Would the WWE really be better if they went back to their old ways?

[Radical]

After reading the Hell in a Cell card on the WrestleZone main page and seeing the comments about the card and seeing people say it was unimpressive and boring and "we've seen it before already!" being the main complains, it had me wondering.

At first, I was thinking, "Don't be so negative. The card is solid. It has good match-ups with wrestlers who we know can put on a good show (maybe a few 'wild cards' but mostly well-known solid performers) so why complain?" Really, this has become very standard WWE match making. Most WWE PPVs have matches where the wrestlers involved in the match have faced off in various forms of matches against each other for 3 or 4 weeks before the match actually happens. There are only rare occasions with situations like Brock Lesnar vs another wrestler or Sting where the wrestlers in the PPV match aren't really fighting each other much until the actual PPV.

The question is: Would it be better financially for WWE if they went back to the old ways where your Raw and SmackDown's had mostly jobber matches to build up your top wrestlers and then have promos and run-ins or interference in matches from the feuding wrestlers to build intrigue and interest into the PPV match.

If you think that seeing more jobber matches on Raw and SmackDown will lead to more interest and buys of the PPV or Network then that means you believe seeing more matches like: Roman Reigns vs Bo Dallas, Randy Orton vs Heath Slater, Sheamus vs Fandango, Dudley Boyz vs Los Matadores.

Fans ALREADY complain about how 'boring' Raw and SmackDown are and that's with shows that contain matches with top stars vs top stars. Imagine how much more heat WWE would get if you tuned into Raw and you saw 90% jobber matches just so that the wrestlers in the PPV feud match didn't actually face each other until the night.


So, what do you think?

Would it be better business for WWE to go back to the old ways of having more jobber matches on Raw and SmackDown to build up the top stars going into their PPV match and so you wouldn't see them face off against each other barely at all until the actual PPV?

or

Do you think WWE should keep doing what they are doing and basically have a lot of different type of matches where those wrestlers in a feud are facing off against each other, usually in tag matches or having one wrestler face their opponent's group members to see how they 'stack up' heading into their big match?

 

[Jack-Hammer]

Would it be better business for WWE to go back to the old ways of having more jobber matches on Raw and SmackDown to build up the top stars going into their PPV match and so you wouldn't see them face off against each other barely at all until the actual PPV?

Not in the least. The days in which you could watch a top star wrestle on television in a 2 minute squash match drawn out to 5 or 6 minutes and keep audiences entertained are LONG gone.

When some fans complain that wrestling isn't as good as it used to be, they only seem to focus on a handful of very specific instances while leaving out all the negatives. For instance, many of those complainers go on & on about Austin or The Rock, but they forget about all the lousy stuff that went on during the Attitude Era and there was quite a lot of it. Some look back on those days, and earlier days such as the 80s and the first half of the 90s through rose colored glasses and remember everything as being some sort of grand epic when few things could be further from the truth. I'll take watching Cena vs. Ziggler, Rusev vs. Ryback, Barrett vs. Neville over the Honky Tonk Man vs. Barry Horowitz any day of the week and anytime of the day.

One old school aspect that, in my opinion and that's all it is, that WWE should re-adopt is going back to simple, logical storytelling that fans can easily relate and buy into. It never goes out of style and it's just one of the numerous reasons why NXT's praise continues to grow every week. For instance, we don't really care that Paige is being booked to look like a petulant brat who's mommy wouldn't buy it a toy at Wal-Mart; what we would care about is seeing Paige booked as a competent, passionate athlete who cares about being the Divas Champion and is willing step on everyone to get what she wants. Also, Vince's schizophrenic booking needs to just flat out stop; he needs to stop changing storylines when they're right smack in the middle of things. Make up your fucking mind, give something some time to be fleshed out, see how it works out due to the response of fans and then make a decision on things to change or to scrap the storyline altogether. These are very simple, very logical time tested aspects of pro wrestling that never really go out of style. The entertaining in-ring action is there, the roster packed with talent & potential is there, what isn't there is the simple, consistent creative decisions that fans can easily invest in.

 

[mkw1962]

That would not be to bad maybe have a few of those squash matches only to start a feud for the next pay per view. I like seeing all the big stars fight every week, but than again where is Fandango, Heath, Jack, Adam or even Miz. There is to many wrestlers and not enough t.v. time for them all.
The real problem is the writing and the same old feuds, how long has Roman and Bray been fighting, lets get some excitement back on t.v. I am not sure how but the old squash matches would be cool to start off feuds.

