way seems stupid anyway because how doubt that Bray wyatt would have access to the internet on his compound. It takes the mystique of the character and casual fans just see somebody playing a character.

I am not sold on the idea that wrestlers have to keep kayfabe going on social media or else it ruins their characters on TV. The cat is out of the bag. Everyone over a certain age knows pro wrestling is scripted and the wrestlers are playing characters (sometimes the characters are extensions of their own personalities, but characters none the less). If you can't separate the two and enjoy the TV show for what it is and then the individual social media accounts for what they are then I'm not sure WWE really wants fans who are that badly affected by seeing reality.

But if they had to revivify the Wyatt family again, wouldn't the fans want something new? So whom do you bring? I see no one besides Rowan and Harper, who aren't doing anything of significance anyway. And also there's Sanity from NXT with Eric Young, but then they're their own faction, why would they align with Wyatt?

And suppose they align Rowan and Harper with him, where do you go from there? Haven't they already done the beat-XYZ-guy-up, declare-a-war, have-three-matches, lose-the-feud routine with Wyatt and them, so many times?

These are good questions. Yes, Wyatt's character lends itself to be one that has followers and you would think fans would want to see something new if he gets followers again. It's funny that the followers he could get are AGAIN Harper and Rowan because they are doing nothing right now and any others are aren't doing much right now wouldn't really make much sense to follow him.

So, right now if WWE is not prepared to give a Wyatt Family a REAL chance then Wyatt should just stay by himself. But let's suppose Rowan and Harper align themselves with Wyatt again. Where do you go from there? Well, you HAVE go all-in this time. That means Wyatt, Rowan and Harper need to DOMINATE and DESTROY! And maybe to set the tone, they go after basically ANYONE and EVERYONE who crosses them or even looks at them the wrong way.

Make them look very strong. Then have Harper and Rowan go after tag teams and get a tag team title shot and WIN. Actually, since The New Day has kind of brought back the idea of a 3-man Freebird rules of tag teams, it would be to everyone's benefit if Harper, Rowan AND Wyatt win the tag team titles. That means they all get their names to the title AND it doesn't require Wyatt to sit out without a title or feel like he needs to be going for the IC or Universal title. But he still could go there, just doesn't mean he has to.

As tag team champs, they have to be ruthless heels who even if they lose a match they attack their opponents after so they don't lose much credibility as dominant heels. This will naturally cause babyface teams to step up and challenge. They will get pushed back and, again, they may squeak out wins in matches but the Wyatt Family needs to attack them after to save credibility.

Once The Wyatt Family has strongly held the Tag Titles for a few months, Wyatt could be involved in the IC title hunt (I think it's unrealistic for him to be hot-shotted to the Universal or WWE title hunt if they are building him up again and there are already more talent on the top of the card who are older so they need to be used first because they have less time to be on top) and by the time that happens the IC title may be held by a babyface. And that's not to say that The Wyatt Family cannot be a bit of a tweener team and still attack heel teams, like the Miztourage, for example.

I think that's how he could be brought back in, even with the same members, but it ONLY WORKS if WWE is serious about it and make them dominant. If they aren't going to do that then they should not even start again.

 

[AegonTargaryen]

These are good questions. Yes, Wyatt's character lends itself to be one that has followers and you would think fans would want to see something new if he gets followers again. It's funny that the followers he could get are AGAIN Harper and Rowan because they are doing nothing right now and any others are aren't doing much right now wouldn't really make much sense to follow him.

So, right now if WWE is not prepared to give a Wyatt Family a REAL chance then Wyatt should just stay by himself. But let's suppose Rowan and Harper align themselves with Wyatt again. Where do you go from there? Well, you HAVE go all-in this time. That means Wyatt, Rowan and Harper need to DOMINATE and DESTROY! And maybe to set the tone, they go after basically ANYONE and EVERYONE who crosses them or even looks at them the wrong way.

Make them look very strong. Then have Harper and Rowan go after tag teams and get a tag team title shot and WIN. Actually, since The New Day has kind of brought back the idea of a 3-man Freebird rules of tag teams, it would be to everyone's benefit if Harper, Rowan AND Wyatt win the tag team titles. That means they all get their names to the title AND it doesn't require Wyatt to sit out without a title or feel like he needs to be going for the IC or Universal title. But he still could go there, just doesn't mean he has to.

As tag team champs, they have to be ruthless heels who even if they lose a match they attack their opponents after so they don't lose much credibility as dominant heels. This will naturally cause babyface teams to step up and challenge. They will get pushed back and, again, they may squeak out wins in matches but the Wyatt Family needs to attack them after to save credibility.

Once The Wyatt Family has strongly held the Tag Titles for a few months, Wyatt could be involved in the IC title hunt (I think it's unrealistic for him to be hot-shotted to the Universal or WWE title hunt if they are building him up again and there are already more talent on the top of the card who are older so they need to be used first because they have less time to be on top) and by the time that happens the IC title may be held by a babyface. And that's not to say that The Wyatt Family cannot be a bit of a tweener team and still attack heel teams, like the Miztourage, for example.

I think that's how he could be brought back in, even with the same members, but it ONLY WORKS if WWE is serious about it and make them dominant. If they aren't going to do that then they should not even start again.

I like these ideas. Though I don't think it logically appropriate that Luke Harper, after his dissension should automatically reconcile with Wyatt(may be they can ascribe Luke's return to his 'Hypnotic' skills), and considering they had already broken up once and then reformed.

