Is Commentary Becoming Irrelevant (WWE)?

[The Crock]

With many of my most cherished wrestling memories resonates a legendary line of commentary, such as, but not limited to: “GOOD GOD ALMIGHTY! GOOD GOD ALMIGHTY! THEY'VE KILLED HIM! AS GOD IS MY WITNESS HE IS BROKEN IN HALF!" That will stick out in my head forever. It embodied a moment, it triggered emotion, it was legendary in its own right.

Nowadays, I can't really remember one bit of important commentary sticking out. It saddens me when something like "anal bleeding" becomes a commentary highlight, without having any bearing on matches or anything like that. So, here are my questions: Is commentary as important as it once was in the WWE product? Has commentary evolved beyond what it used to be? Are the commentators not as good as they once were? Do you enjoy the commentary?

This popped into my head yesterday as I was watching the Royal Rumble. The TV was very quiet, because I was doing something else. I couldn't hear any of the commentary, but it had no bearing on my enjoyment of the product. Even re-watching parts of it later on, the commentary didn't add anything for me. Yeah, when the emphasis shot over to the commentary table when either King, Cole, or Booker entered the Rumble, it added something -- but during in-ring action, it added nothing. It could have been Spanish, for all I care, it wouldn't have changed a thing.

I'm not sold on the announce team being bad, I get laughs from Booker T and so on, but they don't immortalize moments like they once did. They don't make it a point build up what is going on in the ring. The action and the commentary should go hand in hand, together they should trigger something for you... but there's a visible disconnect now. I find myself missing that connection, lately. Even Michael Cole berating Daniel Bryan doesn't seem to fit. I don't see it being a lack of chemistry behind the desk, I just don't think commentary is a sticking point anymore.

Commentary doesn't capture your attention, it's just background noise. There needs to be more discussion about what is going on in the ring, it needs to be more basic. I don't need to hear about Cena and Rock when I'm seeing Cena face Kane, tell me about what I'm seeing. Again, I don't blame that on the announce team, as I know they're only sticking to what they're told. It's just that it doesn't seem to be working. I've always appreciated commentary, whether it be Gorilla Monsoon, Jesse Ventura, Vince McMahon, Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler, Paul Heyman, or Michael Cole -- but it seems to be separated from the product today.

What do you guys think about commentary in the WWE today?

 

[CDR]

With many of my most cherished wrestling memories resonates a legendary line of commentary, such as, but not limited to: “GOOD GOD ALMIGHTY! GOOD GOD ALMIGHTY! THEY'VE KILLED HIM! AS GOD IS MY WITNESS HE IS BROKEN IN HALF!" That will stick out in my head forever. It embodied a moment, it triggered emotion, it was legendary in its own right.

Nowadays, I can't really remember one bit of important commentary sticking out. It saddens me when something like "anal bleeding" becomes a commentary highlight, without having any bearing on matches or anything like that. So, here are my questions: Is commentary as important as it once was in the WWE product? Has commentary evolved beyond what it used to be? Are the commentators not as good as they once were? Do you enjoy the commentary?

This popped into my head yesterday as I was watching the Royal Rumble. The TV was very quiet, because I was doing something else. I couldn't hear any of the commentary, but it had no bearing on my enjoyment of the product. Even re-watching parts of it later on, the commentary didn't add anything for me. Yeah, when the emphasis shot over to the commentary table when either King, Cole, or Booker entered the Rumble, it added something -- but during in-ring action, it added nothing. It could have been Spanish, for all I care, it wouldn't have changed a thing.

I'm not sold on the announce team being bad, I get laughs from Booker T and so on, but they don't immortalize moments like they once did. They don't make it a point build up what is going on in the ring. The action and the commentary should go hand in hand, together they should trigger something for you... but there's a visible disconnect now. I find myself missing that connection, lately. Even Michael Cole berating Daniel Bryan doesn't seem to fit. I don't see it being a lack of chemistry behind the desk, I just don't think commentary is a sticking point anymore.

