The predictability of WWE

[ryder123]

Once again the road to Wrestlemania is up for discussion and for months we all try and figure out who or what will be the main attraction at the biggest event in the world. Every year when Wrestlemania ends I always think..'Who will be standing tall at next years event?' Last night on Raw WWE basically made two main matches for Wrestlemania. Roman Reigns vs. Triple H and Brock Lesnar vs. Bray Wyatt. The main event for Fastlane is a lock with Reigns, Ambrose and Lesnar and it should be a great match. I don't dislike these Wrestlemania matches but its the fact we already know its happening. Roman Reigns will pin Dean Ambrose to go on and face Triple H. Why wouldn't the main event of Wrestlemania be Reigns and HHH? Its been building for months. That match is a lock. I also hope they make it a No DQ match. Brock Lesnar and Bray Wyatt. Why would WWE have the Wyatts attack Lesnar at the Rumble and have no pay off? Lesnar will rule the triple threat and just before he goes for the pin...The Wyatt family appear and beat him down before carrying him (like Undertaker) out of the arena. Look out for Lesnar taking on the Wyatts in the coming weeks. If he beats Harper and Rowan and Strowman then they are banned from ringside at Mania. Its too predictable and Im excited for Mania but again..its TOO PREDICTABLE

 

[Good Golly It's Ollie]

You're much like myself judging from your stats up above your post there - 25yo who's been a fan since at least the late 90s, which is why I don't want to shit all over your OP. I do understand, honestly, but the problem is as much yourself as it is anything else. The predictability stems in part from your age and your familiarity with booking conventions, not to mention that you post on forums about wrestling + I'm gonna guess you occasionally read dirtsheets when crazy rumours abound, even if you usually hate them. Don't worry, we've all been there as much as some of us like to pretend otherwise.

I personally don't think the predictability kills the product since it's based on your own familiarity with storytelling & the business. Face it, the kids are probably loving these storylines with little concept of how they will play out. They're hungry for Reigns to kick Helmsley's ass. More power to them. I'm enjoying it too even if the outcomes are a bit more foreseeable to me.

If anything I want to complain about the predictability of crowd reactions. The grown-ass men chanting that a top face sucks ruins the magic for the little ones, which is a crying shame.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

You're much like myself judging from your stats up above your post there - 25yo who's been a fan since at least the late 90s, which is why I don't want to shit all over your OP. I do understand, honestly, but the problem is as much yourself as it is anything else. The predictability stems in part from your age and your familiarity with booking conventions, not to mention that you post on forums about wrestling + I'm gonna guess you occasionally read dirtsheets when crazy rumours abound, even if you usually hate them. Don't worry, we've all been there as much as some of us like to pretend otherwise.

I personally don't think the predictability kills the product since it's based on your own familiarity with storytelling & the business. Face it, the kids are probably loving these storylines with little concept of how they will play out. They're hungry for Reigns to kick Helmsley's ass. More power to them. I'm enjoying it too even if the outcomes are a bit more foreseeable to me.

If anything I want to complain about the predictability of crowd reactions. The grown-ass men chanting that a top face sucks ruins the magic for the little ones, which is a crying shame.

I completely agree with this, it's dead on as to what's so wrong with much of pro wrestling in general.

If you're someone that's been watching pro wrestling for decades, such as myself, you're going to be come familiar with some of the behind the scenes workings of the industry; particularly, you're going to be familiar with booking strategies and how they affect the product as a whole. I think that what fans want, or claim to want, isn't so much unpredictability but, rather, seeing fresh faces pushed into top level spots. For instance, Damien Sandow gets what looks to be a strong reaction whenever he's out there; however, as I mentioned in another thread, is Sandow getting cheered because many of those fans genuinely want to see him pushed or because they know he's not going to be pushed with their cheers as some feeble way to strike back at the WWE Machine? Look at what happened to Zack Ryder when he started getting pushed, the cheers quickly stopped and interest faded as soon as it began. Who's to say it wouldn't be the same with Sandow?

