Jeff Hardy's Drug Problems: Should They Be Featured As A Storyline On Television?

[He's Phenomenal]

I would be 100% behind seeing this story unfold on TV. And I agree with a lot of Zeven_Zion’s sentiments. When did wrestling fans become so wholesome and bible bashing (not Zion’s words I might add)? Has the WWE really brain washed people enough to think a professional wrestling program should be some sort of family friendly, cartoon world? Where everything is simple and done to the same format every week? Well I’m sorry but I enjoyed professional wrestling the most when it was violent, realistic, chaotic and just general mayhem at times (1997-1999).

When WCW played out Scott Hall’s personal problems on TV, it solidified Hall as one of my favourite wrestlers of all time. I was only a kid at the time (so didn’t even know wrestling was scripted) but he was one of the guys I liked watching most when it came to Nitro. He may have genuinely been pissed at times, the simple fact was I just enjoyed his character. And you never knew what he was going to do.

Now I’m not saying that Jeff Hardy should be coming out each week off his nut, but these personal/real storylines are interesting to watch. And can captivate an audience. It’s not for everyone though, I understand that. Many on the net haven’t enjoyed the Angle/Jarrett feud, but I can’t think of a feud I’ve enjoyed more. And I can’t wait for Angle to ‘kill’ Jarrett at Lockdown.

TNA are trying to appeal to a casual audience, someone who can get sucked in emotionally to a story that is on TV. And this could be a good chance of doing that. Although saying that, a casual fan would not even be aware of Hardy's problems and just think he got beat pretty quick at Victory Road.

But if TNA has the chance to turn Jeff Hardy’s mistake at Victory Road into something positive, then they should go for it. People will say Hardy doesn’t deserve a push, fair enough. But he’s TNA’s employee and if they can benefit from him, then they most certainly should. If you don’t enjoy it, you don’t have to watch it. I didn’t agree with nearly every push I saw in my time watching WWE, so guess what? I stopped watching it.

I really hope TNA go ahead with this. Vince McMahon has made it so obvious that wrestling is a work over the last couple of years (I’m not sure if it started before this, I stopped watching wrestling for a long period). And it’s about time we saw some realism come back IMO.

 

[UnBEARaBULLfan]

Like WWE has never taken someones personal problems and had them play out on tv for everyone to see, get over it, this could be good for hardy, he comes back from rehab explains to the fans what happend and asks for forgiveness, and if everything goes well this could be a good comeback story.

 

[Hulk Hogan's Brother]

I'm certainly not in favor of this move. I mean it has been tried several times and has failed time and again. And how are TNA going to show him battling drug addiction anyway? Perhaps they will show Immortal trying to solicit's Hardy's help by offering him cocaine or something? I mean after that faith healing stuff that they have shown Pope doing I guess this will actually be quality television in their eyes.

Jokes and sarcasm aside I do not think this will happen. I know TNA is not known for it's continuity but in this case I think they will follow up what they said. I remember Sting telling Hogan that Hogan somehow destroyed Jeff Hardy and turned him from one of the brightest stars of the wrestling world to a loser. You can build on that by saying how Hardy's work ethic declined after joining Immortal and how he was partying most of the time with Hogan and his friends instead of hitting the gym or something. I mean, yes, TNA have been known to leave storylines unattended in the past but this time they have a chance to build on something that has been uttered by two of the greatest stars in the business who do have some control over what happens in TNA.

 

[sfury2005]

If by chance he does get clean the last thing he'll need is being constantly reminded of his drug use. Which doing an angle about it will remind him.

Actually I would have to disagree with this statement. What he really needs is a constant reminder of his former drug use. I don't know if any of you have watched Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew but in the end they recommend all of their patients go to meetings after they are straight for support. These support groups like those and AA are their to be a constant reminder to them that they are an Alcoholic or junkie for life. When a person gets clean and sober that doesn't mean they are no longer an alcoholic it only means they have it under control and to keep it under control they always need to remember that they are an addict or alcoholic.

