WWE and Wrestling in general - popularity.

[BestWrestlingOpinions]

Alright, we all have been reading a lot about how a certain Superstar is getting over, or how he doesn't, how good someone is on the mic / in the ring etc, while someone else fails, others got charisma and others don't. On those points, there are BIG Superstars (Cena / Punk / Orton), and there are others who are close to them (Bryan / Ziggler / Shield / Rhodes). So, there comes the time where people ask about if Cena can surpass Hogan, Punk can go toe-to-toe with Austin, who is the next Lesnar etc.

I was reading a thread earlier about Cena and Hogan and if Cena can tie/surpass Hogan in popularity and recognition. I really don't know the answer to this and I wouldn't like to go over it in this thread, although I will use it to launch another heated question:

Why do we think that today's wrestlers can't beat the Hogan-era ones / Attitude-era ones? Is it because they are actually not as good? I don't think so. Let's elaborate.

When WWF decided to go national on TV, it was a huge step to bring professional wrestling some exposure. Hogan played a big part of it, being credited as the face of the WWF, their superhero, their "Cena". WCW came around later, we have the Monday Night Wars, which, in the end, with the help of Austin, WWF managed to come over the top. Then, we had great Superstars dominating the Main-Event / High Uppercard (Rock, Austin, HHH, Y2J, Angle etc etc) and then WWF changed to WWE. Few years passed, Cena became the face of the WWE up until now, with Punk coming really close as the most popular Superstar at the moment. But here is the problem:

We know about the similarities of Cena and Hogan, and in my opinion, they are the same person. As far as Punk and Austin go, they have contrasting styles, but Punk is better in the ring. There are more comparisons to be made, but most people will say that the "past Superstars" are better than the new ones. Is this the case because they are actually better, or is it simply because wrestling isn't popular anymore?

-There is a way bigger percentage of people today that knows professional wrestling is scripted, as opposed to the older days, which kinda takes away the passion (not dumping on wrestling). Therefore, because of that, people tend to look wrestling fans as nerds and all that, which is really annoying and, as a result, in order for people to stop being offended, they just don't watch and prefer to bash wrestling to look cool, which in essence means that it loses popularity and fanbase.
-Everything has been done before. When Austin went against the corporation, it was huge. Possibly the most successful story in the history of the WWF/WWE. The reason, though, it was so successful (apart from the fact that Vince and Austin were A+ at their segments and performances in general), is that it was the first time it had been done, at least in such a grand scale. Up until recently, we had Bryan going up against the corporation too, but let's be honest, no one was so hyped about it as much as we were for Austin. Many can blame this on the booking, but, to be completely fair, rehashing a story line of old because it was successful is not good TV always. We know the ending, we know how it goes because we have seen it before. We are not as excited because of that and therefore, we tend to blame the Superstars involved for its "failure", while it is the storyline itself. Sure, the booking plays a huge part, but it is just as much the booking can do. Cm Punk's pipebomb character went over so much because it was new and exciting. The booking was bad (he lost to HHH), but he was still exciting and went over huge. That's why Punk is considered one of the best today.
-The internet. This is the most crucial factor. There is just so much product being put on the internet nowadays (not just wrestling) that is quite as entertaining as wrestling and people want to see, but this is just so much time. As a result, people tend to stray away from watching wrestling and instead read results on dirtsheets etc. This really takes away the buzz that can be created. Personally, I watch a lot of shows but I watch every Raw, Smackdown and sometimes Main Event (and of course the PPVs). When people can just read the results and story on the internet, it takes away the excitement of watching it. Sure, the product might not be as good today, because there are a lot of fillers in the 3-hour show, along with the PG crap, but people tend to shit all over wrestling nowadays, without even watching it.
-One last factor: Wrestling isn't wrestling anymore. It's just a business that uses wrestling as a base to make money. Vince cares more about social connections with Susan G. Komen, Make a Wish, Be a Star, than actually put on a good wrestling show, and this is why diehard wrestling fans tend to strive away, along with the casual fans too.

All the above points should really give you guys a pretty much realistic perspective of why wrestling isn't just popular anymore. It isn't as exciting and cool as it was back in the day and therefore, today's Superstars will never be viewed as #1 guys. You have a role in a B-rate movie, you are a B-rated actor; you have a role in a A-rate movie, you are a A-rated actor. That's why Cena and Punk and Bryan will never be as great. Not because of personal charisma/ talent, but because wrestling is just B-rate now.

Discuss.

 

[DDevine]

First off, say no to rape. Rape is bad, m'kay? You should also get yourself checked on a regular basis for any STD's...or mental illness.

Second, or should I say, primarily, though...