Commentary doesn't capture your attention, it's just background noise. There needs to be more discussion about what is going on in the ring, it needs to be more basic. I don't need to hear about Cena and Rock when I'm seeing Cena face Kane, tell me about what I'm seeing. Again, I don't blame that on the announce team, as I know they're only sticking to what they're told. It's just that it doesn't seem to be working. I've always appreciated commentary, whether it be Gorilla Monsoon, Jesse Ventura, Vince McMahon, Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler, Paul Heyman, or Michael Cole -- but it seems to be separated from the product today.

What do you guys think about commentary in the WWE today?

As an announcer, it's their job to liven the product for the audience in a different way than the performers do. This is the case in just about every place a commentator is seen/heard, whether it's pro sports, wrestling, or whatever. They analyze, emphasize certain things, do things to help the viewer understand the product better. The product of a better announcer is a better show. Now, the show doesn't necessarily depend on good announcers, but as evident here, they certainly have an effect on the show. However, without the product there is no announcer. For an announcer to do their job extraordinarily, they must be fed something to work with. You can't give a house builder a pile of sticks and expect him to make a fully functional house.

Now, today's product varies between being really good and being really bad. Inconsistently, it seems that we can't dependently count on a smoothly flowing show from week to week. With reports on the Internet (assuming they're true) that show's scripts are constantly being changed right up until showtime, it's no wonder that there is no flow. How can an announcer make the show better for the viewer if the show is already a mess? It's quite the difficult task. If the show was less of a quagmire from week to week, I'm sure the announcing would seem up to par. After all, these guys (Cole, particularly. Not Booker or King because they are/were wrestlers first) are announcers and are paid to be. Jonathan Coachman and Todd Grisham formerly worked for WWE and now work at ESPN. The guys behind the booth at the WWE know how to properly commentate. However, I feel like they're probably being held back by the product. Everything's just getting in the way of every other thing.

To answer the questions (Is commentary as important as it once was in the WWE product? Has commentary evolved beyond what it used to be? Are the commentators not as good as they once were? Do you enjoy the commentary?), I think commentary is still as important as it ever was. Commentary has probably evolved, but not in a positive direction. And I enjoy the commentary at times.

 

[wrestlingfanatic98]

cole has actually done a good job, but he is not a JR who could sell the crap out of any match. JR is the HBK of commentary

 

[DrMantisToboggan]

I posted about this in another thread but it's a good question and probably does deserve it's own thread.

Short answer, yes.

Longer answer(in my opinion), is that the art of play-by-play and color commentary are gone and that is not a good thing. What makes JR the best in the business is that when you watched a match he called he enhanced the product. He made you believe what you were watching. To me Michael Cole, King, and Booker seem like 3 guys at a bar watching wrestling that won't shutup about everything that doesn't involve the match. We didn't need a 3 minute seminar on guys and them being afraid of love. I guarantee you that if you put JR back on the commentary and let him do it as he does without feeding him lines or going off a script and let King say the craziness that we all love him for you will see an instant improvement in the match quality. We just started getting ROH events here on network TV a couple months back and I've noticed 2 things, WWE could hire about 8 of their guys and completely resurrect the tag team division(but that's a story for another thread) and their commentary kills their matches. Another thing that has got to stop is the bringing up of Twitter. I don't know why but I just don't like it. Also they've got to stop giving them so much air time and play in storylines. Obviously you have to have them out there but we don't need Cole smack dab in the middle of a storyline when he brings nothing to the table. I also don't think having the lead announcer as a "heel" announcer works. Part of what made Bobby Heenan so great is how he would constantly congratulate the bad guy for doing something illegal(Jannetty throwing himself through the window etc) but part of what made that work was Gorilla Monsoon sitting right there calling him out on it("Would you stop" it is one of my favorite signature lines from a commentator). When you have Cole constantly harp on Bryan, which a lot of may be true, you begin to focus more on Cole and hating him than you do on hating whoever Bryan is fighting. There's no need to have heat on the announcers. If they can fix those problems then that will be a major improvement and it's a lot easier problem to fix than most, just fire one guy and hire another one.

