Mustang Sally
Sells seashells by the seashore
Back in the late 80's and early 90's, most televised matches were between a superstar and a jobber.....you knew who was going to win as soon as the contest was announced. The only times you saw matches between performers in which there was doubt as to who would be the victor, it invariably ended in unclean fashion; by count-out or disqualification.
The chief form of DQ occurred by outside interference.....and then, as today, it was a pain in the ass to see a good match end so often in that fashion. But there has seemingly been a change in WWE's handling of outside interference over the years.
In the past, anyone who entered the ring during the match caused someone to be disqualified.....unless the referee didn't see it, which has been a staple of pro wrestling since.....well, forever. But when the ref did witness someone attacking a wrestler in the ring.....either by climbing in themselves or belting a performer from ringside.....the 80's and early 90's saw the ref call for the bell. I remember a diva climbing to the ring apron and not doing anything, yet the referee DQ'ed the guy she represented.
Today, it's different. We watch people enter the ring in full view of the ref, directly affect the outcome of the match.....and no DQ is called for.
Two blatant examples: J & J Security. I mean, c'mon! How many times did we watch them climb in the ring and attack Seth Rollins' opponent....only to be chased out by the ref even as Seth takes advantage of the damage J & J has done? The result of the outside interference is totally ignored; the match continues.
Second, Nikki Bellas' match at MITB. When Brie replaced Nikki in the ring and got pinned, she immediately confessed to the ref that Paige had pinned the wrong opponent. The ref then allowed Nikki to attack the distracted Paige from behind and win the match.
Are they kidding? How could Nikki not have been disqualified for outside interference? If Brie openly admits she didn't belong there, how on Earth does the official allow the match to continue?
So, that's my question to you. Do you prefer it the old way, in which NO outside interference was tolerated and the match ended as soon as the official saw it........or should the ref just allow it, as we see too much of today?
Personally, I'd prefer someplace in the middle. The constant unclean endings of the old days took a lot of drama out of watching pro wrestling since they refused to show us clean endings to important matches.....yet the new way seems so patently unfair that it's often hard to watch.
The chief form of DQ occurred by outside interference.....and then, as today, it was a pain in the ass to see a good match end so often in that fashion. But there has seemingly been a change in WWE's handling of outside interference over the years.
In the past, anyone who entered the ring during the match caused someone to be disqualified.....unless the referee didn't see it, which has been a staple of pro wrestling since.....well, forever. But when the ref did witness someone attacking a wrestler in the ring.....either by climbing in themselves or belting a performer from ringside.....the 80's and early 90's saw the ref call for the bell. I remember a diva climbing to the ring apron and not doing anything, yet the referee DQ'ed the guy she represented.
Today, it's different. We watch people enter the ring in full view of the ref, directly affect the outcome of the match.....and no DQ is called for.
Two blatant examples: J & J Security. I mean, c'mon! How many times did we watch them climb in the ring and attack Seth Rollins' opponent....only to be chased out by the ref even as Seth takes advantage of the damage J & J has done? The result of the outside interference is totally ignored; the match continues.
Second, Nikki Bellas' match at MITB. When Brie replaced Nikki in the ring and got pinned, she immediately confessed to the ref that Paige had pinned the wrong opponent. The ref then allowed Nikki to attack the distracted Paige from behind and win the match.
Are they kidding? How could Nikki not have been disqualified for outside interference? If Brie openly admits she didn't belong there, how on Earth does the official allow the match to continue?
So, that's my question to you. Do you prefer it the old way, in which NO outside interference was tolerated and the match ended as soon as the official saw it........or should the ref just allow it, as we see too much of today?
Personally, I'd prefer someplace in the middle. The constant unclean endings of the old days took a lot of drama out of watching pro wrestling since they refused to show us clean endings to important matches.....yet the new way seems so patently unfair that it's often hard to watch.