But let's say if they were together, they should definitely feud with the Miztourage, destroy them, and then proceed to win the Raw tag titles. I'm fine with Wyatt not having any title though, as I think personas like Mankind, Undertaker or Wyatt don't ever really need or go for the "IC" title, and when they want a title, it's usually the World title.

Also, the tag title scene on Raw could get really vigorous, if this does happen, and if my proposed Usos jump to Raw and formation of a Roman Empire stable comes to fruition.

I had a vision where Ambrose and Rollins are tag champs, but Roman helps Usos beat them(in fact, Joe as the IC champ in the same faction), so we have the Hardys, Rollins and Ambrose chasing the Usos, and eventually, you'd have Wyatts vying for domination.

Basically, everything you proposed in the OP would come to fruition simply by forming a faction like the Samoan Dynasty/Roman Empire with Joe, Roman, Usos.

This could also give Wyatt a chance to be babyface may be and reform the Family as babyfaces?

 

[Psykohurricane55]

I am not sold on the idea that wrestlers have to keep kayfabe going on social media or else it ruins their characters on TV. The cat is out of the bag. Everyone over a certain age knows pro wrestling is scripted and the wrestlers are playing characters (sometimes the characters are extensions of their own personalities, but characters none the less). If you can't separate the two and enjoy the TV show for what it is and then the individual social media accounts for what they are then I'm not sure WWE really wants fans who are that badly affected by seeing reality.

Yeah but at the same time, you still want to suspend disbelief even through you know it's scripted, that's what pro wrestling use to be based on. Let's use the undertaker as an example. Here a guy that never broke keyfabe when he was the deadman character, the only time he did interviews was when he was the American bad ass version and even then, he was doing them as the character. In the end, we all know that undertaker is just a character and it's just a guy playing a character yet even after all these years, we still want to believe that this character is real. That's because the undertaker does live his character 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. When facebook started, he didn't go on facebook and posted stuff about his personal life. When Twitter started, he didn't go and write stuff on twitter as mark calloway. He'S stayed in character because he knew that his performance would be stronger if fans believe that the character is real.

That's what keyfabe does and for certain characters i think they really need to go back to this because in that's what's missing in today's wrestling scene.

We need to suspend are disbelief again and stop being smart about the business. Yes, wrestling is scripted, yes does guys plays characters and yes we know that they not real, but if some of the guys like a bray wyatt would keep keyfabe on social media, they would be better characters because fans would go out there and think he'S just a guy playing a character, they might actually get hooked on the character and think that he actually exist for real even if in their mind they know he'S just another gimmick.

 

[Kunztown]

I agree 100%. While the 80's didn't have many factions besides 4-horseman, and the business grew. It was only because wrestling wasn't very entertaining before wrestlemania. So there was nothing to compare it to. Nowadays, the middle aged fan sees wrestling and laughs because we remember wrestling from the 90's which had many factions/and crazyiness. The most successful stars were in some shape or form in a faction in their career. Mainly because it just brings a change to their character and helps development. Imagine if in the Mid 2000's if Cena would have about 5 henchmen and came up with a group name like the Chain Gang where they beat people down with chains after the match? If something like that would occur, his star power would rise to the point where he gets "Rock" Reactions. Plus those other 4 guys would of got improved star power as well if they were legit stars. Could of been great for guys that needed that push in the 2000's. Guys like Mark Henry/Booker T/Crime Tyme and Cena...boom, chain Gang. Easy! Then have them turn face and feud with Nexus?

I think WWE Now Needs Factions the Most. Mainly because there are SOOOO Much Quantity of Wrestlers. A Faction like Sanity would be Great if done properly on the main roster. Have them start to brain wash wrestlers to turn them crazy and follow Eric Young. Imagine turning a cookie-cutter babyface like Bayley Crazy. Talk about character development.... Or turning a stagnant individual like Corbin/Ziggler/Zayn.. list goes on. Wyatt family could of been huge for sooo many wrestlers... They dropped the ball with the whole Daniel Bryan storyline. ....and then of course they broke up before Strowman could Turn on them All. That would of been huge! and Strowman would become Top Face for Company. The Fans know that Strowman is the legit best athlete on the roster period. Hopefully he's the Champ at Summerslam!

 

[Radical]

I had a vision where Ambrose and Rollins are tag champs, but Roman helps Usos beat them(in fact, Joe as the IC champ in the same faction), so we have the Hardys, Rollins and Ambrose chasing the Usos, and eventually, you'd have Wyatts vying for domination.


This could also give Wyatt a chance to be babyface may be and reform the Family as babyfaces?

Actually, now that you mention it, I pretty much agree with that. Wyatt doesn't need to be going for a mid-card title. He basically should either be leading a TEAM that are destructive and they can be champions (like tag champs) and if Wyatt himself is going for a title it should be the Universal or WWE title (just like he briefly did go for on SmackDown).


I really like those idea of factions you proposed. And yes, I think a Wyatt Family actually could come in a babyface team ESPECIALLY against a Roman Reigns led faction. Even though that's kind of what already happened when Wyatt Family went up against The Shield. But, this would be different enough because this time, only Roman Reigns would be the same in the other group.

It would make things more interesting week to week and month to month in WWE if some dominant factions started taking over and other wrestlers started to rise up against them and some band together.