If you wish, you can blame the internet and the access to insider knowledge, blame Vince McMahon's decision to remove the very word 'wrestling' from anything related to the WWE product, you could even go so far as to blame the ever-growing popularity of the "real" sport of Mixed Martial Arts. Whatever the reason, let's always try to remember that what we're being fed now is not all that professional wrestling has to offer us; there's always fresh talent on the horizon. OVW and other developmental territories, or "farms", are churning out competitor after competitor just itching to make their debut on our TV screens... and I'm sure there's a percentage of them who don't just want to use it as a stepping stone on their way to Hollywood. BURN!!
Let's not fool ourselves, TNA are suffering a fate worse than the WWE's, and I won't argue with a guy who says the whole company is one big sinking ship. However, TNA were once rivaling WWE and were even surpassing them in terms of sheer talent. They had wrestlers who honestly believed they were pushing a greater product than the other franchises, and that echoed the cry of ECW in the Paul Heyman years. Those wrestlers believed that ECW was producing a superior product than the WWE and WCW (albeit, on a smaller budget) and many wrestling fans, including myself, would agree. If this is sounding all too familiar then you may have read Chris Jericho's Undisputed where he states, in a nutshell, that the talent in TNA can not see past the WWE and recognise their own abilities and opportunities.
TNA are hardly doing themselves any favours; in a two hour episode of iMPACT! we're maybe seeing 4 actual matches, none of which actually seem to end by submission or pinfall, but usually by DQ due to interference. We're then given about an hour of Hogan's embarrassing mic skills, Karen Angle screeching incessantly, and these personal backstage vignettes with Sting/RVD/Mr. Anderson. Meanwhile, there's a locker room full of talent just waiting and waiting and waiting...
What really bothers me though, is that TNA are basically saying to their fans "We'll give you a real show... on pay-per-view." The weekly house shows are simply becoming storyline builders; laying the foundation for the upcoming PPV, which is fine, that's how the wrestling game works. But what they have to remember is that if they're not showcasing their talent on a weekly basis then no one is going to bother tuning in for the Lockdowns or Victory Roads. Dixie Carter, Jeff Jarrett or whoever is pulling the strings behind the curtain needs to realise that iMPACT! is their bread and butter, and without it their company and their employees are going to lose money, lose talent, and, ultimately, lose their jobs.
Up North, as they say, the WWE has some problems of their own. It's not talent related; if anything, their talent base is looking better than it has done in years. It's not financial either; I think it's safe to say that Vince McMahon never needs to worry about that. It's a marketing problem, I suppose, or a moral one, if you feel strongly enough about it. The decision by Vince McMahon to abolish the term 'wrestling' from the company name, and to forbid his employees from uttering the cursed term at all, is beyond ridiculous, and stating that WWE doesn't stand for anything, is more idiotic than anything; he could have at least suggested an alternative. However, I don't imagine that this will be a problem for long, I expect Vince will soon reinvent the company under a whole new name, logo etc. This wouldn't bother me a fraction as much, were it not for the rich history of the WWE, WWF, WWWF etc.
It's bad enough that they had to re-write history when they lost the legal rights to the WWF name to a bunch of hippies, but now they're basically spitting on their long-standing titles, their Hall of Fame, the very thing that bought Vince McMahon his many homes, cars and private jets. Basically, what he's saying to wrestling now - whether he means to or not - is "thanks, but I've met someone else." To his credit, it doesn't look as though McMahon has let the high quality of his entertainment slide (Wrestlemania aside) but it's still early days, so we'll wait and see.
What did make me think, though, was when I read that CM Punk rejected a new contract from the WWE. Sure, he's not in the top-flight right now and, personally, I think tying him to the Nexus is dragging him down, but he's more successful now - in certain aspects - than he was in the Indy circuits. He's traded the uncertainty of a job and a paycheck for a regular wage and hectic work schedule, which many wrestlers cite as the real killer of professional wrestling. Whatever Punk's reasons may be, I honestly believe that dropping the term 'wrestling' from the company altogether will discourage wrestlers - true wrestlers, like Punk - from joining, in the fears that it may reflect badly on them in the eyes of the smaller promotions and hardcore fans. But, at the end of the day, Vince McMahon's the one counting his millions and I'm sitting at home watching last night's RAW on YouTube. Touchè, Vince.
