Pro Wrestling Pet-peeves?

[The 1-2-3 Killam]

What is the one thing that happens in pro wrestling that you absolutely CAN NOT stand? TNA, WWE, ROH, whatever... It can be the little things, or the big things. Commentary? A specific move?

For me one of my biggest pet peeves is when a wrestler says the line "this is the biggest night of my life" or the commentary team says "I've never seen anything like this!". It's just over-exageration in the product that doesn't make any sense at all. Jerry Lawler is guilty of doing this on a weekly basis. Kofi Kingston does the same damn leg drop week after week, and every single time the King says he's never seen anything quite like it in his life. Please...

Recently Hulk Hogan said on Impact to Ric Flair "this is the most important night of both of our careers". Really? Ric Flair vs. Sting in 2011 on an episode of Impact is the biggest night in both of their careers? I understand trying to sell the importance of a feud or angle, but that is just completely unrealistic. The two of them having something like 70 years of wrestling experience between the both of them. A lit bit of realism is all I ask for... You don't have to pretend you've never done anything more important to put something over. If anything, it's your past experience as a legend that makes it all the more important!

 

[Matth3w]

Where do I begin:

Michael Coles "Vintage {insert superstar name here}!"

The Tazz putting emphasis on certain letters at begging of words when he speaks .

Every Wrestlemania prior to the one succeeding it is considered "The Greatest Wrestlemania Of All Time!" to announcers.

Well, that's all I can think of at the moment

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

The one that immediately springs to mind is where Michael Cole blatantly gives away the fact that a wrestler is going to kick out of a pinfall.

I understand that WWE announcers are told to try and trick the fans, and try and increase the element of surprise, but Cole does it ALL THE TIME, he may we well just say "He will kick out".

"This one is over!"

"We're gonna have a new champion!"

etc etc

I dont think I have ever seen anyone actually get a pinfall after hitting their finisher and Cole commenting that "We're gonna have a new champion right here!". The opponent always kicks out. So annoying

 

[hatehabsforever]

One pet peeve I can think of off the top of my head involves every single Rey Mysterio match. During a regular match involving all other superstars in any organization, how often does a wrestler get pushed, hit, or kicked and land with his body draped across the middle rope? Never. Absolutely never happens. In any given Rey Mysterio match, it happens at least 3-4 times, setting up the absolute worst finisher in pro wrestling today. Of course, 2-3 times, the wrestler is able to recover and block the dreaded 619, until he inevitably lands on the middle rope yet again and is hit by the finisher. For some reason this just really irritates me.

 

[Paralyzer Z]

In a tag team match whenever the heel team uses the same moves over and over again. We have seen the abdominal stretch into a boot to to the stomach and axe handle from the middle rope onto the arm countless times. I just whish that they could use more creative moves than the same thing we have seen for many years.

 

[harrythem]

I wrote this elsewhere but I hate TNA's "tale of the tape" because they always go and make it look like complete bollocks straight afterwards by ignoring it (recently in the Angle Vs Sting ppv main event...grrrr)

WWE commentators for spoiling matches quite often by making it clear who was going to win..

***** that chant "this is wrestling" at some hardcore pile of shit...

The words "Quite Frankly" being uttered by pretty much every WWE wrestler in every promo, no cunt says that except Vince McMahon.

Jerry Lawler, he's past it, he's shit, can the cunt!

Fans completely shitting on an event by deliberately giving the opposite reaction to what you normally get (see - Canada)

The Xenophobic heel gimmick...it doesn't wash anymore..

Bad camera work that shows wrestlers calling spots, etc...WWE is quite good at covering this but, for quite a while, TNA was SHOCKING at this...

 

[bigandpissed]

I personally hate when people slam other peoples "heads" on to the steel steps. It just looks so god damn fake. Every time they do it, its blatantly obvious that they are just slapping the steps as they are using their hands to stop their heads. It wouldn't bother me as much if somebody could make it look more realistic.