Back in 2011 during the Royal Rumble, Santino Marella and Alberto Del Rio were the last two men in the match and fans were going nuts with Santino nearly eliminating Del Rio. It would've been hugely unpredictable if Santino had won the Rumble, but would it have made sense? Once the euphoria of the surprise and shock wore off, fans would have immediately began questioning and criticizing the fact that a comedy mid-carder was going to be in the main event of WrestleMania.

Want another example of how unpredictability doesn't necessarily mean something good? Look at how many people have bitched about Taker's streak ending. NOBODY saw that coming in what may have been the single most unpredictable match ending in the past quarter century in WWE, at least, but many people, many of whom have made similar complaints about predictability, raged against the decision.

In a lot of cases, not all but a good deal of them, I've found that a good deal of fans say they want unpredictability when, in reality, what they really want is for WWE to do what they want them to do and give it to them in exactly the scenario in which they planned.

 

[Khalifa]

I agree with Ollie Cure and Jack-Hammer but I'm just going to add a bit more onto it. At least with this we know that their is a story behind it and it's not just for the sake of doing it. I'll use Survivor Series last year as an example. I think everyone would of predicted every match correctly bar maybe the Wyatts and BOD. Everyone knew Reigns would go on to beat Ambrose and then Sheamus would cash in. We were just hoping it wouldn't. Now that is just trying to make something 'unpredictable' for the sake of it. There was no real anything behind, it was simply just" wtf do we now that Rollins is out now as well" on WWE's part and it turned out to be Roman Reigns losing the title for a month. For this years WM I feel that okay we predicted it and now we are getting it. We wanted this because it made sense (at least for Reigns) and now we are just gotta wait for Fastlane to go by before it happens.

Totally fine with how everything has played out even though I sort of guessed exactly how it went. I thought they would hold off on the Wyatt/Lesnar match for maybe 6 more months after Kevin Owens said a few times he wanted to take Brock. I can back this because I know there is a plan behind it and wasn't just Kalisto US title change moment.

 

[ryder123]

Completely agree with everything said. Being an avid Wrestling fan for years and years you become more and more involved with creativity and who deserves it more. Who had worked the hardest to earn the title of 'Top Dog!'. Back then we would've bern sitting cheering for the good guy to come out on top. I find myself sitting judging thr creative issues. It also got me thinking...as much as I dislike predicting the outcome or guessing who will main event Wrestlemania...If I was giving control from November past I pretty much would have booked it the exact same way because it makes sense. Why not have the employee take out his bosses? Hell Id love to challenge my boss at Wrestlemania! Too me its not about good guys or bad guys, Authority or Roman Reigns...Im still entertained but I just think too much into it

 

[tvcolosi]

I've always been of the position that predictability isn't necessarily a bad thing. Especially at the Rumble, you're building the Main Event for the Super Bowl and in the best of circumstances it's culminating a long story arch.

HHH vs RR was the main event, hunter as the challenger doesn't make sense so he had to Win the belt. As far as the fastlane main event, you are supposed to want Roman to beat HHH so the predictable result is what they want in that case.

 

[Un-Bo-Lievable Jeff]

Although you put forward a compelling argument, if you are wrong will you be back on here to accept you were wrong?

About as much chance of that happening as there is Sandow entering the Fast Lane main event and winning a Fatal Four Way.

It's incredibly easy to spout off that WWE is way to predictable, as many have done it on here, saying exactly what will happen, yet when they are wrong people such as yourself don't come back on saying you got it wrong, and giving credit to WWE.

 

[J.J.]

It only becomes a problem of being criticized as predictable when people don't see what they want to see. It's about what you want to see. Two years ago when Daniel Bryan was thrown into the mania match to face Triple H to go on to receive his title shot we already knew this was going to happen. But people just wanted to see it for themselves Right or wrong?

Last night we could've easily assumed that big star returning would be The Rock - WWE were in his neck of the woods. It's not so much about it being predictable as long as it tells a good story in the end. The Rock's involvement saw him in a good segment and arguably his best since his 2011 return.

The same thing about Austin when he returns. We know he's going to do his normal routine. Raise a little hell, Stunner and drink an 18 pack of beer. Fans soak in the nostalgia but he plays his character so well that it doesn't come off as dull. We have basically seen the same thing from Austin over the last decade.