 

[Radical]

The real problem is the writing and the same old feuds, how long has Roman and Bray been fighting, lets get some excitement back on t.v. I am not sure how but the old squash matches would be cool to start off feuds.

I agree, to an extent, about getting some fresh feuds and not all ones we've seen before but, there is something to be said for a few, select long-term feuds.

The Wyatts vs any member of the former Shield is one of those epic feuds. I'm not saying it should go on forever but it has history behind it and it's still got legs to be an interesting feud, especially with a new character introduced and maybe some more surprises like where will Rowan fit into the puzzle when he's back?

Other than that, I like seeing new feuds but LOGICAL feuds. Kevin Owens vs Ryback has been good. It's pretty basic: Owens is cocky and arrogant and mocks Ryback and all his 'needing to read and think positively' while Owens just thinks that makes him weak-minded. Ryback counters back by being strong willed and confident.

Some people complain a lot, but when you really think about it, the OVERALL talent and entertainment value in most matches in WWE is quite high and that's probably why WWE still is doing pretty good after all these years.

They still could improve, though!

 

[Jeff Deliverer of Mail]

There's nothing wrong with a dominating type squash match to make a monstrous wrestler seem unstoppable heading to a PPV. I actually looked forward to a Van Vader vs A Jobber match as Vader just clobbered any no name who dared step in the ring with him.

Braun Stroman could look awesome destroying three jobbers at once while he heads towards a PPV.

Demolition were also extremely rough on no names back in the day. I'm not saying make the whole program having squash matches but Ziegler vs Rusev every week completely dulls the PPV match when it happens.

Back when Stars vs Stars was a rare thing on television it made the PPV more fresh and anticipation was higher because they've never fought each other before. That's what was special about Hulk Hogan.. he wasn't on regular t.v in a match very much..but when he started a new rivalry with someone like The Warrior or Andre The Giant , it was super special because they never fight each other.

Another big difference is that back then, there was no RAW or SmackDown. The WWF would have to highlight matches ( taped ) from areas across the U.S.

 

[kadroan]

After reading the Hell in a Cell card on the WrestleZone main page and seeing the comments about the card and seeing people say it was unimpressive and boring and "we've seen it before already!" being the main complains, it had me wondering.

At first, I was thinking, "Don't be so negative. The card is solid. It has good match-ups with wrestlers who we know can put on a good show (maybe a few 'wild cards' but mostly well-known solid performers) so why complain?" Really, this has become very standard WWE match making. Most WWE PPVs have matches where the wrestlers involved in the match have faced off in various forms of matches against each other for 3 or 4 weeks before the match actually happens. There are only rare occasions with situations like Brock Lesnar vs another wrestler or Sting where the wrestlers in the PPV match aren't really fighting each other much until the actual PPV.

The question is: Would it be better financially for WWE if they went back to the old ways where your Raw and SmackDown's had mostly jobber matches to build up your top wrestlers and then have promos and run-ins or interference in matches from the feuding wrestlers to build intrigue and interest into the PPV match.

If you think that seeing more jobber matches on Raw and SmackDown will lead to more interest and buys of the PPV or Network then that means you believe seeing more matches like: Roman Reigns vs Bo Dallas, Randy Orton vs Heath Slater, Sheamus vs Fandango, Dudley Boyz vs Los Matadores.

Fans ALREADY complain about how 'boring' Raw and SmackDown are and that's with shows that contain matches with top stars vs top stars. Imagine how much more heat WWE would get if you tuned into Raw and you saw 90% jobber matches just so that the wrestlers in the PPV feud match didn't actually face each other until the night.


So, what do you think?

Would it be better business for WWE to go back to the old ways of having more jobber matches on Raw and SmackDown to build up the top stars going into their PPV match and so you wouldn't see them face off against each other barely at all until the actual PPV?

or

Do you think WWE should keep doing what they are doing and basically have a lot of different type of matches where those wrestlers in a feud are facing off against each other, usually in tag matches or having one wrestler face their opponent's group members to see how they 'stack up' heading into their big match?

