The Curious Case of Eric Escobar

[BreezyDaProtege]

Funny thing is I was just thinking last night about why did they release this guy. They should of created a tag team with him and Chavo. That would of been kool and give Chavo something to do besides be a jobber and comic relief. And whatever happened to that Kazarni guy....I remember promos for his debut but never seen him in a match

 

[Reddannihilation]

Lots of good discussion here. A few things:

I do think race is an issue worth discussion. Bringing up race isn't the same thing as "playing the race card." Escobar said in the interviewed I linked that Vince wanted him to play a "fierce Latino," suggesting that he was meant to be identified as a racialized character. I would say this is common for nonwhite wrestlers, who are basically never allowed to work race-neutral. Even Eddie Guerrero, who was way over, was saddled with what is, to me, a horrible degrading gimmick. Of course, we don't know all the factors that contribute to someone's advancement, but it is reasonable to point to a generalized pattern and ask, "Why?"

Plenty of ethnic wrestlers have worked without gimmicks that relate to their heritage. Aside from the words lucha libre nothing about Mysterio highlights mexico, again the Rock, Bobby Lashley, Booker T, Farooq all had successful runs without being racially marginalized.

Second, for those shitting all over Escobar, clearly this remains a point of disagreement, because everyone is working off of recollection rather than specifics. If the guy was really as shitty as some are claiming, why was he even put on TV at all? Given that he didn't have a monster physique, I'm hard pressed to believe someone who was such an unsafe/sloppy worker would be given such a prominent spot after 4 years in the minors.

Why would the WWE hire a guy with minimal in-ring ability? Because they do it all the time. When the Miz debuted he was fucking terrible in the ring, Morrison wasn't all that good when he debuted as Nitro, a lot of WWE stars started off as less than impressive wrestlers.

I started this thread because I found the guy interesting; unfortunately, enough time is passed that I can't offer many specifics. I do know I thought he was pretty good on the mic (certainly better the Drew M.), and I liked the way he drew out the 'S' in his last night; it was definitely a memorable touch. Again, with his in-ring work, I can't remember much because the last month he was on TV he was getting squashed. At the very least, it seemed to me like he could sell good.

The thing is I don't remember him doing anything on the mic, he pretty much stuck to saying his last name. And the two matches of his I remember involved beating Matt Hardy with a roll up and losing the week after in a tag. So he really wasn't all that memorable.

 

[klunderbunker]

I saw this guy wrestle twice. In short, he sucked. That's all there is to it. It had nothing to do with race or reaction or whatever. He just flat out sucked. He was as generic of a worker as you could possibly imagine. I have no idea what was seen in him but it didn't connect at all once he was on the main roster. In the house show match I saw him in, he was painfully generic. Somehow he lost that by the time he got called up full time. I have no idea what the appeal of him was, but I can't think of anyone other than Vince I guess that ever saw it. When VIckie Guerrero can't get you over, you have a real problem.

 

[rubberman]

Escobar was in Developmental for 4 years, longer than nearly everybody else. They could of just released him at any time, but having employed for so long and spent so much on him, they brought him up to the main roster as his last chance and to try to recoup their investment in him. They paired him with Vicki to give him instant heel heat, instead of wasting money on promos leading to his debut like other wrestlers get. His matches weren't that great, he did't stand out, fans weren't interested. WWE are in the business of making money from their stars through merchandise. They realised through crowd reaction they couldn't market him, which is why he was released.