One Major Thing The WWE Needs to Revamp?

[LoudClearVoice]

RAW/SD Divide
They seem to be carrying on with this brand split even though there is no real competition between brands i.e. Bragging Rights and SVR series being scrapped this year (Oh well **sarcasm**). But what I miss about pre-HD WWE was the different sets. Okay so they have the same set to save money and I'm all for that but how about arranging them differently have the RAW stage as it is now but change SD a little.

Titles
Most emphasis on titles. The IC title used to have amazing matches, Benoit/Jericho ladder match at the 2001 Royal Rumble, Val Venis/Rikishi Fully Loaded 2000, Eddie Guerrero/RVD, Hardy/Morrison, Randy Orton/Edge(?). Same for the US title the best of seven series matches, tournaments etc. They used to garner more attention than some world title matches. I think someone mentioned it here but perhaps drop a main event guy down to hold that title ala Triple H in 2001.

I used to love the tag team division in WWE, had some brilliant tag teams in recent times, The Hardys (before shitting on themselves), Dudleys, E&C, WGTT, Los Guerreros, APA. 5 halves of these teams became world champions and thats how you develop guys is start off tag team ala HBK, Bret Hart then they break out. Come on WWE, stop being lazy however it is getting better (shouldnt of split the Hart Dynasty up)

More emphasis on story telling, i find alot of the storylines are pretty half arsed and don't really capture my attention as of late though R-Truths character has comedic villian value and Alex Rileys break away from The Miz has me intrigued, he can cut a pretty good promo which is rare for someone in their first year.

As for the rankings idea...didnt TNA try doing that and it ended up falling flat as TNA does regularly! I dont think it would work!

The rankings idea flopped with TNA because in general no one really cares. It would work in WWE if they actually put the time into it and took it seriously.

I totally agree with you about the titles. When Jericho first came back they gave him another (albeit short) run with the IC belt. That's what they need to do with a main eventer to get interest back. I mean I know those belts are IN GENERAL intended to put younger guys in the spotlight and catapault them into the main event picture, I honestly wouldn't mind seeing Christian with an IC title run or Mysterio with a US Title run at this point.

 

[vthokie8]

Let me start by saying keep Cena the way he is. Call me crazy, but if they ever do decide to turn him heel it will work way better that he is unstoppable if he starts getting beat left and right there is no use to even entertain the thought of a Cena heel turn, he loses all credability. With that said:

1) Brand Extension: I for one have always been a fan of it how it was originally meant to be. It made Wrestle Mania, Summer Slam, Royal Rumble and Survivior Series seem special, and with each brand only having a PPV every other month it gave programs time to build. Not only that it gave guys who wouldn't normally get a PPV match a chance to really showcase their talents. With NXT guys, Tough Enough guys and the current roster unless cuts are made I have a feeling a lot of guys are going to get pushed off PPVs. With that said WWE would probably have to lower prices a little, but could probably stand to raise them for the big four. If they are not going to do this then just get rid of the brand extension all together and unify the belts.

2) Tag Team division: I have said it before and I will say it again, tag team wrestling helps build stars. You have good talent on the roster that really has nothing to do you could make teams with, and you have teams at your disposal that could put on entertaining matches. I say they strip Otunga & McGillicutty of the belts somehow, put on a tournament, have the finals on a PPV and really build the division back from the groud up. You have The Usos, Slater & Gabrial, Santino & Kozlov, Mahal & Khali, Kane & Big Show, Rhodes & DiBiase, Ryder & Hawkins are former champs on the same roster and neither have TV time, Darren Young & Percy Watson used to be a team and neither are on the main roster, Johnny Curtis is due a shot pair him with somebody (I would like to see Brodus Clay) and just build some of these guys as teams.

3) Make the IC and U.S. titles mean something: I remember the old PWI magazines the guy holding this belt was ranked next in line to the World champion. Majority of the guys who have held either of these belts have went on to win the World title in a year or two. Have people actually fight for these belts, make the title matches mean something, have the announcers talk about how they are catapults to stardom. I'm tired of them being a belt to put on Kofi Kingston just to give him matches on PPV. I liked what some people said about a best of seven series between two guys.