The OP is likely right about those two WM bookings, right now I'd agree. I'm not looking at how predictable calling who will fight against who is; I'm intrigued by how well they'll build up these storylines going forward. If it is a storyline worth investing into then I typically oberlook how predictable we may find the matchup.

 

[Deoxyribonucleic A.C.I.D.]

Don't you know every year by this time now, what matches will happen at Wrestlemania? Wrestlemania end result it's always predictable, it's the road that matters. It's only natural that the first two big matches will set up at the Rumble, in order to help create a longer build.

Also, WWE did the most of it last night to make that predictability entertaining, by giving us that wonderful triple threat main-event at Fast Lane.

 

[George Steele's Barber]

WWE is only predictable to those without an imagination. That's ok, it is normal to stop dreaming as much or dream of other things as we mature but you have to accept that those things you may have enjoyed as a child and find other things to appreciate about pro wrestling.

For instance, it will never cross your mind that Ambrose will win due to a combination of outside Wyatt interference and a lucky shot on Reigns. That maybe WWE will take this opportunity to build him as another star by giving him a Mania moment. Maybe Reigns blows up over this and turns on Ambrose. Basically trying to injure Ambrose in the build to Mania so Reigns can get the spot that he feels is rightfully his. But he comes up short giving Ambrose a chance to fight HHH but in a weakened state making Ambrose's victory over HHH that much more amazing.

But yes, wrestling is written for kids and idiots so most will find it predictable at times.

 

[Rocky84]

Do us experienced fans have the ability to see the pattern in which storylines and matches are made/booked? Yes. Is it some crazy phenomena? No. This is WWE's fault.

Why are such high level things leaked? In past years we've known the top matches like a half a year away. Who's fault is that? Ours? No.

They need to keep these things from getting out...not sure how it even does to be honest. That should be a fireable offense.

As far as predictability, WWE goes way too much on the basic storyline path. Why not throw a fork in the road here or there? Keep things fresh and interesting. Do they HAVE to have HHH vs Reigns at Mania? No. They could've maybe had Reigns win the Rumble, face HHH at Fastlane, and then had Vince come out and say that he's got a mercinary to handle the problem in The Undertaker. Have a Corporate-Ministry angle again. Now Reigns vs Underaker is totally unpredictable as an angle and as a match...I wouldn't know who was going to win...just an example.

Let's not act like their storylines aren't completely over the top predictable and that it's our fault. If I'm a Booker or on creative, I'm building angles and storylines and throwing in curves all the time. I mean back in the day we had no idea certain things were going to happen. Look at Mania 17...it was Kurt vs HHH at the Rumble and I remember nobody knew what was gunna happen as far as a Mania main event besides Austin being in it. HHH vs Undertaker was last minute and a surprisingly fresh and new feud. In today's world, we knew that at 29 Cena will beat Rock in a rematch for the title (like 6 months out), Punk will lose to Taker, HHH will get revenge on Brock. And now we know that Reigns will beat HHH for the title. I mean Punk quit because of the predictable match we all knew would happen months and months away. It's like they've gone so corporately generic now storyline wise.

They need to get these matches developed much later on closer to the ppv...I'm tired of knowing this stuff so far out. So anti-climactic.

 

[OYDK]

There's a reason this is predictable, ready? It's because WWE's actually starting the build to their Mania feuds months in advance. Remember last year, when everybody bitched and complained about Mania 31 having the "worst build of all time"? Well, that's because they didn't start building the show until after Fast Lane. Was it unpredictable? Yes. But there was very little momentum heading into the show. This year I guess we have the opposite problem. HHH/Reigns has been building since Survior Series, but now it's too predictable because we've known about the main event for months now. Wyatt and Lesnar build starts at the Rumble, but it's too predictable because we "know" who's going to win.

Either way people are going to be upset. Personally, I'd rather have an event with a strong build and apparently predictable finishes than an event with no hype whatsoever.