 

[Headman]

Once apon a time the announcers called the action straight up like it was a real sport. Just because the announcer is spazzing out like JR often did doesn't mean the announcer isn't doing his job. With that said, I do feel that Micheal Cole spends too much time putting himself over and not enough time putting the action in the ring over. I wouldn't say the current guys are doing a horrible job and it could be much worse (Look at TNA) but it's not a strength for either brand at the moment.

 

[rahi619]

I think Cole has been bare-able recently as he's toned down as a heel but I miss the atmosphere and chemistry that JR and King built. Like someone else, commentaries are suppose to enhance the product but for me these days it's just something on the side.

 

[Richard Blonoff]

One of the biggest problems imo is that JR was just a commanding voice behind the booth. He is arguably the best of all time. He made King better, he made everyone better.

With him gone there is a fairly large void to fill. The current team of Cole and King is ok, its nothing special but it isn't bad. When you throw Booker in there it doesn't make it any better or worse. Give him time to grow and he could become an asset. He is like a tweener announcer. He roots for both faces and heels, he has mentioned in the past "you do whatever it takes to win" and he has given crap to both Cole and King in the past.

If I am watching an event on TV I can see it with my eyes, I don't need the announcers to paint a super vivid picture like you would with sports on the radio but I sitll like to hear how impressive certain things are and add to the match. They don't need to be constantly on play by play but you don't need to pitch Twitter every 3 seconds and when they talk about certain things like Hunico's lowrider bike you don't need to read what is written off Wikipedia word for word

 

[rated-r-patelstar]

they have, i mean 3 spots in the royal rumble went to the commentary team,

when i watch football/soccer you hear what it happening and some facts every now and then thts what i want not some random other topic. it sould be done so that i could watch it but if i wanted to close my eyes i could tell exsactly what it happening (as if it was a radio station) with a full feed of wht is going down.

 

[MrMojoRisin]

With many of my most cherished wrestling memories resonates a legendary line of commentary, such as, but not limited to: “GOOD GOD ALMIGHTY! GOOD GOD ALMIGHTY! THEY'VE KILLED HIM! AS GOD IS MY WITNESS HE IS BROKEN IN HALF!" That will stick out in my head forever. It embodied a moment, it triggered emotion, it was legendary in its own right.

Nowadays, I can't really remember one bit of important commentary sticking out. It saddens me when something like "anal bleeding" becomes a commentary highlight, without having any bearing on matches or anything like that. So, here are my questions: Is commentary as important as it once was in the WWE product? Has commentary evolved beyond what it used to be? Are the commentators not as good as they once were? Do you enjoy the commentary?

This popped into my head yesterday as I was watching the Royal Rumble. The TV was very quiet, because I was doing something else. I couldn't hear any of the commentary, but it had no bearing on my enjoyment of the product. Even re-watching parts of it later on, the commentary didn't add anything for me. Yeah, when the emphasis shot over to the commentary table when either King, Cole, or Booker entered the Rumble, it added something -- but during in-ring action, it added nothing. It could have been Spanish, for all I care, it wouldn't have changed a thing.

I'm not sold on the announce team being bad, I get laughs from Booker T and so on, but they don't immortalize moments like they once did. They don't make it a point build up what is going on in the ring. The action and the commentary should go hand in hand, together they should trigger something for you... but there's a visible disconnect now. I find myself missing that connection, lately. Even Michael Cole berating Daniel Bryan doesn't seem to fit. I don't see it being a lack of chemistry behind the desk, I just don't think commentary is a sticking point anymore.

Commentary doesn't capture your attention, it's just background noise. There needs to be more discussion about what is going on in the ring, it needs to be more basic. I don't need to hear about Cena and Rock when I'm seeing Cena face Kane, tell me about what I'm seeing. Again, I don't blame that on the announce team, as I know they're only sticking to what they're told. It's just that it doesn't seem to be working. I've always appreciated commentary, whether it be Gorilla Monsoon, Jesse Ventura, Vince McMahon, Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler, Paul Heyman, or Michael Cole -- but it seems to be separated from the product today.