I don't see a problem with it if and I do mean IF he does take this seriously and gets clean. But fact is no 30 day program without the after care is going to get him straight and keep him straight. He is going to need a strong support system to stand behind and with him all the way for the rest of his life. If TNA and the guys in the locker room are willing to be a part of that support system and help him out I see no problem with using it as a storyline. One thing is for sure he has had a lot of young fans idolize him over the years and people tend to glamorize stuff their idol does. So to have him come out and say something about his addictions and what it has done to his life is a public service announcement for sure.

He's 33 years old and if he gets straight and stays straight he has a lot of years left to try and get his popularity back.. I think what will happen is they will show tapes of Sting talking to him about it because Sting has admitted to having addiction issues in his earlier days of WCW. It would probably done as Sting stepped in to help him and Jeff finally went and got the help he needed. After Rehab Sting was there for him to help build him back to what he could be. He then re-enters TNA as a Friend of Stings and they tell the story about how twisted addictions can be. People can call this using Jeff to make money if they want but fact is there are 1.5 to 1.8 million people in the US and many more outside of the US watching TNA every week so I don't see where sending out a positive message and saying Drugs are bad is a bad thing.

I've wondered since Victory road if they decided to send him out there to give him a chance to see for himself what the drugs are doing to him. Maybe they figured we'll take a hit from this but if it helps Jeff to realize he's hit rock bottom and desire rehab lets do it.. No one can tell an addict he's an addict and needs rehab until he's ready to admit he is an addict and needs help. I think if he truly is straight and the story is done properly it's a good idea.

 

[sfury2005]

People bring up Scott Hall and LOD story-lines. If I remember correctly Hall portrayed his alcoholism by going into the ring acting drunk. If that was the kind of stuff they are talking about I wouldn't be for the storyline either. As for LOD I didn't see it as I've never watched WWE/F much and never saw it.

If they used pictures of Jeff like he was coming out to Victory road and have Jeff talk about how he was on top of the world and fell to the depths of destroying a PPV because of his drug abuse I can see that. They could show some details of his rehab and he could talk about what it was like and how it took hitting bottom to decide to get straight. And he could apologize to his fans and vow to stay straight with the help of his friends and try to earn the wrestling worlds trust all over again.

I would say doing this as Jeff hardy talking to his fans and describing how he feels it could work. If they are going to have him act stoned or something then I would say please NO don't do it.

 

[wrestlemaniac]

plain and simple...I'm all for it. WWE did something similiar with eddie guererro years ago. I think it'll go over well if they keep hardy off tv til before bound for glory. I'm thinking maybe two or 3 weeks before bound for glory. Of course there would have to be video packages hyping up his return. Maybe have his return ruined by a heel. Maybe have him advertised for a match 2 weeks before bfg....have it be a tag match....have hardy be attacked backstage to miss most of the match....have him hit the ring during match....go for a swanton...w his partner getting the win to end the show. The week before bfg...is really just a promo by hardy...where he gets attacked...but hardy n other wrestler get seperated by security. Have heel wrestler face a friend of hardy's, win...cut a promo....turn around...there's hardy w a twist of fate.
Having had drug issues myself I can see why people may have a problem w this. I think it's ok for tna to do this but they have to be careful in how to handle it so they won't upset to many people.

 

[Kenny Powers]

Ive read some reports in the past about this article not being true since TNA has no plans of doing anything with Jeff Hardy until after his court date of 4/20. If TNA actually does go through with an angle where Jeff Hardy is in rehab and comes back as a face then people will shit all over it. Its beyond bad taste to make fun of a drug addict's condition on live television. Everyone else does it on cable, but TNA doesn't have to do it. The ratings surely won't move an inch either way. Hardy needs help and shouldn't be involved in any wrestling for the time being.

 

[It's Damn Real!]

Why not? If he's clean and he's willing to touch on something that personal, where's the harm?

It's not as though this is the first time real life issues have been used in a pro-wrestling storyline. My how quickly we all forget Lita/Edge/Hardy? Hell, they're using one right now with Karen/Jarrett/Angle.

