No More PG?

[Hunted-RKO]

During The Last Few Months we have seen more intrestling storylines and a bit more edgyness,on RAW espeically because it seems now that thw wrestlers are aloud to say 'certain' swearwords.I was shocked by this but last night on RAW when cena finished talking on the mic and his song played cena said to Del Rio 'Your a Lucky Son Of A B**** aswell as saying 'pissed off' even though that word dont mean much it still intrests you and for a babyface to say them stuff aint normal because Cena is mean't to be Mr PG.At summerslam Edge Even called Christian A B****.Also with this storyline involving Punk,HHH,Nash,Stephanie,Vince (Maybe) And the other guy which might turn out to not be PG with blood and all sorts,with the kids getting older WWE should start a new era.
SO my question is:

Do u Think WWE Are Heading Out Of The PG ERA?

 

[Johnny Scumm]

No.

I think once a fortnight, we have one of these Threads pop up. We're not heading out of the PG Era. Not for a few years anyways. What it is, is that the WWE have finally realised that even little 6/7 year old kids hear these words day in, day out, either on the streets or at home when their parents say them. Just because we're in the "PG/HHH" Era, doesn't mean that it can't be edgy. Every now & then we get this for a couple of weeks or so, then it fades only to return later on. When things are heated between Wrestlers, sometimes those words work more wonders than others. It also gets the crowd riled up a little bit, when they hear a word they don't think should be used in the PG Era.

Let's just say, I doubt we'll be losing the PG for a few years yet, or maybe sooner. But the edgy-ness is a nice addition. Blood is not a matter.

 

[Stuntz]

The thing with PG is that they can still do alot of the edginess and get away with it. Being PG they can still curse but not near as much. They have no necesity to get rid of the PG, unless they decide to draw blood, and if that happens it wont be that often, and will probably be at a PPV or the overtime slot of Raw. Its easier to go To TV14 for a PPV or the final few minutes of Raw.

 

[The Hardcore Kid]

Wow what an original thread. I've never seen the PG era discussed here

The thing is, it depends on your definition of "PG". If you use that phrase to define what era we're currently in, then yes, I firmly believe that we are moving into a SLIGHTLY different "era" if you must quantify things as such. Much like the Ruthless Aggression "era" was different, but only slightly so, from the Attitude era.

If you're defining PG as the rating in the top left corner of the screen, then no, you won't see WWE becoming so harsh that they warrant a TV-14 rating. But the thing is, you can get away with a lot and still be awarded a PG rating. A lot more than WWE was doing last year, anyway. You can certainly say "ass" and "pissed off" and even "bitch" fairly loosely and not be concerned about it. So the edginess is welcomed.

Are we gonna see live sex celebrations or drunkards committing suicide or a pimp character with Hos anytime soon? No.

 

[TheHitMark-SirJoseOle]

PG doesn't necessarily have to be total kid-fare. To be honest, they can still be creative with a TV-PG rating, think about how the WWF used to be in the pre-Attitude era, they still had some very compelling storylines (Savage crushing Steamboats larynx, the Mega Powers split, the introduction of the Million Dollar Man Ted DiBiase, the Bret-Owen sibling rivalry, the Shawn and Razor IC Title controversy) none of these stories were raunchy or over the top, they were just simple stories that involved conflicts but they resonated so well to wrestling fans.

For example, Ted DiBiase in his 1987 WWF return expected to just be the WWF Champion because he had the means to "buy" the title. It was well done and through his series of vignettes that he had he got himself over before even entering a WWF arena.

Bret and Owen's whole feud hinged on the jealously of two brothers both being good at the same thing but the younger brother felt that he was being cheated out of his destiny in the squared circle. Subsequently their storyline led to several great matches just see WrestleMania X, SummerSlam 1994, and the inaugural edition of the Action Zone. All great stuff.

The Mega Powers while the characters were not actual brothers, their relationship had been brother like for quite sometime leading up to their implosion, again nothing too risqué or over the top but yet an effective story that lead to a great WrestleMania event in 1989.

Personally speaking, I don't think we need any more shock TV in the world of professional wrestling, at least that's how I feel. I mean I don't know about you guys but I've had my fill of the Godfather's HOs, Katie Vick and one dimensional characters like Val Venis.

Don't get me wrong I love my Tits and Ass but that's what I've got Brazzers, Reality Kings and YouPorn for. WWE does not need to take the easy way out with raunch at this point, they can still have a compelling product without those plot devices.