 

[Rocky84]

There's a reason this is predictable, ready? It's because WWE's actually starting the build to their Mania feuds months in advance. Remember last year, when everybody bitched and complained about Mania 31 having the "worst build of all time"? Well, that's because they didn't start building the show until after Fast Lane. Was it unpredictable? Yes. But there was very little momentum heading into the show. This year I guess we have the opposite problem. HHH/Reigns has been building since Survior Series, but now it's too predictable because we've known about the main event for months now. Wyatt and Lesnar build starts at the Rumble, but it's too predictable because we "know" who's going to win.

Either way people are going to be upset. Personally, I'd rather have an event with a strong build and apparently predictable finishes than an event with no hype whatsoever.

Why do we have to choose too early or too late? I took a break from watching for a long while from 02'-11' (always checked in around Mania) but I don't recall many times where it's been like it has recently. Possibly because I didn't tune in as far back as Survivor Series to catch the main event being revealed like this year, but there's been plenty of times where they get it right. And even if we know what the match is after the Rumble, they still keep it fresh and exciting...like with Batista vs Undertaker. Hell it was obvious Taker was gunna win, but there was still a chance he might not and the storyline was entertaining. Even Rock vs Cena which we had a whole year of knowing was still great. I just think they need to keep it simple...if we are gunna know about it far in advance then the build up better be great, and the matchup better be great. The same goes for us knowing the outcome of the actual match. We also shouldn't know the outcome of every single Raw or ppv leading up to Mania like we do with Bray vs Brock. We know Bray will screw Brock out of the title match at Fastlane for example. There's other ways of doing things, but they don't want to I guess. It doesn't seem like a difficult thing to do, yet they just can't get it right. I know you can't please everyone all the time but damn, at least please some of us, some of the time. I guess as the main event, Roman vs HHH can't deliver any of this excitement we hope for this time of year. The matchup isn't exciting, the build isn't, and the outcome isn't. Fail on all 3.

 

[Azane]

My favorite has to be when WWE tries to make a big point about how unpredictable things are, when the real life betting odds were 3:1 in favor of Triple H at Rumble, when he wasn't a participant, or when everyone knew Roman was coming back, because Cole said his name over 100 times so we didn't forget who he was.

The predictability gets worse and worse, because the characters in the matches we care less and less about, Looking back to 1999, we all knew the shenanigans and that Steve Austin was probably going to win (There's a curveball thrown with McMahon, but Ausitn did get the WM spot.) But the story was fresher, and people cared about Austin, while Roman Reigns is the most boo'd character WWE's produced in years, even though he's face.

The reason why things like the Rocky promo garner so much love from the fans is because they're different, unpredictable, off the script, WWE tries to play it safe, but it's whats putting them in the gutter for ratings, have someone like Dean Ambrose win the rumble instead of HHH or RR (The only 2 who could have won it with the booking). Simple booking is as dead as Kayfabe, start being more 3 dimensional and write the story like it's for ~17 year olds, while still being clean.

I guess my overall problem isn't that RR Sets up the WM events, but it's that the huge amount of part-time talent makes it too predictable, Brock doesn't Job, Roman walks out with his 3rd title in 6 months and we'll be back to 3.2 Million Ratings, AJ over Jericho. Seth would be in Reigns position at Mania, Cena would be in Jerichos, and some other stuff without injuries, but the injuries were more interesting than the product (Not that I'm happy anyones hurt)

 

[Skinsley]

Maybe being predictable is the best thing for the show and the storytelling?
If I put a bet on each match at the Royal Rumble...I would have come out with 100% wins and a lot more money than I have now! But Royal Rumble 2016 will go down as one of my favorite Rumbles of all time! But why? It was so predictable.....
Because it was entertaining. Why was it predictable? Because I have been watching wrestling since the 90's and I am accustomed to the booking habits of wrestling.

Sometimes the predictable thing is the best thing.... the rumble gave me new hope for the business as a whole and I hope that the quality continues to rise since the product was very stale only a few weeks ago, yet the booking has been more predictable than ever...go figure.

 

[therockiswwf]

Predictability is the wrong word to use here. Logical progression is more accurate.