4) Bring back the Cruiserweight division: I know it probably will never happen, but Vince needs to get with the times. There are great, talented guys out there who aren't build like bodybuilders who can put on great matches. Sin Cara is a draw with kids right now and will probably never hold a belt unless it is the IC title anytime soon. You have Daniel Bryan, Sin Cara, Chavo, Yoshi Tatsu, Tyson Kidd, Justin Gabrial, Evan Bourne, JTG, Trent Barretta and Primo all on the active roster that you could build a division with, and a number of guys in FCW who will either float on the undercard or never get called up at all. There has to be some way to reward these smaller guys.

 

[ryder123]

Anything we want? Mines quite silly and stupid but I think WWE needs to improve on the entrance set-ups. Obviously the Raw and Smackdown sets our good because it represents the company in HD. But seriously theres been loads of Pay Per Views with the exact same entrance way. There was a time in WWE Before a Pay Per View started I always said "I wonder what the Entrance will look like", Capitol Punishment was an improvement. Wrestlemania always has some sort of City building thing. Royal Rumble has been the same since 2009. TLC is the same as Raw as Smackdown except with tables, ladders and chairs dangling all over the set-up. Its silly really but hey you said anything you want

 

[ryder123]

I disagree with the whole brand extension. As much as i like the idea it will never happen. The company is overflowing with superstars, You wouldn't get them all on Television unless every match is a tag team. The brand extension was brought in because the WCW/ECW and Development Wrestlers were coming in. I don't think we will see it anytime soon.

 

[WTAllen]

It's probably already been mentioned but --Development!

Good god, let's get out of the attitude era. Please?

I do not want to see Bret Hart come back nor Steve Austin. I honestly don't even care about The Rock WM match. I saw the attitude era, it happened and it's over.

Also, faces need character. Think about it..

R-Truth- Thinks theres a conspiracy.
Christian- Feels like he was cheated by the fans.
The Miz- Betrayed by his protege and hates the fans.

Now..

Cena-Just..a face.
Orton- Just a.. "sneaky" face.

There needs equal depth.

 

[wrestlingfan]

I thought about the WWE title a lot, because I really do think the spinner belt looks childish on anybody except John Cena. It works for him because he invented it (although Edge rocked the Rated-R belt...), but I think Miz would have been taken a LOT more seriously if he had blown up the belt and came out with a new and improved title that is fitting of the "best in the WWE".

I then thought about the stage, and while it's a bit annoying that everything in the WWE is so sterile and that ALL the shows use the same stage set-up...it's not that bad. I understand from a stage-crew perspective that flipping a switch and making the lights and projectionss go from Raw to Superstars to Smackdown is SO much easier than having to set up a completely new stage for recording. And it also makes PPV set-ups seem cooler I think...

I thought about a few more things like John Cena's superman character, the tag team scene, and the lack of midcarders with personality...and then it hit me.

Announcing. The current announce team's for Raw and Smackdown consist of Jerry Lawler and Booker T respectively, with Michael Cole appearing on both shows. I love Booker, but he's just terrible on the table. I thought maybe he'd improve after the first few months, but I think he might have gotten worse. He was brilliant as a trainer on Tough Enough and his ring work is still solid, but he can not announce professional wrestling. Jerry Lawler still has it, but he'll never been as good as he was with Jim Ross in the post-attitude days. And Michael Cole is...Michael Cole. He has the heel persona down, and now that his angle is over he's been a decent announcer again, but there's just too much damage done... I can't hear him without wanting to cringe. The every-other-week beatdown he gets from special guest hosts are even getting stale.

Announcing is the bread-and-butter of pro wrestling. You can have all the fancy high flyers, all the ring generals, and all the technical warriors you want, but without a solid announce team the televised product is going to fall flat. Look for all the best eras of wrestling and you'll find the best announce teams. Heenan/McMahon. Ventura/Monsoon. Cole/Tazz. Ross/Lawler. Today we've got the bored and generic Jerry Lawler that is out of touch with the current product, the god-aweful Booker T, and the annoying as hell heel character played by Michael Cole. The only problem is, Cole is supposed to be the face of commentary. The reason Lawler worked so well as a heel was that Jim Ross was the obvious face of commentary. Having the biggest heel in pro wrestling as the voice of your product is just backwards marketing. That's like putting a "made in Iraq" tag on American flags... But if you're WWE, what do you do about the current state of announcing?