Let's not fool ourselves, TNA are suffering a fate worse than the WWE's, and I won't argue with a guy who says the whole company is one big sinking ship. However, TNA were once rivaling WWE and were even surpassing them in terms of sheer talent. They had wrestlers who honestly believed they were pushing a greater product than the other franchises, and that echoed the cry of ECW in the Paul Heyman years. Those wrestlers believed that ECW was producing a superior product than the WWE and WCW (albeit, on a smaller budget) and many wrestling fans, including myself, would agree. If this is sounding all too familiar then you may have read Chris Jericho's Undisputed where he states, in a nutshell, that the talent in TNA can not see past the WWE and recognise their own abilities and opportunities.
TNA are hardly doing themselves any favours; in a two hour episode of iMPACT! we're maybe seeing 4 actual matches, none of which actually seem to end by submission or pinfall, but usually by DQ due to interference. We're then given about an hour of Hogan's embarrassing mic skills, Karen Angle screeching incessantly, and these personal backstage vignettes with Sting/RVD/Mr. Anderson. Meanwhile, there's a locker room full of talent just waiting and waiting and waiting...
What really bothers me though, is that TNA are basically saying to their fans "We'll give you a real show... on pay-per-view." The weekly house shows are simply becoming storyline builders; laying the foundation for the upcoming PPV, which is fine, that's how the wrestling game works. But what they have to remember is that if they're not showcasing their talent on a weekly basis then no one is going to bother tuning in for the Lockdowns or Victory Roads. Dixie Carter, Jeff Jarrett or whoever is pulling the strings behind the curtain needs to realise that iMPACT! is their bread and butter, and without it their company and their employees are going to lose money, lose talent, and, ultimately, lose their jobs.
Up North, as they say, the WWE has some problems of their own. It's not talent related; if anything, their talent base is looking better than it has done in years. It's not financial either; I think it's safe to say that Vince McMahon never needs to worry about that. It's a marketing problem, I suppose, or a moral one, if you feel strongly enough about it. The decision by Vince McMahon to abolish the term 'wrestling' from the company name, and to forbid his employees from uttering the cursed term at all, is beyond ridiculous, and stating that WWE doesn't stand for anything, is more idiotic than anything; he could have at least suggested an alternative. However, I don't imagine that this will be a problem for long, I expect Vince will soon reinvent the company under a whole new name, logo etc. This wouldn't bother me a fraction as much, were it not for the rich history of the WWE, WWF, WWWF etc.
It's bad enough that they had to re-write history when they lost the legal rights to the WWF name to a bunch of hippies, but now they're basically spitting on their long-standing titles, their Hall of Fame, the very thing that bought Vince McMahon his many homes, cars and private jets. Basically, what he's saying to wrestling now - whether he means to or not - is "thanks, but I've met someone else." To his credit, it doesn't look as though McMahon has let the high quality of his entertainment slide (Wrestlemania aside) but it's still early days, so we'll wait and see.
What did make me think, though, was when I read that CM Punk rejected a new contract from the WWE. Sure, he's not in the top-flight right now and, personally, I think tying him to the Nexus is dragging him down, but he's more successful now - in certain aspects - than he was in the Indy circuits. He's traded the uncertainty of a job and a paycheck for a regular wage and hectic work schedule, which many wrestlers cite as the real killer of professional wrestling. Whatever Punk's reasons may be, I honestly believe that dropping the term 'wrestling' from the company altogether will discourage wrestlers - true wrestlers, like Punk - from joining, in the fears that it may reflect badly on them in the eyes of the smaller promotions and hardcore fans. But, at the end of the day, Vince McMahon's the one counting his millions and I'm sitting at home watching last night's RAW on YouTube. Touchè, Vince.
