Stables. Factions. Gangs. Cliques. Crews.
Why is it that in the business of wrestling, where stables have been part of the most compelling & entertaining TV for decades, we are without one in mainstream "sports entertainment" today. Not since Evolution, who I will talk about later, have we had a decent stable to love or hate in a way we have in the past.
Remember the nWo, WCW has gained it's popularity as soon as it turned Hogan Heel and hence WCW gained higher ratings and beat the WWF for 84 weeks straight. Then WWF came up with DX and Coporation and then the last one was Evolution which was infact a very good heel stable dominating RAW and having all the belts for like 5 months (I Think).
Now, I just want to make it clear that I'm not talking about great tag teams. I feel there is a great difference between a stable and a tag team. A tag team is made up of mainly two competitors and possibly a manager (think LAX and MNM from recent memory). A stable, on the other hand, generally consists of a leader (main eventer or mouthpiece), a mid-upper card wrestler (IC Title challenger possibly or a bodyguard), a tag team (for the tag titles & for those handicap matches that are inevitable in a faction scenario), and possibly a woman. This covers all aspects of the business and allows a number of feuds to be developed based around one standard storyline.
If, and this is a big if, the creative team has put time and effort into making two rival factions (think Corporation versus Ministry and D-Generation X versus Nation Of Domination - the last ones I can remember from WWE; and no, I'm not counting the Spirit Squad as a genuine stable) then you have a classic series of matches that can span a whole year if booked correctly. The matches would be fresh and different yet also keep to the general feud that ties them all together. If you have five members in each team then you have twenty-five possible singles matches that instantly have a reason and some relevance to the storyline. Then you have the handicap & tag team matches that can also take place. Take for instance, Eugene versus Duggan from RAW. If they were part of rival factions, facing off for gang superiority, then the audience would have had a much bigger interest in the outcome than say the lame response that they got.
To me, a stable's aim is to put over the next generation of superstars. Evolution did this to the degree that Batista is now World Champion and Randy Orton is there or about there at all times while Triple H will always be there. The only flaw I could think of regarding Evolution was the lack of opposition that it had at the time. Just think if say, Goldberg had created his own stable to combat Evolution at the time. If they had taken the time to create this group, possibly named after something referencing WCW with Booker T, Gregory Helms, Chuck Palumbo, & Shawn O'Haire with Bischoff leading; just think about the many more superstars that would have been created & the state the business would be in now. There would be three or four more valid main eventers on the scene. Helms, Palumbo, and O'Haire, barring backstage problems, would be, in my opinion, in the same situation as the Evolution members these days as I feel they all had/have the talent to be so much more than what they went on to (Billy & Chuck marriage ringing any bells?). And when the group eventually splits up, it creates even more match opportunities with an instant relevance and interest from a fan perspective.
I know columns are meant to have a balanced viewpoint and so far it's all been positive regarding a stables formation. Personally, I can't see any negative point for a stable or two to be in WWE at the moment, feuding and creating an engrossing storyline. TNA is a different story as with only an hour TV time, it can't afford to only focus on one storyline (although it's doing this at the moment with all emphasis being placed on Joe-Angle).
WWE needs the next crop of talent to arise in the next year or so as there's only so far Cena, Triple H, Edge, Booker, Batista, and Undertaker can take you into the future of the business.
With all this said, here are my two stables who I feel would create entertaining TV and also prepare new stars for the future.
World's Greatest Stable RATED RKO (HEEL STABLE)
1. Edge (Main Eventer/Mouthpiece)
2. Randy Orton (Main Eventer For Title)
3. Johnny Nitro (Intercontinental Challenger)
4. Kenny (Again will be used in Tag Team Division or Maybe Mid Card)
5. Any Combination Of The Above (Tag Team)
6. Melina (Woman)
The Face Stable (Can't think of a name)
1. HHH/HBK (Main Eventer/Mouthpiece sadly because DX will not be breaking up soon IMO so why not use them to put some talent over)
2. Carlito (Intercontinental Challenger)
3. Cryme Tyme (Tag Team) [Anyone who saw the HBK/Cryme Tyme segment a few weeks ago can see the comical chemistry the two would have]
4. Maria or Mickie James (Woman)
5. Possibly also they could use Haas/Benjamin. Not the best option but could come in handy.
I can't quite think of a reason the DX Stable would initially get together, but this feud would create many opportunities for good to great matches & storylines which I'm sure any real wrestling fan can think of from the talent that is involved. It's also a way of pushing Shelton, Haas,Kenny,Nitro and Carlito to Main Event level, where they so desperately deserve to be in a year's time, if not sooner.
What Say Guys??