What do you guys think about commentary in the WWE today?

The commentary today is the worst it's ever been. But it's not the fault of the commentators themselves... it's the roles that they've been given.

The heel play by play man was worth trying out. After all, the dynamic's alwasy been heel color man and a straight man for pbp. But the experiment has been an absolute failure and should have been aborted well over a year ago.

The pbp man is supposed to sell the product. He's the guy that puts the wrestlers over. He's the guy that puts the positive spin on what we see out there.

That doesn't work when the pbp man is a heel, and he's busy pointing out everything that's wrong with the product, and busy only putting himself over. It hurts the overall product... and it goes without saying that it just makes the commentary team look bad.

Like I said though, it's not the fault of the commentators themselves, and this is proof:


This is always one of my favorites to go back and watch, but listen to the commentary in this match. It's still the team of Cole and Lawler, but their roles are reversed. Lawler is the heel commentator, but notice how he isn't beating you over the head with that fact. Cole is the face pbp man, and look at the amazing job he does relating what a big match this was... and what a big moment it was. Granted the storyline going into this match was better than anything happening today, but these two do a great job of putting the match and the product over here. This was looked at as a pivitol moment in the Monday Night Wars, and both Cole and Lawler did their part in that.

They definitely can do it. Creative just made it so they can't anymore.

*edit* apparently the youtube tags don't work. Here's the link for the match I was talking about - Mankind vs Rock on RAW - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F-N2MnuwlXw

 

[Pedigree1]

I feel commentary is as good as it can be!! Problem is with only one JR ever in existance when that person retires anybody who follows him just cant measure up!! JR is classic and the best ever at what he did!! He is the Jordan of commentary made everyone better made everyone step up their game and kept the audience on the edge of their seats!! He was the pilot co-pilot and flight attendant!! Now we get three people with three different styles there good as can be!! Its almost to a point where you can mute the tv and try calling the play by play yourself!!

 

[mindlesspuppet]

cole has actually done a good job, but he is not a JR who could sell the crap out of any match. JR is the HBK of commentary

Honestly, I think Cole does a great job of putting wrestlers over, more so than any other current announcer.

The problem I find is that they are trying to make him draw too much heat. There's no reason to be putting him in matches and getting him so involved with wrestlers.

 

[The Golden Sledgehammer]

Commentary for me is worse than irrelevant, its ruining the product, and its one thing in particular.

Michael Cole constantly screaming "ITS OVER ITS OVER!!", "WE GOT A NEW CHAMPION, NEW CHAMPION, NEW CHAMPION", all in the space of about 2 seconds just before the guy kicks out, it makes it soooo obvious its not over, last night when Ziggler reversed the GTS i was sure he was going to win....until Cole made it so obvious that it wasn't.

WrestleMania 26, Shawn Michaels hits his 3rd Super kick of the match, Cole's call...."KISS THE STREAK GOODBYE" in a really childish way that completely ruined the moment for me.

Things like this just didn't happen when JR was on commentary.

I hope to God they somehow have JR and King on commentary for Rock vs Cena.

I wish commentary was irrelevant.

 

[Truly Phenomenonal]

The WWE commentary hasn't been the same since the dynamic duo of JR and King, once that was broken up it all started going down hill.

It was still bearable for about 2 and a half years.. but once Cole/Lawler became one of the top stories in the company it became unbearable to watch, almost to the point where I would mute the TV and do the commentary with my friend.

For me, I like when commentary has the smallest influence on storylines. For instance, the later part of 2010 and the beginning of 2011, the commentary took center stage with each one picking sides. Cole hopping on the Miz every chance that he got, it just became hard to watch.

It's been better as of late, but nowhere near where it was from the mid 90's to early 2000's.