Jobber matches are still going now, just like any other time. The only thing I've noticed differently is you don't have the IC/US champion jobbing out to the WWE WHC/WWE WHC #1 contender which is a good thing. I used to hate seeing the IC/US champ lose just to make themselves look good.

One thing I've noticed looking at past wrestling shows, you had more high profile matches.

Ex: Stone Cold/The Rock would be tag team partners on a RAW.

Now: We won't see a Brock or Taker in a match until a PPV. It'd be nice to see Brock/Rollins vs. Taker/Kane on a RAW, even if it isn't a clean finish. Just give people a reason to tune in vs. what we get now, Rollins/a random heel tag team vs. Kane/the face tag team that's feuding with the heel champs.

 

[LBGetBack]

The problem is there's just too much programming for things to ever feel fresh, and that's a problem that's not going away......so the answer is the storytelling needs to be so good that familiar matchups feel fresh and exciting anyways.

Look at back in the 80's and early 90's(4 PPV's per year, pre-Raw days) and think about how many dream matches/feuds never really happened despite many superstars being in the WWF at the same time for YEARS. Feuds would often last for half a year(sometimes even more), and guys could be in the company for a decade and still not feud with many of the other longtime guys. Like...did Roddy Piper and Tito Santana ever wrestle? In this era they would've had multiple feuds. How about Jake Roberts and Bret Hart? The Hart Foundation lasted for like 7 years so they both wrestled singles in the WWF at the same time for only like a year. Now? The Hart Foundations entire run would've happened in like 2 years at the most, and Bret would've wrestled someone like Jake multiple times and had at least one feud with him. How about Rick Martel and Hulk Hogan? I don't know that they ever wrestled on TV(not counting Royal Rumble matches and Survivor Series matches). In this era, Hulk would've beaten Martel one on one on Raw like 4 times every year for the last few years.

Nowadays, that's almost impossible. Most feuds have already happened before. And even if they haven't, the wrestlers have usually at least had multiple matches against each other on Raw.

The only way to "fix" this would be to cut down on PPVs and make Raw shorter, and ditch Smackdown. We all know those things aren't happening for financial reasons.....and that makes sense. A return to the 80's style pace simply isn't realistic.

Not having "fresh" matchups wouldn't be a big deal if the angles and stories were actually good. HHH and Rock and Austin and Rock had wrestled dozens of times back in the day, but those matchups were always exciting. They usually aren't, nowadays because the stories usually suck. This is the most realistic fix, seemingly, but we've been saying it for so long that you have to wonder if it will ever happen.

 

[whoopin' ass]

The only old way wwe needs to go back there is building the storylines around the people the fans like instead of building it around who they like. That is the big issue. Look at the target audience - they are not old enough to remember a time when wwe wasn't the only game around so when wwe tells them this guy is dangerous, he is dangerous to them even if he accomplishes nothing. wwe tells and the universe follows because this is how they think it works. Problem is the ratings show that wwe has lost a great deal of its previous audience, namely all of us who don't want to follow along. Now when it comes to being more successful, that's a tough one. Even though they are losing money in shows and such, thier outside deals are making them a ton of cash. So right now, changing is not going to help them financially. How long will this last though is the big question. Wrestling does go through phases - wwe was doing similar things like this in the 80's and it worked for a while until people found it hokey and stopped watching it. I think at some point wwe is going to need to return to a more adult style and listen to the fans more but it wouldn't be any time soon.

 

[The Samoan Heritage]

I really miss the days of wwe using local jobbers to make up and comers like Harper, Rusev, Ryback, etc look good. Could you image how much hype a Rusev and Ryback feud would've had had both been build up the same. They could've even had both guys one up each other. One week Rusev faces 2 guys and the next Ryback faces 3. Ryback sheel shocks two guys and next week Rusev hits his submission on two guys at once.
It would've been huge now they've fought countless times that no one cares to see them against each other. Same could even be said about Rollins/Ambrose and Cesaro/Sheamus but that's not the problem.

The problem IMO is that wwe has actually listen to the fans and given us more wrestling.
Raw: 20 minute promo, divas segment which leads into a match( or just 2 diva matches with no build), pointless tag match, pointless lower card matches, Cena open challenge, and the main event usually consisting of the mid card champions, world champion and their contenders.
Were are the segments that were used to get wrestlers/matches/feuds over.