So long as the participants are all OK with this kind of thing, I don't see the harm here at all.

 

[AntiChristDeicide]

Why not? If he's clean and he's willing to touch on something that personal, where's the harm?

It's not as though this is the first time real life issues have been used in a pro-wrestling storyline. My how quickly we all forget Lita/Edge/Hardy? Hell, they're using one right now with Karen/Jarrett/Angle.

So long as the participants are all OK with this kind of thing, I don't see the harm here at all.

you are right there is no harm if he is willing to do it. The thing is, its going to be seen as a rehash of old storylines by most fans. Granted wrestling has existed for so long, that everything is a rehash by now but do we need to do or see this storyline?

 

[sfury2005]

you are right there is no harm if he is willing to do it. The thing is, its going to be seen as a rehash of old storylines by most fans. Granted wrestling has existed for so long, that everything is a rehash by now but do we need to do or see this storyline?

I didn't see the LOD angle since I don't or haven't watched WWE much but if I remember correctly the Hall angle had Scott Hall acting like he was drunk going to the ring. That is something I wouldn't agree with at all..

Now having small vignette's of stuff like say Sting going to him and talking to him about going to rehab and then Jeff could talk about how he had hit bottom and maybe apologize to his fans. Next he could discuss what all rehab entailed and how it's going to be a long road back. I don't see a problem with them doing it like that as it's more of a public service announcement type of thing. There's nothing wrong with him using his ordeal to get the word out that drugs are bad.

 

[It's Damn Real!]

you are right there is no harm if he is willing to do it. The thing is, its going to be seen as a rehash of old storylines by most fans. Granted wrestling has existed for so long, that everything is a rehash by now but do we need to do or see this storyline?

How can you "rehash" the story of a specific competitor who destroyed his career through drug use and abuse coming back, begging for forgiveness from the fans when Hardy himself has never been used in that light? Not all drug addicts are the same, and I can't remember any story line in the past that functioned on forgiveness like the projection here is indicating this story would.

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

I don't really like the idea. Coming off drugs is a very hard thing to do at any time, without having to be paraded on TV like a freak show preaching about the evils of drugs and having to discuss your problems infront of a national audience.

If TNA want to use this as a way to push Jeff Hardy then that is sending the wrong message to their locker room. If you publicily humiliate your company by turning up in no fit state to perform and could have injured another employee then you deserve your contract terminating and your ass should be sent to the job centre. Giving Hardy a break and then pushing him as a face when he returns while featuring his issues as part of his gimmick is appalling.

If TNA want to keep Hardy employed, then should refuse to pay him until he has been to rehab, cleaned up and has proven he can stay off the drugs. Then, and only then should they even CONSIDER bringing him back. And if that ever happens, a substance abuse storyline is not the way to go about it.

I would be very disappointed to see this being made into a storyline.

 

[AntiChristDeicide]

How can you "rehash" the story of a specific competitor who destroyed his career through drug use and abuse coming back, begging for forgiveness from the fans when Hardy himself has never been used in that light? Not all drug addicts are the same, and I can't remember any story line in the past that functioned on forgiveness like the projection here is indicating this story would.

Well Scott Hall comes to mind, remember "The Outsiders" feud? They did skit about them fighting in a "bar". Hell do you remember when he "puked" on Bischoff on live TV? It was the first time you could see both sides of the NWO (prior to "finger poke of doom") show concern for him. I get that all drug addicts are not the same , but like i said it reminds me too much of the Scott Hall situation.

 

[Fenris]

I only see one real way of doing this so it would work. Get him on that Celeb Rehab show on VH1 and let it play out via that route then building off that by basically having him return sober and having to work his way up the ladder. What they're going for is emotion and to wrap someone up while getting new viewers, right? What better way than having him play it out on that rehab show and his mentioning he was the TNA World Champion headlining PPV's and now he isn't. If you go that route you'll even have non wrestling fans tuning in to continue watching his recovery.

That said, it's a bad idea irregardless and here is why....