Cena vs Rock is a good example. That first match, everyone was convinced (including me) that Cena was going to win. Rock came back to put over the current guy. It made no sense for Rock to win until the next night when he explained that he would go after the WWE title. It was a case where it was predictable that Cena was going to win because that was a logical outcome. We didn't know Rock was going to do more matches. This was an unpredictable good moment. Same really with Punk vs Cena at MiTB. Made no sense for Punk to win until we found out later that Punk had signed a new contract and wasn't leaving.

Sting vs HHH. Sting should have won that. The obvious outcome was Sting winning. In an unpredictable moment, HHH won. That pissed a lot of people off even though it was unpredictable. A better way of saying that was it wasn't logical.

Take Russo's booking around Wrestlemania 15. Road Dogg was in a feud for the Hardcore title while Billy Gunn was after the IC title. In a swerve, they switched the titles they were going after. Ruined both of their storylines. Made no sense. The unpredictable switch was horrible when most people were happy with the predictable route they were going before that.

Good unpredictability is hard. You have to have a situation where it isn't logical for something to happen, then make it logical afterwards.

Wrestling isn't rocket science. It's not that hard to figure out an outcome of most matches.

 

[Rocky84]

I don't get how anyone can say predictable is good. There are plenty of times where main events weren't predictable going in. Look back at Hogan vs Warrior, HBK vs Bret, Rock vs Austin 2, Cena vs HBK, Taker vs HBK 1, Rock vs Cena 1, and even co-main events like Diesel vs Taker, Austin vs Bret, HHH vs Taker 1, Punk vs Jericho, HHH vs Taker 3, Warrior vs Macho and so on. There's tons of top matches that weren't predictable at all. And again, for the few that were, at least they had an exciting build. Like the one I mentioned in Batista vs Taker. Even the DBryan build at Mania 30 was great despite a predictable outcome.

All this stuff about losing our imagination, or knowing the way things are booked because of how long we've been watching, or because logical progression is kinda bs. We are here to be entertained. These arguments are weak because you can debunk them by asking about the recent times where there weren't predictable outcomes or builds...like some of the ones I've mentioned. And would anyone be opposed to a type of twist like the idea I had with the Undertaker? That'd be along the same storyline, but a sweet surprise and great build and unpredictable outcome. There's no reason we can't get things like that.

And again, there's the outcome, build, and matchup. At least one of them has to be great or unpredictable for a Mania main event. HHH vs Reigns has a predictable outcome, decent matchup, and boring build. Nothing exciting about that...

 

[Un-Bo-Lievable Jeff]

Someone has mentioned the short odds on Triple H winning. Fair point.

But if WWE is SO predictable and is a form of entertainment you can bet on, sell your house, throw your mortgage on your predictions and live like a king for the rest of your life.

You're gonna be right of course because WWE is so predictable, so put your money where your mouth is. Actually bet on the outcome, big money, and see where you come out. You win, we all bow down to you.

Nope? Didn't think so

 

[ShinChan]

I am going to tell you about my personal experience and opinion.

Lets go back to Wrestlemania 30. The main matches were:
1. Brock Lesnar VS The Undertaker
2. Daniel Bryan VS Triple H
3. Daniel Bryan VS Batista VS Randy Orton
Right? So I hadnot started surfing internet till that time and therefore I didnot know about the dirtsheets & spoilers. What I personally felt was that Undertaker wins again to keep the streak intact. I hoped Daniel Bryan to overcome all odds and become the Champion but I was doubtful that The Authority may screw this again. So what happened was, Brock dominantly defeated The Undertaker to break his streak and Bryan went on to become the Champion. Brock's win was unpredictable but yet not good. Bryan's win was pretty predictable to others but to me it was neither unpredictable nor predictable. Still I loved Bryan's win but sort of hated Brock's win.

So what I meant to say is:

Both Unpredictability and Predictability can either be good or bad!​

This time, Matches are predictable but still I am interested. Because the main thing that matters in a feud is that We can realistically invest in the story told by the wrestlers. Like that of Bryan's in the past and Reigns' in the present.

​

 

[Rocky84]

Someone has mentioned the short odds on Triple H winning. Fair point.