Feedback is greatly appreciated.
Why is it that in the business of wrestling, where stables have been part of the most compelling & entertaining TV for decades, we are without one in mainstream "sports entertainment" today. Not since Evolution, who I will talk about later, have we had a decent stable to love or hate in a way we have in the past.
Remember the nWo, WCW has gained it's popularity as soon as it turned Hogan Heel and hence WCW gained higher ratings and beat the WWF for 84 weeks straight. Then WWF came up with DX and Coporation and then the last one was Evolution which was infact a very good heel stable dominating RAW and having all the belts for like 5 months (I Think).
Now, I just want to make it clear that I'm not talking about great tag teams. I feel there is a great difference between a stable and a tag team. A tag team is made up of mainly two competitors and possibly a manager (think LAX and MNM from recent memory). A stable, on the other hand, generally consists of a leader (main eventer or mouthpiece), a mid-upper card wrestler (IC Title challenger possibly or a bodyguard), a tag team (for the tag titles & for those handicap matches that are inevitable in a faction scenario), and possibly a woman. This covers all aspects of the business and allows a number of feuds to be developed based around one standard storyline.
If, and this is a big if, the creative team has put time and effort into making two rival factions (think Corporation versus Ministry and D-Generation X versus Nation Of Domination - the last ones I can remember from WWE; and no, I'm not counting the Spirit Squad as a genuine stable) then you have a classic series of matches that can span a whole year if booked correctly. The matches would be fresh and different yet also keep to the general feud that ties them all together. If you have five members in each team then you have twenty-five possible singles matches that instantly have a reason and some relevance to the storyline. Then you have the handicap & tag team matches that can also take place. Take for instance, Eugene versus Duggan from RAW. If they were part of rival factions, facing off for gang superiority, then the audience would have had a much bigger interest in the outcome than say the lame response that they got.
To me, a stable's aim is to put over the next generation of superstars. Evolution did this to the degree that Batista is now World Champion and Randy Orton is there or about there at all times while Triple H will always be there. The only flaw I could think of regarding Evolution was the lack of opposition that it had at the time. Just think if say, Goldberg had created his own stable to combat Evolution at the time. If they had taken the time to create this group, possibly named after something referencing WCW with Booker T, Gregory Helms, Chuck Palumbo, & Shawn O'Haire with Bischoff leading; just think about the many more superstars that would have been created & the state the business would be in now. There would be three or four more valid main eventers on the scene. Helms, Palumbo, and O'Haire, barring backstage problems, would be, in my opinion, in the same situation as the Evolution members these days as I feel they all had/have the talent to be so much more than what they went on to (Billy & Chuck marriage ringing any bells?). And when the group eventually splits up, it creates even more match opportunities with an instant relevance and interest from a fan perspective.
I know columns are meant to have a balanced viewpoint and so far it's all been positive regarding a stables formation. Personally, I can't see any negative point for a stable or two to be in WWE at the moment, feuding and creating an engrossing storyline. TNA is a different story as with only an hour TV time, it can't afford to only focus on one storyline (although it's doing this at the moment with all emphasis being placed on Joe-Angle).
WWE needs the next crop of talent to arise in the next year or so as there's only so far Cena, Triple H, Edge, Booker, Batista, and Undertaker can take you into the future of the business.
With all this said, here are my two stables who I feel would create entertaining TV and also prepare new stars for the future.
World's Greatest Stable RATED RKO (HEEL STABLE)
1. Edge (Main Eventer/Mouthpiece)
2. Randy Orton (Main Eventer For Title)
3. Johnny Nitro (Intercontinental Challenger)
4. Kenny (Again will be used in Tag Team Division or Maybe Mid Card)
5. Any Combination Of The Above (Tag Team)
6. Melina (Woman)
The Face Stable (Can't think of a name)
1. HHH/HBK (Main Eventer/Mouthpiece sadly because DX will not be breaking up soon IMO so why not use them to put some talent over)
2. Carlito (Intercontinental Challenger)
3. Cryme Tyme (Tag Team) [Anyone who saw the HBK/Cryme Tyme segment a few weeks ago can see the comical chemistry the two would have]
4. Maria or Mickie James (Woman)
5. Possibly also they could use Haas/Benjamin. Not the best option but could come in handy.
I can't quite think of a reason the DX Stable would initially get together, but this feud would create many opportunities for good to great matches & storylines which I'm sure any real wrestling fan can think of from the talent that is involved. It's also a way of pushing Shelton, Haas,Kenny,Nitro and Carlito to Main Event level, where they so desperately deserve to be in a year's time, if not sooner.
What Say Guys??
Feedback is greatly appreciated.