You're staking TNA's existence on Jeff Hardy getting and STAYING drug free. He's already pissed millions of TNA fans off and ruined one PPV. You're risking EVERYTHING hoping he stays clean. If he doesn't and he shows up high on drugs ruining ANOTHER main event then what? Screw fans once you can redeem yourself. Screw fans twice? They're going to stop watching and stop buying the PPV's. It is way too risky to do. You don't risk a multi million dollar company by trying a storyline that could backfire at that magnitude. That's bad business.

Then again we're talking about Bischoff here, the guy who screwed people over on a few PPV's AND live Nitros with bad decisions. It wouldn't surprise me to see Bischoff, Hogan and Russo pulling this stunt so I expect them to roll with it.

 

[iwinulose]

this is another stupid move by tna, im sorry, but seriously, send the man to rehab, fire him, but dont go and exploit his serious real life issues. whats the point? money maker? hardly most of the wrestling universe is bagging on jeff and tna (cause of jeff). another bad move on tna's part.

 

[hardycrunk]

It outraged me when they used Jeff's real life as a storyline on WWE. I think its not creative nor entertaining. Jeff is a great wrestler in my opinion, he just gets a bad rep for story lines such as that. Wrestling is great but it just gets a little too personal when it take a step in the wrestlers personal life. Im just sayin

 

[Positivity]

It outraged me when they used Jeff's real life as a storyline on WWE. I think its not creative nor entertaining. Jeff is a great wrestler in my opinion, he just gets a bad rep for story lines such as that. Wrestling is great but it just gets a little too personal when it take a step in the wrestlers personal life. Im just sayin

It outraged you? I understand that yes, some storylines can trigger the emotions of many a fans but this is a little puzzling to me. Jeff made his decision to divulge into things such as drugs, nobody else held a gun to his head and demanded him to. I do not want to sound remorseless but he was the one who did what he did and he's going to have to face the consequences. Does it suck for him? Sure, it probably does. But that's that and when you get into this business, you know and expect things to get personal. Some of the biggest and the best feuds depend on that and unless I am crazy, it is still going on today. Look at Jarrett and Angle! The whole thing is based around Karen and the happenings between Jeff and Kurt, outside of the ring. Yet it seems to be one of the more prominent rivalries or storylines going into Lockdown, a coincidence? I think not. And lastly, it wasn't like the WWE feud in mention was all that offensive. Was it mentioned? Yes. But do you expect a straightedge heel to not bring that up? It was the base of the whole thing between them and without it, it would have gone nowhere really fast. That is all, but even for a Hardy mark, there are much more important things to be "outraged" about in the wrestling world.

 

[roethlisberger78]

My own personal opinion is the next time Jeff Hardy is on TNA TV they need to fire him infront of the live crowd just to prove a point to him, that he cant keep making these same mistakes and get away with them. This is like the third or fourth time its happened now just this last time was alot worse than the others because he ruined the main event of a PPV. So with that being said I'm a caring person and believe everyone makes mistakes, I was addicted to Pain Pills for about a year and a half, tried quitting many many times and finally did. My point is that its really hard to get off shit but it can be done. So they fire him on live TV get him into a rehab and give him like a year or two away but keep track of him to see if he stays clean, if he does then by all means hire him back. I'm not a huge Jeff Hardy fan but I know alot of people are which means he sells TNA tickets.

So after that year or two away from TNA if he was able to stay clean have the announcers start to talk about him again, all his trials and tribulations the rough road he had to travel to get clean and make him self better, this is America and Americans love comeback sucess stories and they'd eat it up.

As far as if it should be used as a story line I gotta say NO and it never should. I dont mind real life stories in wrestling because some times they sell big time, and TNA is known for using real life in their stories quite often just to get a bit extra heat on their fueds. The reason why I say no for this one though is, like I said I was addicted to pain pills, I'm now clean and damn proud of it but its a struggle every day and curtian things can trigger you to want to use again. So I just think you know if they put Jeff in this story about his drugs problems it would be bad for him and his health.
But then again I dont really think TNA cares about their wrestlers so they'll probably run that story real quick lol