 

[LODemolition]

A few things that have gotten extremely old for me:

Practically every Raw ends with John Cena standing in the ring, yelling at the heel he's feuding with to get back in the ring.

Booker T's commentary. It's just pathetic. I'm the last thing from a Michael Cole fan and even I have to laugh when he calls him out on his idiotic statements.

The divas matches lasting all of 2 minutes. If you're not going to let them really put on a good match except for the occasional PPV, why have the division at all? Just keep the hot ones and use them as valets and cut the rest.

When things happen right in front of the ref and they completely fuck up and don't even question it. Lol I saw the horrific Sting/Flair match this past Thursday and had to wonder if Earl Hebner is going senile. Flair gave Sting a low blow from behind while Hebner was looking right at Sting, who then dropped to his knees, and he didn't even blink an eye. Also in that match, when Sting was going for the pin on Flair and Immortal members ran to the ring, Flair didn't bother to kick out because those guys were obviously supposed to hit the ring sooner. Yet Hebner still held up on the count, it was hilarious. I guess you could say all terribly obvious mistakes in general are a pet-peeve of mine, but this is just a recent example.

 

[This Is My Name Thank You]

Promo's to open up every wrestling show on TV has been a huge pet peeve of mine. I don't know why but it either makes me watch or just forgot about the shows in general. Slapping the steal steps/announcers desk is a pet peeve too. Another one is when someone talks really slow on the mic as it just puts me to sleep. And my last pet peeve is when a face gives a great promo and the heel comes out interrupting the face to cut a promo and his promo sucks and is boring. Ugh major pet peeve.

 

[George Steele's Barber]

Along the lines of slamming someone's head into the steel steps I have a really hard time buying the use and effect of a lot of foreign objects. Namely baseball bats, brass knuckles and sledge hammers.

If you really brought these things to a fight someone should be visiting the hospital or morgue at the end of it.

 

[#hamler]

I got one. When the fucking ref doesn't count the three because the guys shoulder is an inch off the ground. I don't remember the match but Jack Swagger was pinning someone after his finsher and hooked both legs very tightly. The ref counted one then the ref stopped because his opponents shoulder was just a little off the ground. He didn't kick out or anything. Just a little something that always pisses me off. It makes everyone involved look bad.

Another one would be the ref counting when all three wrestlers are down in a Triple Threat match when there is obviously no rule against it. What makes it even worse is when Michael Ciole or Jerry Lawer call the ref out on it - "I don't know why this ref is counting".

Last one,

Along the lines of slamming someone's head into the steel steps I have a really hard time buying the use and effect of a lot of foreign objects. Namely baseball bats, brass knuckles and sledge hammers.

If you really brought these things to a fight someone should be visiting the hospital or morgue at the end of it.

This, very much this.

 

[Nate DaMac]

Beat the Clock challenges piss me off. Whenever there's a need to name a number 1 contender I would much rather the issue be solved in one match, 2 at the very most. But whenever they announce one of these shitty Beat the Clock challenges, you know the whole episode is just going to drag ass since there will be a bunch of 6-8 minute long meaningless matches. Not to mention, more often than not, we all already know who is going to win the fucking thing so a shit load of time is just wasted to get to a point we already knew we were going to. Pisses me off.

 

[GrandSword]

What about the current ten count rule in WWE. You've got two guys outside the ring, the ref gets to 9 but because one guy jumps in that's it... what?

Isn't it if one guy rolls in it breaks the count. For years wrestlers would just put their heads under the bottom rope and the ref would have to restart the count. That's really annoying at the moment.

 

[Dagger Dias]

One of my biggest pet peeves in wrestling is when someone says "I'm gonna end your career!!!!" in a promo. That's something I never take seriously. How many times have we heard someone say that, and actually end the other guy's career after the match? Rarely ever. It would make more sense to say "I'm gonna break your neck!!!!" or some other type of pain related taunt.