In my opinion the CM Punk and Kevin Nash promo did just that for me, I was very impressed and I'm hoping CM Punk's push continues, no offense to John Cena but he's never been my choice for a favorite wrestler, but CM Punk gives me that breath of fresh air I've been looking for for so long in wrestling. And he's shown an articulation on the mic and can cut a great promo without having to take any shortcuts with over the top obscenity showing that there is hope for a PG product in WWE.

 

[Enoch V2]

"with the kids getting older..."
New kids are always coming into this world.

In fact I was a kid when I started watching and as I got older the classification ratings went down.

I'm sure there's a contract WWE has in terms of the length of the PG rating and it's defiantly still on. We'll be able to tell when it's no longer PG.

 

[closet_fan]

I was quite surprised Cena said pissed and ass. You hear this from guys like Punk, but hardly ever from Cena. It helped his rant against ADR.

Now hopefully, he won't be brought back down to Earth and given a script that sounds like it was written by a five year old.

 

[Sub-Xero]

Anybody else find it kind of funny that the poster who starts a thread about the PG era censored himself when he typed Bitch? Just askin.

Just because the show is rated PG doesnt mean it has to be strictly Kiddy stuff. The Simpsons is a PG show, and they get away with all sorts of shit. The PG rating seems to cover a broad spectrum of acceptable content. It just seems that they're leaning closer to the TV-14 end than the TV-G.

 

[TM Punk]

During The Last Few Months we have seen more intrestling storylines and a bit more edgyness,on RAW espeically because it seems now that thw wrestlers are aloud to say 'certain' swearwords.I was shocked by this but last night on RAW when cena finished talking on the mic and his song played cena said to Del Rio 'Your a Lucky Son Of A B**** aswell as saying 'pissed off' even though that word dont mean much it still intrests you and for a babyface to say them stuff aint normal because Cena is mean't to be Mr PG.At summerslam Edge Even called Christian A B****.Also with this storyline involving Punk,HHH,Nash,Stephanie,Vince (Maybe) And the other guy which might turn out to not be PG with blood and all sorts,with the kids getting older WWE should start a new era.
SO my question is:

Do u Think WWE Are Heading Out Of The PG ERA?

I hate you. Moving on.

Do you call the era from when WWWF first started, up until they dropped one W, all through the 80's, and up until 1997 the PG era? Didn't think so. The name "pg era" is a stupid, made up, fairy tale name that IWCers made up so that they can be mad at john cena for yet another reason. Its just a rating. A rating in which they have been for the duration of their companies excistance. Yet people try to still say this is the pg era.

Ask most people on here and they'll tell you that swearing doesn't mean anything to them. Swearing isn't even what gets a tv show a 14 rating. So while you're touching yourself to the thought of john cena saying bitch into a microphone, or worse, maybe he'll say god damn. That'll really draw in some better ratings. Why don't you think about the fact that tough enough says the words shit, goddamn, asshole, damn, fuck, goose shit, and bitch. Do you know what tough enoughs ratin is? ITS PG!! PG does not mean you cannot be edgy, or say naughty cuss words. It means that parents should be aware that some content on the programming may not be suitable for their 7 year old. Seriously learn common sense. When tv 14 comes into play is when sexuality starts getting involved. So if you really wanna see vince mcmahon walking around slapping divas asses again... well... I think you might need some therapy?

Enfatic (spelling... someone?) NO!!!! The rating doesn't matter... that is unless you wanna see vince make eout with trish stratus again.

 

[Prince Punk]

Na we are just now hitting the main part of the "PG era" (just so you know it's stupid to name an era without the company doing it... at least before it's actually passed) The actual point here is that they had to let their merchandise/sponsorships stabilize after that they were able to look at and push their product to the edge of what is allowed on PG tv... if they never toned it back AT ALL you would not have a product that had room to grow. and be accepted on the kids market.

 

[H33LTurn]

Just because they cursed doesnt mean the PG era is over. Bitch is another word for female dog so that one always slides in, ass is something kids are gonna hear regardless of whether they watch WWE programming or not and pissed isnt really a curseword. Language is just one factor that makes us the direction of the business. When you consider what WWE defines as not PG (nudity, live sex, excessive use of weapons, blood) you realize that WWE has a long way to go before they reach another TV rating.

 

[SecondCitySaint]

If I am not mistaken, Linda McMahon has hired a new campaign manager. She's going to be involved in politics for years to come. Her critics are going to be looking at WWE under a microscope until her career is over. Due to this, we are going to have to endure this kid-friendly crap for years. My post is written poorly, so I know I am going to get flamed for this. Or accused of 'derailing' the conversation, as one mod likes to say a lot. To answer the original question, we are still heavily in the PG era.