But if WWE is SO predictable and is a form of entertainment you can bet on, sell your house, throw your mortgage on your predictions and live like a king for the rest of your life.

You're gonna be right of course because WWE is so predictable, so put your money where your mouth is. Actually bet on the outcome, big money, and see where you come out. You win, we all bow down to you.

Nope? Didn't think so

Lol good idea. I bet on sports all the time and it never occurred to me to bet on WWE. I'll take your offer and post the results after wrestlemania. If I win, I want you to put up your account here too...Reigns beats HHH...you leave and never come back...I'll take that bet there smart guy.

 

[BaconBits]

Professional wrestling booking has been extremely predictable since the day it even became a thing. Sure some unpredictability happens sometimes, but to act like it's common is simply misguided.

 

[Rocky84]

Professional wrestling booking has been extremely predictable since the day it even became a thing. Sure some unpredictability happens sometimes, but to act like it's common is simply misguided.

We are talking about Wrestlemania storylines, and outcomes dude. Get with the program. In my post I've given several instances where it was not predictable in the slightest. So yea...you're wrong.

 

[BestSportsEntertainer]

We all knew Roman Reigns was going to win last year, didn't we? I also know he's going to win this year, but will he?

Predictability doesn't really matter. What matters is getting the audience invested in the storyline and characters.

Reember WM30? Everyone knew Bryan was going to win, but everyone absolutely loved it. Why? Because they were invested in Bryan's character and the storyline.

Now the questions is are people invested in Reigns and this storyline? I'm not sure. His reactions are still shaky at best, and his mic skills aren't great. Only time will tell.

 

[Rocky84]

We all knew Roman Reigns was going to win last year, didn't we? I also know he's going to win this year, but will he?

Predictability doesn't really matter. What matters is getting the audience invested in the storyline and characters.

Reember WM30? Everyone knew Bryan was going to win, but everyone absolutely loved it. Why? Because they were invested in Bryan's character and the storyline.

Now the questions is are people invested in Reigns and this storyline? I'm not sure. His reactions are still shaky at best, and his mic skills aren't great. Only time will tell.

Yea that's the thing. It's not just predictability only. There's the other things I've mentioned along with it.

#1. The matchup- HHH vs Reigns is meh as a Wrestlemania main event. Nobody really cares for it as the main match...if we had other top notch matches along with it, then ok. But right now it's tough to swallow as the headliner.

#2. The build- The build in itself is predictable, and as a result it's boring when we know pretty much everything that's going to happen...like HHH entering and winning the Rumble at #30.

#3. The outcome- It's obvious Roman will win. Even if they throw in another twist, it doesn't matter because it's the way we feel going in. That's the difference between the actual outcome possibly being a surprise and the perceived outcome.


Look at last year, they threw in a huge twist...however, I never minded last year's perceived predictable outcome because the matchup was pretty awesome. It didn't have a build, and the outcome we thought was predictable, but it had 1 of these 3 things...the matchup. That was a big one, and it was fresh and interesting. HHH vs Reigns isn't so much. It's lacking in all 3 of these aspects. The same way people miss the point on HHH vs Sting...we thought Sting would win, even though he didn't, it doesn't matter...we thought he was, but the matchup and build was pretty awesome. It had 2 out of 3, and therefore we didn't really care about the predictable outcome... unlike HHH vs Reigns.

 

[Jeff Deliverer of Mail]

I find WWE very predictable at times. I still enjoy it though and there are plenty of times when I got surprised by an outcome or run in. Triple H winning The Rumble was the latest predictable egg most could see from miles away. Now it really looks like Roman vs HHH at Mania for a Roman victory. I can't see any other outcome that makes sense. You think the WWE is going to suddenly ignore the Wyatt -Brock feud that is going on and put Brock vs Triple H ? A match that's already happened a couple of times already? Wyatt will interfere at Fastlane.
Ambrose vs Triple H won't happen either, WWE want fans to love Roman Reigns. Roman vs Triple H at Mania is a given. Roman winning at the end is also a given. All the smoke and mirrors that will be thrown in between is exactly that, just smoke and mirrors. Enjoy the ride even though the destination is pretty much dialed in to the G.P.S.