They have an investment in Michael Cole. They can't just drop him and replace him with Booker T. As bad as things are now, that would make things 10x worse. Long term I think they need to start scouting for new blood. Scott Stamford has a cult following, but I've heard him on Superstars and I'm not impressed or convinced he has was it takes to call play-by-play for the major brands. Josh Mathews is probably the best commentator in the WWE right now, and it really bothers me that after so long they haven't pulled the trigger on using him. My gut says there is a lot of politics involved on that table. It's the same duo of Cole and Lawler that got Striker off the table when he was improving every single week and bringing a little bit of wrestling know-how to the team. If they were really interested in building a solid commentary team I would take Booker off the table and replace him with Josh Matthews on a full-time basis. I would them give JBL and Dusty Rhodes a call and have them relieve Cole of his duties on Smackdown so he could concentrate fully on Raw. I would then start looking for new talent so they could eventually move Matthews to the lead position and retire Lawler. Right now I just don't see them planning for the future. That doesn't surprise me though, because they never have when it comes to that position.

Agreed, Matt Striker was modern, and creative as a commentator,

Also as I said before Kill The Brand Extension,but still have two shows so more talent can show off their skills. But 1 World Title, 1 Mid Card/Upper Card, 1 High-Flyers Title, 2 Tag Title, 1 Women's

 

[WTAllen]

I enjoy the brand extension and I hated the idea when it was first introduced. I think its a genius marketing tactic as well that keeps the brand from becoming stale.

I also think that a high flyers title wouldn't go over. Too many titles, to me, categorize performers too much.. It could keep smaller guys in that category so they would rarely venture to other parts.

 

[Calderownz]

Two things come to mind.

One is aesthetic. Smackdown's colors and graphics. They look boring, plain and completely old. I just don't like. I understand that the blue was selected to have an opposite feel to the Raw brand. However, the shade of blue just needs to change. Maybe a navy blue or something. Regardless, I would enjoy an entire overhaul. Just my opinion, I suppose.

The other thing? More creative-minded idea, I suppose.

I would make the matches have a big time feel. Especially the main events. They should have more of a boxing/MMA built up with promos and with the feel of the match. The matches themselves don't NEED gimmicks, but the feel should feel daunting.

Perhaps some impressive intros. More on the line, so to speak. What have you.

 

[Jeff]

They need to make the titles mean something again. Honestly I don't care who holds the WWE Championship anymore. I don't care who holds the World Heavyweight and the US and IC Titles are jokes.

I am tired of hearing people get the WWE Championship and going..."This is my 8th time holding the title". The titles use to mean something and they just don't anymore.

I think WWE needs to first merge the World Heavyweight and WWE Championship. It made sense for a while but now with the lack of main event stars they need it to end. Merge the titles and have the champ represent the entire WWE brand, not just there TV brand. This would make the title mean something. Then the IC and US Title means you are the top dog on your brand, and they instantly mean something again too.

Lastly, I think WWE needs to embrace the internet. I think they are slowly starting to do this with Twitter and Facebook but they need to do more. One thing I would love for the WWE to do is really take advantage of their Power 25 they have on WWE.com. I would love for the WWE to create a better ranking system that actually means something (kind of like what TNA attempted to do). I think the WWE should give certain people voting powers like College BCS (HORRIBLE system for college football, would work well for WWE though). You could have guys like Jim Ross, Ricky Steamboat, Michael Cole, etc. "vote" or actually vote on who should be ranked where. Then have those rankings be the ones used to see who gets a title shot, etc.

Now how they can embrace the internet is by allowing the WWE Universe to be able to vote on the rankings. Maybe the WWE Universe gets 25% say in the rankings. It would be enough to actually force the WWE to listen to the fans and the internet, yet not enough of the voting power where it would truly interfere in any of the story lines. Plus let's be honest, majority of the WWE universe will still vote for the people the WWE wants us to.

I think doing these things would really make the WWE Titles relevant again and would create the simplest, yet always most entertaining type of storylines. Storylines that revolved around the championship.