I think part of the factor is nostalgia. Those were the days we were more into it, and so we fondly remember them. For example, when I was a kid, I thought Power Rangers was the be all and end all for afternoon/after-school tv shows. I recently watched some of it again (yay Netflix!), and I cannot say that it has the same appeal to me. Where as then, it was cool because of the martial arts, and what I perceived to be cool special effects (for the time, they weren't really bad...there are movies nowadays which are less aesthetic than it), and how no matter what trials they faced, they overcame through perseverance and teamwork. Then there were also times when they didn't quite overcome it, and we'd be left with a cliffhanger. Now, I look back and see it differently. The acting is horrible, the effects are really cheesy. There is really no character development, Tommy is still considered the cool one because he has the most charisma, and I sometimes joke about how retrospectively racist it kinda was (the black ranger was the token black guy, yellow was Asian, etc.). But I remember coming home from school and doing karate around the living room while they kicked Lord Zed's butt, and I love the memories.

Also, we've grown up since then. No matter what age we were then, we're not that age now (unless your last name is MacLeod or Cullen). Our interests have changed. Where we were once teenagers, worrying about girls and school, we're now adults...worrying about girls...and work...okay, it sounds similar, but it's slightly different, different enough that it matters. Where once we cared about if Gilligan would ever get off the island, we started wondering about if the cast of Lost would ever get off the island. Watch MTV. Does it have music on it? Is it as much as when we thought MTV was cool? We've grown up, and so have our tastes. PB & J is no longer the be all, end all. But sometimes, that's all Vince has in his pantry. We may get a different kinda jelly from time to time. He may switch brands or consistency in peanut butter. Heck, he may even cut off the crusts for us. But that's what he has, because that's what HE likes, and that's what he's going to feed us.

That last statement being said, there is a new generation out there that still loves PB & J. A generation that thinks MTV is the greatest thing ever. A generation that can't watch Lost because it comes on after their bed time (yes, I am aware that it's not on tv anymore, just stay with me, it's an example). And who do you think thinks that Cena is the greatest of all time? Is it our generation, that remembers the Monday Night Wars, and "The Unstoppable Force VS The Immovable Object"? Or is it this new generation, that will be groomed and pampered until they start to ween on the idea of pro wrestling, and they get their own "Attitude" their own "Wars"? History has a way of repeating itself, and though to most it may seem the same, as Vanilla Ice once stated, that extra little "duh" can make all the difference.

 

[scott212a1]

yeah man like i have been watching wwe for over 27 years i watched it from saturday night main event to today and i understand why they had to reinvent the products and i agree with you about being nostalgic i honestly think i will watch wrestleing till either wwe goes out of business and wcw had more going for it before nwo than tna has the last few years and second i will either go to my grave if wwe is still around than

 

[FlairFan2003]

A big part of the perception that wrestling as an industry isnt as popular is because there is no WCW. Ratings for WWE today are roughly what they were during the early days of The Monday Night Wars (Superhero Hogan vs Flair/Horsemen in WCW vs Brett Hart & The New Generation WWE), maybe slightly higher. The problem is WCW had an entire audience roughly equal or higher in TV Ratings and competitive in live attendance and PPV buys. Those fans are gone, so the national audience is nearly 50% down.

It is true that the audience increased at the height of the MN Wars, much of that I think was older fans, largely WCW-NWA fans but some older WWE fans as well that started watching again (because much of WCW programming revolved around 80s stars like Hogan, Flair, Randy Savage, Sting, & Lex Luger, even during the heyday of the NWO angle). Many of these fans simply switched to WWE when they embraced a much more raunchy, adult, less kid friendly programming style. The total audience watching was roughly the same through the end of 2000, with shifts in which company got the lions share. The audience started declining after WCW went under, and as the few top stars of the older times disappeared or greatly reduced their work load (Austin, Rock, Flair, HBK, HHH, Taker, Hogan) the older audience continued to exit.

You can point at the promotional style in terms of scripted promos, booking committees, Changes in matches regarding the elimination of chair shots and blood, all things that older fans, nostalgic for prior eras, complain about. Fact is the biggest loss of audience is the WCW-NWA fans that wont watch WWE or wrestling in general now that their product is gone. The die hard WWE fan base is roughly the same as its always been, the kids and tweens (Cena's fan base) are still there, but with half the potential viewing audience gone (fans did cross watch even if they mostly followed one brand) it is harder to build mega stars, because mega stars appealed to fans of both products. We will probably never see a period like 83-89 or 96-00 ever again.

 

[TWJC: The Beginning]

If you think that wrestling has ever been seen by the general public as anything other than B-rate, you're delusional. WWE is on the verge of a billion dollar contract. It's too 5 in weekly social media mentions, usually the most viewed programmed on their channel, heavily torrented, heavily youtubed, what else do you want? I'm so sick of this nonsense you guys spew about wrestling's popularity.

Most of it is because you guys have no concept of the media industry. You literally cannot compare ratings today vs 10 years ago. Totally different market. Totally different dynamic. A 3.0 today means something different than a 3.0 10 years ago. You don't compare how many tweets guys have today vs the attitude era so why the hell would you compare ratings? The viewership pie is divided so much more than before. Cable is dying.