 

[Smooth Sexual Chocolate]

If they plan on keeping the young fans they've made over the last few years than they sure as hell better move on from the "PG Era".

I'll tell you something about kids, they don't want to watch "pg" television, my little brother who's now thirteen stopped watching WWE over a year ago because it was too childish for him; he doesn't want to sit around and watch something targeted at the 10 and under audience; and quite frankly, neither do I.

Kid's have always been interested in "cool" and "edgy" anything that makes them feel more grown up than they are, I've never met a kid who didn't want to act older than he/she is, it's the way of the road. So when kids don't want to watch childish programming just who are you targeting with the PG rating.

The PG era was never actually targeting kids, it was simply a front for multiple issues. The Beniot murders, Linda McMahon, Public image; all these things had more influence on the PG decision than targeting a younger audience. I mean there's a reason why the Attitude Era has was so popular, and there's a reason why so many of us who became fans during that time are still around watching wrestling today. As a kid/teen during the attitude era I always felt like I was watching something I shouldn't have been, I wouldn't want my mom walking in on me during a hoe train segment when I was a kid, in fact, it's that stigma that made me a fan. I knew I was watching something sleezy that my parents wouldn't want me watching and that was part of the allure of Wrestling and the attitude era; and it's what created so many fans who are still around today.

Now, they're already losing the fans the made a couple of years ago because kids who are now teens aren't going to watch the same childish crap that they enjoyed two years ago. Many of us stick around in hopes of a more adult friendly programming, but these kids who know nothing other than a child friendly show aren't going to stick around a keep watching. There going to find something edgy, something adult oriented; whether that be UFC or one of the hundreds of shoes on TV not aimed at little jimmys.

All in all, keeping it PG isn't going to get the job done, rating have been lingering well over a year now and that's why we are currently seeing an edgier product, in hopes to retain the children who are already looking for something else besides the same old crap in a shiny box that the E tries to pass off as hip and cool. I mean, when I was in middle school watching WWF was cool, edgy thing to do; most parents didn't want there kids watching wrestling then. Now a days, middle schoolers don't even want to admit that they watch the E. That about tells you all you need to know about the PG product; the kids that the product is aimed at even think it's too lame for them to be watching. Enough said, time for a change.

 

[Hulk Hogan's Brother]

SSC makes a very good point. People seem to think that the PG rating has drawn in loads of kids towards the show but the fact of the matter is that kids watched it even during the Attitude Era days. The fact that it was considered to be somewhat of a taboo for them is what made WWE even more appealing. Not just for watching the Hoes but I think that every little kid loves to rebel. Watching what was deemed unwatchable was a huge draw. I think that WWE was never much bothered about who would watch the show when they went PG, they were more worried about revitalising their image which had taken a hit after the Benoit murders.

As for the current topic, no I do not feel that the no holds barred days of the Attitude Era are coming back. However I do think that WWE will get as edgy as they can while playing under the rules. They might even break the rules at certain times. I think that even WWE understands that their fans are slowly growing in age. Also there are certain elements, like blading which add to matches if used judiciously. I have heard talks of Triple H asking for special permission from the USA Network executives for a show close to Survivor Series where he intends to stage a bloody beatdown on Punk. Which makes me think that WWE are going to play by the rules of PG but they are not going to be neccesarily bound by it in the coming days.

 

[1TheGreatOne1]

No because Linda is running for senate again in 2012. (lets hope she loses that)

Also the reason the company is PG is because they make more money by siding with other companies like Mattel, anti-bully campaign (a bit hypocritical?), make a wish etc.
By them being a 'wholesome family show' it bring them in more money.



BTW just because it's PG doesn't mean it has to be watered down kiddie crap. It can still be edgy and as of now they're exploring the boundaries of PG but not going over it. It can be fun for everyone.

 

[poppycock]

If you mean Predictable and Generic then yeah it looks like we could just about be moving away from it but not PG as in rating. That looks like it is here to stay and this is not a bad or good thing because it's more about how creative the people who matter are rather than the rating. Like people have said you can do a lot within the restrictions of PG and it looks like the WWE have just recently realised this or chose to act on it.