*completely random examples*
1- Austin. Beer truck
2. Eddie/Los Guerreros- Lie/Cheat/Stealing
3. MVP/Hardy sport challenges
4. Angle/Lesnar segments
5. Rey Mysterio/Benoit/Guerrero World title wins
6. Vince making Theodore Long the GM of Smackdown. Look how many guys were fighting over a mid card title.
7. Big Show chokeslaming Angle off of a balcony
8. APA
9. Undertaker and his mind games
10. Jamie Noble/Nidia/Torrie Wilson/Gunn

We don't get parking lot brawls in heated feuds. We don't see guys mysteriously laid out in the back. We don't have segments taking place outside of the arena any more.

Nothing happens to get anyone talking about a superstar any more, unless its a debut or a heel/face turn.
The closest we get to segments like those now days are when we get the occasional Miz Tv. (Which has been horrible the last 5 or more times)

 

[Eyebrows]

Instead of squash matches with no backstory or feud, a way to do it that makes it more interesting is to make little micro-stories that play out over the course of the night that still tie into the big picture feud.

Say a face is having a hard time dealing with a heels' submission and is due to square off at the PPV, have him face off against submission specialists to try and hone his skills, overcoming smaller obstacles on the way to the match. (Not that there are any submission specialists left).

Or with the Ziggler/Rusev storyline. They could have had Fandango approach Rusev in a backstage segment, talk about his problems with Summer and Ziggler last year, talk a bit of trash about her. Then Rusev squashes him later in the night. Smaller story in a bigger arc.

Keeps wrestlers apart, has wrestlers interact with a wider variety of characters, gives us some backstage segments with something a little different and keeps feuds going without having stale match ups all the time.

 

[FlairFan2003]

You cant put the Genie back in the bottle so to speak. The televised aspects of Pro Wrestling changed so long ago (1995/early 96 due to Monday Nitro willingness to book its biggest stars like Savage, Flair, Sting etc in main event quality matches on free TV every week) that an entire generation of fans grew up basically knowing that style of presentation as the "standard" - and that isn't event the generation that is watching the product today, those people are the NWO/Attiude Era fans that largely quit watching over the previous decade with A) The end of WCW B) the Retirement or near retirements of the era's biggest stars they were most enamored with (Austin, Rock, Foley, Flair, Hogan, Sting, HHH, HBK, Hart, Taker). Essentially the last TWO cycles of wrestling fans have never really known that "old school" style of presentation. It would be viewed as boring and major step backwards to revert to that programming now.

Wrestling, when it's peaking, not only draws in larger numbers of new fans (current generation) they get the previous generation to return to the product as well. This was definitely true in the mid-late 90s when a lot of 80s fans who had slowly drifted away returned because of Hogan, Savage, Sting, Flair, etc.....then saw some characters they remembered in WWE (Taker, Hart) and watched that product as well. If you returned to the jobber/squash match days of TV presentation today the current fans would not be impressed and any hopes of getting any of the previous eras fans to return would be almost gone (unless you did something dramatic like had Austin come out of retirement and face Rock in Loser Leaves WWE Forever Match with Foley as the guest ref and Flair & Hogan each siding with one of the combatants as their ringside managers and then the winner faces Taker in a Casket Match on the same show).

That's not say there aren't changes that could get made - there are plenty but that's another topic.

 

[Messiah]

Half of the roster are jobbers anyway, they're just not local jobbers. There are no top stars in WWE except maybe 4 or 5 guys. The rest of them don't mean shit, the fans just don't care enough, that's why they tune out and the ratings are in the dump.

 

[Prince Vee]

I'll take watching Cena vs. Ziggler, Rusev vs. Ryback, Barrett vs. Neville over the Honky Tonk Man vs. Barry Horowitz any day of the week and anytime of the day.

Don't we? We always do enjoy such matches but only when we're a real wrestling fan and that's the problem. I would go and watch Dean Ambrose vs Seth Rollins or Barrett vs Sheamus for hours. But the thing is, WWE got plenty of talents now in the backyard. Instead of making squash matches for the top stars, they probably should let them lock horns with tough competitors and let their feud to interfere and make disqualification. This might can build up both the top star in the formidable feud and the the competitor to grow at least a tad.

Then certainly Raw or SmackDown won't be shit anymore to watch.

Cheers!!