Others include Rey's 619 finisher, Michael Cole himself, the Raw GM Laptop's sound (and subsequent Cole promo) each time it was heard, a great match ending in a count out, and lastly we have a really big one for me.... Announcers getting wrestlers' names wrong. The announcers have all been there long enough to know who is who. Cole had the worst mistake of all once when he referred to Stephanie McMahon as Triple H's husband.... It doesn't get any worse than that.

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Here's a video clip, the volume on it is kind of low though.

 

[RicoLen]

Catching the victim watching an incoming attack when he's supposed to be distracted or stunned and hurting. Sometimes they do it blantently other times you see them looking out of the corner of their eyes, but either way it really ruins the entire match for me.

90% of the IWC and their bitching or fawning over stupid crap.

 

[Poop Master Flex]

Whenever wrestler's no sell and when wrestler's no sell because they are fixing their outfits, those are 2 things that drive me nuts.

Davey Boy Smith was notorious for doing this. I can't count how many times I would see this guy after taking a big move on the ground fixing his knee pads. I know wrestling is pre determined but you are supposed to make it believable, if you are having a fight and knocked on the ground you aren't going to fix your pants you're gonna just keep fighting. Another big one in this case is WM21 with Rey's snap on mask, every 2 minutes he was fixing his mask instead of selling moves, little things like that drive me nuts.

What's even worse is when wrestlers no sell, like Alex Shelley and Teddy Hart, both guys are horrible for this and even though Alex Shelley is a great technical wrestler he obviously doesn't know how to do little things like sell moves and shit. Teddy Hart could hit a moonsault from 20 feet up in the air and get back up 2 seconds later, does the word PSYCHOLOGY mean anything to you.

Lastly is spot fest's (once again they have no psychology or believability). It's impossible to buy into lets say an ultimate X match when someone is literally 2 feet from the X and sits there for 10 minutes waiting to hit a move, I have an idea GRAB THE GOD DAMN X AND WIN. Spot fests are easy on the eyes but are stupid, its basically wrestlers showing off fancy moves instead of trying to win a match.

I remember seeing this match between Teddy Hart vs. Jack Evans vs. Petey Williams and being told it was the greatest thing ever. I watched it and it was Teddy hitting a big move on Petey while Jack watched, afterwards Teddy stood there while Jack hit a big move, then Teddy gets up in 2 seconds and takes a Canadian Destroyer from Petey, Jack hits the Ode to Blitzkrieg on Teddy while Petey Williams sits there and claps, then signals Petey and takes a hurricanrana from Petey. Sure they were all nice moves but it completely went against everything wrestling is about. No storyline, No psychology and people wonder why Jack and Teddy don't get signed by a big American promotion.

 

[Chicago1989]

A pet peeve of mine would have to be when there's a wrestler that says that they are the "Best in the World". I've been hearing that moniker for too long from many different people in different organizations.

In the WWE, you got CM Punk, who claims he's the best in the world. In TNA, you got Kurt Angle. In ROH, you got about 30% of the roster who say the same thing.

Bottom line is, it's almost impossible to truly be the best wrestler in the world, when you have many organizations out there in many countries that could have anyone better. This is one of those things that I keep hearing over and over again, and I don't really buy into it. It just feels like hype.

 

[Matth3w]

I'd also like to add another one. Wrestlers with stupid tattoos!

Maybe it's an OCD of mine, but every time a wrestler comes out, or is wrestling, I can't help but think at least once how awful their tattoo looks. Whether it be something small that you can't see unless the camera zooms in real close:

Or something big and rediculous that becomes the focal point for me when I see the wrestlers on TV:

Or finally, you see the tattoo and you think.....why?:

(The 'Mexican'; not the Cross}

There are others, but I can't find pictures for them....

 

[poppycock]

- Rey Mysterio
- During a ladder or cage match when a wrestler takes forever to climb but does not make it look legit. A lot of wrestlers make it look like they are injured or tired but some are bad at this.

