The Next [_______]?

[The Crock]

Great expectations, many times, can lead to great failures. Whether in the case of Marty Jannetty or Chris Masters, it has been around for as long as wrestling has. As wrestling fans, we often feel the need to try to label new talents as the next Rock, Hogan, Austin, Cena, Flair, so on and so forth. In doing so, have we unintentionally hurt wrestling? Have we put so much pressure on the performers that they cannot live up to their potential or maybe it's just more of the fact that our expectations are so high that no matter what we receive, it just isn't good enough. Hell, is it even fair label wrestlers as such? I understand that it may be flattery, but more often than not, it just sets up for a spectacular failure.

On the flipside of that, it can be seen as motivation. Nobody can ever reach the top of their game without being pushed and without having to face what those before them did. Competition promotes excellence, so it's only fair, isn't it? I mean, if you're going to come out and do something as public as professional wrestling, shouldn't you just expect the comparisons and not be affected by them?

Personally, I think that we as fans need to stop thrusting around the label of "The Next [_______]" so freely. Nobody else can ever emulate Michaels, Hogan, Rock, Austin, Cena, Flair, etc. Those are legends of the business, guys who blazed trails and became faces of the business, people that epitomized wrestling during their time. As fans, we really shouldn't have such high expectations of every guy that comes across our screen. For example, a guy like John Morrison has all the potential in the world. He's entertaining, has a good look, with a little improvement he could certainly be a main event player for some time to come -- but with people throwing around fairly absurd comparisons to Shawn Michaels or something, he'll never live up to it. I'd think that there's a reason a worker never goes out and calls himself the next great one, the next big thing.

You'll have talented guys who will constantly be berated because fans are, to be honest, selfish. They expect more out of their wrestlers than is natural. John Cena, the face of the business today, the best wrestler in the world, constantly catches flack because he's not what The Rock once was. People have this skewed mindset that every guy has to do exactly what those before him did. Cena might be better than Rock in every way, but since he isn't going out and making "pie" jokes, the fans can't embrace him. He can't be the next Rock, but he can certainly be himself and enter the upper echelon of legends in this business.

Thoughts on the whole "The Next [_______]" deal? Should we label guys? Is it hurting the business? Is it good for the business?

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

It could be argued that it is hurting the business, but comparing someone to a previous great happens in anything, whether it be in music, soccer, wrestling, or any other sport. People always look to the past when they think a new up-and-coming talent has the ability to replicate or out do a legend from the past or just reminds them of a former favourite.

It can put pressure on the young wrestler, as it forces them to live up to the hype and there is always the chance that the pressure can become to much and they never fulfil their potential, but being compared to a legend of the industry can make the young wrestler be viewed in a more positive light by the fans, who could buy into the fact that the newcomer is the real deal and could be good enough as the original Shawn Michaels, Rock or Austin.

We probably should judge a young talent on their own merits and look at their own positives rather than looking at them and comparing with a retired legend, but that will never happen. If I am a Michaels fan, I want a new wrestler to be like Shawn. I want him to be the new Shawn Michaels. Is he as good? Is he as charismatic? Is he as exciting? You long for the return of a former hero, and therefore these labels are pushed onto new wrestlers.

In a perfect world, there would be none of this "The Next ____", but when there is the opportunity to look back at past footage and see how good some of these legends were, new guys will always be compared to that, usually unfavourably and will get criticised if they fall even just a bit short. Thats the way it goes.

The past is always looked on with rose tinted glasses and made out to be better. The Attitude Era is a perfect example of this, people class it as the best of period in wrestling history (I am one of those people), and modern wrestling sucks.....if I could be more objective maybe my opinions on present day WWE and present day superstars would be different and I would give them more of a chance, rather than comparing any new charismatic wrestler to The Rock.

 

[Dagger Dias]

We are all guilty of it at one time or another. As fans it's fun to compare modern guys to people of the past who they similarities with. Whether it's looking for the next "Stone Cold" to be the face of a federation, who the "Shawn Michaels" of a tag team will be, or even who will be the next to screw up as badly as The Shockmaster.... People from the past inevitably set standards when they are really great or really awful at what they did. Comparisons will always be made.

It isn't fair to the wrestlers that fans do these comparisons because a modern wrestler needs to focus on being himself rather than living up to the expectations of fans who want them to be like a legend from the past. Cena will never be the next Rock or Hogan. Orton will never be the next Stone Cold. Morrison will never be the next Shawn Michaels. All of these guys are perfectly capable of portraying their OWN characters to the best of their abilities though.

I know it's tempting, but we as fans need to stop comparing modern guys to people from the past and let them be themselves. When it's just for fun and simple discussion it's one thing, but to want a wrestler to be the next (insert legendary name here) is unfair and should not be expected of them in my opinion.

 

[Mustang Sally]

It's par for the course in our society, where everything is over-the-top.....and of course, it's hardly restricted to pro wrestling. Consider the characters in other fields of sports and entertainment.


"He's the next Michael Jordan!"

"He's the next Barry Bonds!"

"He's the next Peyton Manning!"

"He's the next Brad Pitt!"

"He's the next Floyd Mayweather!"

"He's the next Bill Clinton!" (okay, I haven't seen that one yet)


This is the way we like things presented, with a flourish and a sense of overstated importance. On ESPN, casual developments in the world of sports that you've read 43 times already today are trumpeted as "Breaking news!" Also, we see "Score Alert!" flashing across the screen, interrupting whatever you were already reading, informing us that a baseball score of "Baltimore 6, Boston 0" has become "Baltimore 6, Boston 1." Some alert!

So it goes with pro wrestling. The producers of the show aren't expressing hope for the future as much as giving the audience what they want. It's the equivalent of the pyrotechnics we see at the beginning of each WWE show......razzle dazzle over substance.

I don't know that the Rock was loved more in his era than John Cena is now; it's just that the passage of time makes us regard old-timers in any sport as better than they actually were. Cena has tons of detractors now? Well, so did Rock in his day.

You know what I'm waiting for?

To read of upcoming wrestlers trumpeted as "The next Barry Horowitz!" or "The next Kizarny the Carny!"

When that happens, maybe it will kill the whole "The Next _____" nonsense. Which is as it should be.

 

[Hulk Hogan's Brother]

It's obviously wrong to label any superstar but it is also something that cannot be helped. It is something that is prevalant in all spheres of entertainment be it sport, movies or music. People have been searching for ages for the next Maradona, the next Bradman, the next Jordan, the next Brando and many others. But everywhere there is the same problem, they haven't found another one.

While I do believe that it is wrong moreso because it is somewhat fruitless, I do not mind people who indulge in it. Yes, it puts some pressure on the wrestlers but they have much bigger things to worry about. Anyhow pressure is something that should be expected if you are going into a performing field where there are always going to be a million eyes staring at you. Like the proverb says, if you can't stand the heat, stay out of the kitchen. If you cannot handle pressure, maybe you should not be in the business.

The other reason why I do not mind the labelling business is because it is somewhat of a draw. It makes the people watch something that they might not otherwise have watched as they had lost interest in it with the retirement of their hero. But the prospet of finding a similar hero makes them tune in every week. So what if it leads to bitching as long as it is good for the business?