Is just me or have the TV matches been better than the pay per view matches this year

[Kofi/ZigglerClassic]

Since the start of 2011, the matches on imo have been better, more memorable, and more exciting than the pay per view bouts. Let's take Miz for example: on the pay per views, he has faced Cena, Orton, and Lawler, and these matches have been forgettable and poor. However on TV, he had imo the match of the year candidate match with Morrison, an exciting ladder match with Lawler, a long very well done and exceptional match with Daniel Bryan on the Rock's return Raw, and even his rematch with Cena was far better than their pay per view encounter.

Even Edge's last man standing match with Kane was more thrilling and better than his pay per view matches with Zig and Del Rio. There are more examples but it just seems like this year in terms of booking and match quality, the tv matches have been better than the pay per view matches.

 

[akrassikauda]

I see where your going with this but I can't fully agree as Rey vs Cody at WM was pretty good as was last Sunday's Christian vs Orton ll. Has the cable shows stepped their game up yes but not all PPV's are complete tankers for a year.

 

[Somewhat Large Gonzalez]

It's not unusual for the TV shows to feature several PPV-quality matches. Sin Cara and Daniel Bryan worked an incredible match on Smackdown that could have opened any Wrestlemania, but again, this is nothing new. One of my favorite matches of all time took place on Raw. I'm referring to the bout between Bret Hart and The 1-2-3 Kid. It was an instant classic that could have been a main event at a PPV.

 

[JBShakes]

It's probably just coincidental, but you might be onto something here - it's entirely possible that the WWE sees PPV buyrates as a far more volatile market (times get tough, people can't afford an extra $50 a month to watch a PPV) than the ad revenue they get by keeping the Raw ratings high. Raw's free to watch as long as you have cable, so as long as they can go to potential ad buyers and say "this is the highest-rated program on Cable!", they've got a strong, steady stream of income.

 

[localcompetitor]

I think moreso than most years the TV matches have been pretty good. The first match of the year between Miz and Morrison was great, the Del Rio/Christian matches before Mania, Kane/Rey Mysterio and Sheamus/Daniel Bryan are a few that spring to mind.
At the same time the pay-per-views have been inconsistent both Elimination Chamber and Extreme Rules had more good than bad matches and Wrestlemania of course had Triple H/Undertaker but apart from that the Mania card was lacklustre, the Royal Rumble undercard was forgettable and Over the Limit, bar Christian/Orton, was a complete shambles.
I would say its about 50/50 at the moment but if Vince wants us to buy the pay-per-views he should stop giving us the matches for free.

 

[Rckstrtmmy]

I would say its about 50/50 at the moment but if Vince wants us to buy the pay-per-views he should stop giving us the matches for free.

This is the dumbest fucking statement anyone could make and it shows you don't know shit about the business world as a whole. WWE makes it's money from ad revenue and sponsorships. Yes PPVs are a steady source of income which is why they have so many. However the real money is in their advertisement and sponsorship deals along with their TV deal with USA network. If they didn't give us good matches on TV then we wouldn't watch anymore and in turn we wouldn't give a shit about their PPVs. Dont talk unless you know what the fuck you're saying.

In regard to the OPs question. The matches on TV have been very good this year so far, but PPV quality they are not. There are a few that could be on a PPV and they would fit in just fine. However, on a PPV i expect to see 15-20 minute matches for the most part. Most of the TV ones are still like 5-10 minutes with a commercial break thrown in there. Sure every one in a while you'll get your excellent Miz/Bryan, Miz/Morrison, etc matches but for the most part they are short and sweet mainly providing more buildup for the PPV matches.

 

[asiatic7]

I think so too. Smackdown in my opinion always has a great match or two per show. The Kofi vs. Ziggler feud was great t.v The recent Daniel Bryan vs. Sin Cara was a wrestling purists dream. The PPV's have been ok, it's just that you get sick of watching the same guys wrestle each other every month. How much can you do? That is why there are stipulations involved to freshen things up a bit. I think what makes a match special sometimes is when it happens once with no real grudge (Miz vs. Morrison on RAW , Mysterio vs HBK on RAW, Benoit vs. Bret on Nitro, the aboved mentioned Sin Cara match, just to name a few), and you're probably likley not to see it on t.v. again.