 

[mr.nobody]

John cena title reigns...... no matter what happens he ends up champ again.
Its a lil outrageous now that he's champ for like the 13th time in 6 yrs

 

[Notorious718]

CM Punk's look after he was shaved bald kinda irked me. He looked ridiculous bald and that overgrown beard did nothing to make him look nicer in my eyes. I remember how great he looked when his face was clean, his hair long, and he even made the cover of WWE Magazine once! If memory serves, I believe he was portrayed as a comic book hero/secret agent. It was kinda cool and he looked great in a suit. I dunno... his bald head and huge beard was... eh. Don't get me wrong, beards are cool but not everyone can look good rocking one. Plus, every time I saw Punk come out with his beard I remember wanting to grab a razor and just shave it off.

Honorable mention also goes to Mysterio's 619 finisher for reasons already stated.

 

[Mustang Sally]

Just one small thing involving production:

The instant a match ends, the camera shifts to a 2-second shot of the crowd... then, after a brief look at the wrestlers, they go back to more crowd shots. It's not a big thing, obviously, but I'd love to see the immediate reactions of the winner and loser of the contest; I already know the fans are there.

Because of the audience-inclusive nature of pro wrestling, WWE wants to let us know the crowd is into what's going on. That's fine, but I doubt the effectiveness of showing repeated shots of the fans; personally, I'd rather see the performers.

In Ottawa, Bret Hart's walk down the ramp to the ring was interrupted with so many crowd shots that it totally distracted us from the appearance of one of the WWE legends.

Show us the people in the arena, sure, but don't make it the top priority.

 

[Remy LaCroix]

When I watch AAA and CMLL on television, the camera crew always show women or "pretty women" in the audience. I remember in one AAA taping they showed the same young woman half a dozen times! They're barking up the wrong tree with that crap.

 

[#hamler]

I have four more I would like to add.

Mark Henry walking out with the belt and having trouble putting the strap on his shoulder on Raw reminded me. I hate it when a wrestlers wins the title, and goes to celebrate and holds it above his head...only its upside down. It's always bothered me that Randy Orton's first Championship will be known for this:

Next, Commentators acting like they've never seen a move before when it happens all the time. For example, Cena going for the top rope leg drop, Sheamus going up for the flying shoulder block or Kane for the flying clotheline. Im sure there are more.

Next, any wrestler who kicks out at one instead of two.

Last one, "nananana, nananana, hey hey hey, good byyyyeeee!" I hate it whenever a wrestler leaves and the crowd says this shit. Total embarassment especially when you're with someone who never watches wrestling.

 

[Trill Co$by]

I got one. When the fucking ref doesn't count the three because the guys shoulder is an inch off the ground. I don't remember the match but Jack Swagger was pinning someone after his finsher and hooked both legs very tightly. The ref counted one then the ref stopped because his opponents shoulder was just a little off the ground. He didn't kick out or anything. Just a little something that always pisses me off. It makes everyone involved look bad.

That's done because it's how it's supposed to be. Pinfalls are supposed to be with shoulders as flat as possible. It's basic pro-wrestling 101, hell it's even a rule for amateur wrestling.

---

My biggest pet peeve is that stupid ass "WHAT?!" chant that people always want to do. A lot of times it'll ruin everything good about a promo and just make the whole crowd look stupid. There's only been a number of people who have been able to work with that shitty chant, but even then, they most likely forgot their lines and had to go off their head. Which isn't always a bad thing because basic mic skills should be a know how in WWE, but even still, someone like Drew McIntyre won't exactly fit in the mold of great mic workers.

After that, it would have to be people claiming that women's or tag wrestling is boring or stale. I've yet to see a bad women's match or tag match in the past year, unless it was at an indy show... and I watch a lot of matches throughout the year. If you ask me, a lot of women's and tag matches are way better than what people claim them to be, but because people are too stuck up and stubborn to admit it, they instantly bash them. Case and point, the WWE Tag and Divas title matches at NoC were two of the greatest matches on the card, yet nobody gave them any props.