 

[robinkom]

WWE's commentary is atrocious these days. I cannot stand the sound of Michael Cole's voice and it's not because he comes off as a heel commentator, it's because he is legitimately goddamn irritating to me. Almost everything he says and everything they feed him through the headset completely detracts from what's going on in the ring. The unfunny bantering, the excessive Twitter garbage, his heel persona when it pops up at random, etc. I literally get the urge to reach through my TV and strangle him to death.

I have to go back and listen to Jim Ross, Gorilla Monsoon, or Joey Styles and ask myself what the hell happened because Michael Cole does NOTHING to help me become emotionally invested in the performance let alone the unfortunate talent that they push and manufacture with one-dimensional personas.

So yes, to answer your question, I feel it HAS become irrelevant. Then again, I'm a lot more jaded than most wrestling fans. I mark out for very few things because I've been watching for almost 20 years. I've seen the best and worst of the last two decades and a lot of what gets aired these days falls somewhere into the "worst" category.

 

[Rockyfolifebo!!!]

What happened to "Good God, somebody stop the damn match!" or "All hell is broken loose!". It's just so watered down. For example, let's say Barrett put Orton out of action for 3 months. Then, Orton comes back and opens up a can on Barrett. Today, King and/or Cole would only say "Oh my God, it's Randy Orton. The viper is back! He's trending number one on Twitter with Kelly Kelly at a close number two. Vintage DDT by Orton."

Now, J.R and King in their heyday with the same story: "Oh my God King!! ORTON! ORTON! ORTON!! He's coming back, after three months of hell and anger, Orton is coming back to open up a fresh can whoop-ass on Barrett. Listen to this crowd, you can feel the flow of electricity in the air as Orton pounds Barrett's head into the mat!!!"

The old days had so much more excitement. For instance, when was the last time you heard "This Sunday". I miss when J.R used to say that. "What's gonna happen when Cena meets Kane in St. Louis on Sunday!?!?!?" I think it's the writers. Whoever writes their material, needs to bounce ASAP.
It's just very boring and in desperate need of a change!

 

[Headman]

I will admit I don't care what is trending on twitter. Actually I'm annoyed that WWE acts as if twitter is the end all be all of media. Here's one instance where I wish the WWE would go back to ignoring all other non WWE media and remind us to visit WWE.com instead of screwing around with twitter or face book. I don't mind that they have a presence on twitter or other social media sites, but the announcers don't have to point it out every five seconds as if "Boots to asses" trending is supposed to impress us.

 

[M]

the commentary these days is quickly becoming completely irrelevant. Personally though, I couldn't give a shit. I'm a person used to hearing the proper commentary found in sports; you know, the kind where the commentators dont have characters they shove down our throats and they're un-biased. If they decided to occasionally forget heel/face sides and point out a great move instead of calling each other names, maybe i wouldn't be forced to mute it so often.

Their commentaries used to be good, they brought an extra sense of enthusiasm and excitement while telling a story at the same time, i dont know why the decided to change that. They should stick to being like a fan who just happens to be on a microphone, that worked.

 

[Shotaro]

I though the quality of commentary had improved recently, but it seems to have gone back to being a bit shit to be honest, when Cole and Lawler actually CALL THE MATCH, they do a decent job, it's when they go off on one, Bryan v Punk was a high quality match, and the commentary when they called the action helped to elevate it.

 

[scottyshowman82]

Commentary in WWE today...sucks. I loved JR... he's gone. I enjoyed Matt Striker... he's gone. Cole is just plain annoying. When did it become such a bad thing to know the same of wrestling manuvers. The bickering ticks me off, and it's not even entertaining bickering it's annoying bickering. If I ran WWE I'd Cole would be out so fast and JR would be back in there just as fast. The fact that Jim Ross is not doing commentary right now shows that Vince would rather do what he wants than do what the fans want. Even the wrestlers like JR better than Cole.

And why does Michael Cole still hate Daniel Bryan when Bryan is heel? It's so annoying.