 

[RicoLen]

As far as I'm concerned the PG era is over, has been since Money in the Bank, but no matter what you called it PG era part 2, reality, HHH, post-McMahon, McMahon-Helmsley, wtf ever, it doesn't mean that the WWE is going to cease to be rated TV-PG. And to be honest I hope that doesn't change.

TV-PG is what it was during the 80's. THE 80's! Think about that, G.I. Joe, Transformers, Thundercats, Voltron, He-Man, TMNT, Conan (those last two were early 90's but still) etc., the most violent cartoons ever that now-a-days mom's get all pissy over because they're not good for children were PG. WWF Prime Time Wrestling was (or would have been had that rating been around at the time) TV-PG as well. That's right where it should stay, as far as I'm concerned. The excessive blood doesn't add anything and you still see guys get bloodied from time to time anyways.

And let's face it, WWF had it's high points when it was TV-14, but most notably it sucked ass. Seeing HHH talk to some diva at this buffet table and have both pretend to receive oral by two other divas under the table was pretty much an all time low and turned me off from watching for many years.

As you've seen WWE is getting away with saying words like damn, ass, pissed, etc. Who cares if they censor b**ch, we still know what's being said right? And keeping that rating makes the show more accessible for younger viewers, ones that will grow up and say "I grew up watching and loving wrestling", just as almost all of us have. To take it away from the kids now, would be the same thing as saying "I shouldn't have watched when I was a kid." And I don't believe that.

 

[therockiswwf]

I have not seen anything in the last few months that were outside the lines of PG. Swearing is odd, its censored and uncensored at differents times for both PG and PG-14. Its not outside of the PG lines to swear, you just can't run around saying fuck shit titties all day. I think really the only thing that WWE is limited on by PG is blood (I don't care about blood, so its not like it bothers me). Only outrageous storylines are effected by PG. Like this whole CM Punk storyline has been PG. The WWE is only PG for image reasons but the rating has very little to no effect on the WWE. The WWE is not heading out of the PG era because they have never been in the PG era.

 

[s3machine]

Im not as much concerned with what a small square box in the top right hand corner of the screen contains to start the show as I am with having a great quality product to watch.. Just as mentioned earlier.. Great storylines of the past involving The Million Dollar Man trying to buy the belt, The Mega Powers, etc.. proved that you could have a great show without having to say 'Asshole' every 30 seconds on national TV..

I'm also not as much concerned with the Divas being stripped down to almost nothing and having Lawler yelling 'puppies!' like a bafoon.

One thing I do disagree with however.. is someone said that blood doesnt need to be used at all for something to be compelling.. I completely disagree.. now Im not saying that the Superstars need to be blading themselves nightly but every now and then some blood is needed.. This would bring forth some more drama and shock factor that is sometimes missing.. Imagine how great Extreme Rules PPV would be if it wasnt as watered down as it is now.. Vince once said that ECW in part was a failure because you just couldnt go out and torture yourself the way the wrestlers were doing on a nightly basis.. then he went on to say that you could do it periodically.. this way it wouldn't lose its meaning.. I say let the boys go wild a few times a year. Let there be BLOOD.

..The one thing I really would want changed.. and thank God I do see the WWE slowly and surely moving in this direction.. I want some crazier, riskier, wilder spots.. just like there was a few years ago.. Enough with matches only featuring the 5 moves of doom. I was watching the Edge Decade of Decadence DVD a couple nights back and I was in awe watching some of those old TLC matches with the Hardyz and Dudleys all over again... Man do I have a new found respect for the shows those guys have put on. We need spots like that again.. and if you guys notice.. starting with MITB.. WWE is slowly but surely creeping back into doing some edgier things in ring... again.. this isnt something that needs to be done on a day in and day out basis.. but every now and then on RAW.. let the boys loose.. PPVs especially.. let the boys loose...

..Let TLC mean something again.. Let Extreme Rules mean something again.. Let HIAC mean something again.. bring back that edge in the ring... The wild stunts.. The 'spot monkeyness' if you will... That's what the fans want to see.. with that.. and the occasional blood... The fans dont give a shit about what letters or numbers are displayed in a square box to start the show.. whether its PG, TV-14, or MA for that matter... Just let there be some really fun moments to enjoy in the ring.

 

[TWJC: The Beginning]

How many times is an attitude era fan gonna say something like this?

WWE is still going to be PG, they will have storytlines that more adults can relate to. Like I always say, WWE is like Pixar. Toy Story is an awesome movie anyone can enjoy, that's what they'll strive for their product to be.

Look at their annual report. They explicitly say they want to appeal to families.