 

[DaStar280]

its true no one will ever replace jr he is a legend in commentary i remember when jerry lawler wasn't so bad he was always making perverted comments but now he's just out right boring booker t hasn't had many years in commentary but i find him boring as well michael cole is actually probably the most enertaining and the most annoying at the same time in all honesty but jr will always be my favorite

 

[LoudClearVoice]

The problem really is Michael Cole, IMO. He really tries to put himself over and way over plays his heel persona. Also, it's become a soap opera between the three of them. Sometimes they're all talking about literally nothing, during a match. I don't want strict play by play and nothing else. I'd like mostly play by play with a little bit of comedy with the announcers personality and/or character coming through. Cole has taken it too far and he's rubbed off on the others. I used to love the King but honestly, he's got to go. Booker is just annoying as fuck.

Cole is a complete idiot too. As the WWE title match was about to start at the Rumble, he said "The WWE Championship, the most prestigious title in all of sports entertainment." Look, we all know that's true but by saying it right there, he was admitting that the World Title is not as important. Little things like that tell you all you need to know about Cole.

 

[Mustang Sally]

Maybe the most effective wrestling commentator was the guy who sat alone in a seat outside the ring and called the matches. Today, there are too many people at the commentary table, trying to "out-cool" the others and looking to create friction among themselves, when none really exists. They might have gotten this idea from the evening newscasts on the TV networks, in which they gather groups of "hip" people trying harder to interact with each other more than reporting the news.

Guys like Gordon Solie didn't need anyone else around to do his job. His comments were interesting, relevant and reliable. He knew about the guys whose matches he was calling.....and he looked to augment the action the fans were watching, not make the commentator a star in his own right.

My folks told me about Ray Morgan, the man who called WWWF matches in the mid-60's. He sat alone in his booth, calling the matches and doing promos for house shows all over the east coast (no PPVs in those days). Additionally, he interviewed guys like Bruno Sammartino and Buddy Rogers between matches. He didn't have people join him at his position; he didn't need to.

Perhaps commentators have become irrelevant because they're featured too much, which is far from the notion of becoming irrelevant due to being ignored. But when all three commentators at the Royal Rumble wind up as participants in the event, I sense Gordon Solie and Ray Morgan rolling over in their graves.

 

[Shocky]

I've tried to stay out of the Michael Cole conversation, but I've been too quiet for too long. Michael Cole is probably the worst wrestling announcer in the history of wrestling since I've been watching. It's not funny anymore. The schtick is old.

I know the tired argument of, "well people watch the moves, they don't need someone describing them to you" is going to rear its ugly head. To that argument, I call bullshit. I should be able to turn away for one damn second and be able to follow the match. I shouldn't be subjected to Twitter, buying the next pay per view, or what the hell is going on with the main eventers in a match that doesn't involve them. I should be able to turn around and not miss a beat because the announcer is telling the story of the match, not pushing product.

The match with Miz and R-Truth from the Raw before the Rumble did it for me. The entire damn end sequence Cole was shooting the shit, and R-Truth wins. Not one damn call about the match was made and we get "Well R-Truth wins." Then this last week on Raw, we had a fantastic match with CM Punk and DBD. Instead of calling the match, Cole is describing what the hell the Elimination Chamber is. Does the WWE not realize that the common fan is going to get what the hell the Chamber is when they run their endless promos for that pay per view? I don't need my lead play by play guy talking about something 3 weeks from now and taking away from a match featuring the two damn world champions of the company in the ring with each other.

I'm convinced at this point that Michael Cole isn't a play by play commentator because he's not a wrestling guy. I simply think Cole just doesn't know his movesets to be able to call the plays in the match. I want a play by play announcer that will call the match, and I want a Color commentator that is the character and gives me perspective of a wrestler in the match. I don't need my play by play guy giving me Twitter updates.

 

[Headman]

I need to point out that the title of this thread should be "Is Commentary becoming bad" not irrelevant, because irrelevant would mean that in this day in age we have grown beyond the need for commentary. Despite commentary possibly getting worse (or not) we still need commentary and it remains an important part of the show. Unless you're old school ROH and the commentary did more harm than good so they'd shut up for their best matches after they "Paid the bills".