 

[s3machine]

Look at their annual report. They explicitly say they want to appeal to families.

They dubbed it wholesome family entertainment back in the attitude era too.. the only difference was WWE wasnt a publicly traded company back then so they had less to worry about in terms of image.. and the fact that WCW was really threatening to trump them out of business brought a whole kill or be killed attitude to Vince and crew.

truth is.. regardless of what their annual report says..Vince will do whatever needed to maximize their earning.. With a bit of an edgier product on TV as of late ... the incorporation of social networking and other 'reality' elements to coincide with the recent popularity of the WWE in main stream media all but ensure Vince will keep the company headed in this direction.

 

[Marv95]

http://www.tvguidelines.org/ratings.htm

I strongly suggest you read that page. Based on that information, what have they done over the last year that exceeded the PG rating? Don't you know most USA Network shows are TV-PG and have "swearing"? Is the WWE rated TV-Y7? T&A, frequent swearing and blading doesn't make the show better(see TNA). Smackdown's been TV-PG since 2000 y'know.

And no, it's not going away as long as Mattel(and GLAAD to an extent) are sponsors. People need to realize from the Attitude Era up to 2007 WWE had a shortage of sponsors as a whole.

 

[Jessie Lynn DivaGirl]

I was going to say Hell yes but then I thought about it for a second. PG is mistaken for G. I have seen PG movies that have done some cursing and had some mild violence but it was still PG. No one was, ahem, "interacting" with ech other at anytime in the movie- tho it was hinted at just a bit. I say we can keep the Era For The Kids (as I call it) but we can throw in some teenage/adult stuff in for everyone else. That's what they're starting to do. Why? Kids will only pay attention to their favorite and ignore everything else. I used to do it, but I don't anymore (mostly because I'm nota 13year-old anymore [how old I was when I started]). Cussing doesn't bother me, I do it at school a lot, and violence doesn't either. I'm a baseball fan, I've seen the benches cleared, I know fights can get worse (yes, I've seen bloody lips and black eyes before). Ithink we should bring back moments like Dolph Ziggler coming outof the closet out of breath and then Maria following him once JoMo left the room.

 

[TheGamea]

SO now I get when I made my thread “The beginning of a NEW or PRE attitude era…” people got mad...

but I guess we do see this thread a lot, but I have a life and don't monitor this board every day, but to each his own...

but I like I said in my thread I don’t think it’s a GETAWAY from the "PG era” completely like some have said we are YEARS from that but I think we are in what will be a "smart ass era" (that title trademarked by my creative team august 2011) that will preceded the NEXT era, and WHATEVEA THIS ERA is and WHATEVA the next era IS we don’t know and for people to say the naming of era is STUPID, is it GOING to happen and it IS happening...The name of event is not a dumb IWC trademark it’s a MEDIA thing, well too the digital age..or era…lol

but anyone that doesn’t agree, there is a CHANGE in the WWE is a idiot last year at this time the miz was the MITB winner and so was KANE (but as new champ) and I think Cena was champ...now that could be wrong or distorted but the point is my memory is not great because NOTHING happened…does ANYONE here think that we will NOT remember that AFTER WWE’s biggest event of the 2011 (wrestle mania) John Cena damn near went heel, CM Punk tore the WWE apart causing Vince to get fired and to have HHH to over, Christian using some of the GAYEST tactics EVER to win a belt, Del Rio win his first Title and to think ever we are STILL 8-6 MONTHS away from what is “supposed” to be the greatest wrestle mania match of the generation WHICH we “thought” that the WWE were fools for announcing 1 YEAR in advance and we HAVENT talked about since because of EVERYTHING ELSE that has US “ENTERTAINED”...

 

[TWJC: The Beginning]

They dubbed it wholesome family entertainment back in the attitude era too.. the only difference was WWE wasnt a publicly traded company back then so they had less to worry about in terms of image.. and the fact that WCW was really threatening to trump them out of business brought a whole kill or be killed attitude to Vince and crew.

truth is.. regardless of what their annual report says..Vince will do whatever needed to maximize their earning.. With a bit of an edgier product on TV as of late ... the incorporation of social networking and other 'reality' elements to coincide with the recent popularity of the WWE in main stream media all but ensure Vince will keep the company headed in this direction.

Yes he will, and staying PG means more sponsors, more families, and more stability from shareholders. The company will stay PG. Boobs, blood, and beer don't make the show better. Like I said, the story might be more "Toy Story" than "Cinderella" but it's still PG either way.