I went to Wrestlemania 28 this year. It was awesome. The feel, the place, and the fact that I counted it as a holiday. This was my third Mania and I am now getting a feel of what to expect. Axxess had a familiar feel this year, but added a few new things, and the event itself was a world better than Wrestlemania 27.
The night after Mania, I attended RAW. The Miami crowd were crazy, and I know they came across as hot on TV, but to actually be there was one of the great wrestling experiences I think I will ever have. A guy dressed in all Macho Man gear in the front row got the crowd going nuts during CM Punk's match against Mark Henry, The Rock got an outstanding reaction, and to my surprise, so did Brodus Clay. The man they all wanted to see that night (and no it wasn't Brock), was Daniel Bryan. All the 'Yes; chants from the start of the night to the end, really encompassed what the fans were telling the WWE. Now Bryan wasn't on the show, but as soon as they were off the air, we were treated to a six man tag match, and sure enough, Flight Of The Valkyries hit, and if you think Lesnar got a reaction, this, if it was possible, was bigger.
Enough about my experience, as that is not what this piece is about. I just wanted to set the scene coming into Wrestlemania. Because what is funny is, after Mania, I have since watched one episode of RAW. It would be kind of like continuing American Football after the Superbowl. A lot of people in the IWC, have been whispering about the idea of an off season for the WWE. Now as financially non-viable as this may seem, it has its pro's and con's.
The first pro is obvious. The time off for not just the wrestlers but the creative team would be met well. It gives them all time to recharge, heal injuries, come up with decent stories, and most of all, it keeps the fans wanting to see their favourite performers. I guess, more importantly than that, Vince would actually get some time off. Who knows, if you kept Cena off TV for a few months, maybe some of the older fans would enjoy seeing him back...then again, maybe not. But when you consider that some members of the roster work hurt, it really does make a lot of sense. Rey Mysterio for example may not have taken pain pills and got himself suspended if he had time off to heal.
Another pro in this circumstance is that people will be more inclined to pay more money for PPV's if they don't get 13 of them per year. Keeping the PayPerView idea in short supply creates more of a demand when they actually come around. That is why the big four always did so well.
One more would be the attraction from other wrestlers outside of the company if there was an off season to bring in newer talent. I know Kurt Angle is retiring in two years, but had this been implemented before, Kurt may have reconsidered. The workload was always too much for Kurt, and you can see that in the amount of weight he has lost since being in TNA. But if you are looking at TNA talent, who knows? An off season would be very interesting to those performers who deem their current workplace to not be giving them what they need. Its an interesting avenue to go down.
But with that, there are obviously the cons. First and foremost, finances. Vince McMahon is money driven. If you took away three months of programming, the company would initially lose money. From advertisers, the TV networks, loss of PPV buys, and of course, live ticket sales. Sure, this does seem like a big hit. But the WWE has lived without this before. Going back to the PPV thing, if you had a choice of buying lets say seven decent PPV's, instead of thirteen, you would consider it more no? The quality of these PPV's would be better, which in turn would engage more people to buy. Wrestlemania this year has allegedly done as many buys for one PPV, as all of the B PPV's over the year. That is saying something. Saturating the market much? With the inclusion of the WWE Network, the WWE doesn't have to go away entirely. It can still stay relevant and charge people the $60 a month it wants to. This is, of course is all theory related, and in terms of numbers, I am merely going on the information they we as fans are all given.
The only other relevant con, is that, lets say the WWE went on hiatus straight after Mania. Daniel Bryan was getting very over after his 18 second loss to Sheamus. His ability to 'grab the brass ring' would have been taken away, as would have been his potential push. He is the hottest property in WWE right now, and if they went away for three months, would he still have the same marketability when he returned? All very good questions.
So I am sure the debate will rage on, and after reading this back, it does appear that I am in favour of a break for the company on the whole, as I feel it would keep people wanting. What do you think?
Tuesday, 5 June 2012
Tuesday, 10 January 2012
The WWE Hall Of Fame 2012
So out of all the front runners, Edge has been chosen as the man to 'main event' the WWE Hall Of Fame class of 2012.
After a visit to a wrestling forum on the topic of Edge being inducted, there were many who were happy with his inclusion. There were many who were happy, but felt that there were others more deserving of the accolade in front of Edge. And then, as there always are, were the people who were not happy and thought it to be too soon.
Me, I'm happy for Adam Copeland. I think he is just as deserving as anyone to be inducted into the Hall Of Fame. Lets look at his career. He started with the WWE in 1997, thus has given a good 14 years to the company that bore him and brought him in. In 1998 Adam Copeland debuted on TV for the first time as Edge, a loner character that entered the arena through the crowd.
He won 14 tag team championships, most of them as part of a team with his on screen brother Christian. He won five Intercontinental titles, one US title and was WWE and World Heavyweight Champion 11 times. His total belt tally over his career hit an amazing 31.
On top of all that, he is one of only two men in the companies history to hold all men's titles. He won the King Of The Ring Tournament in 2001 and the Royal Rumble in 2010. It's hard to argue with facts.
At 38, Edge will be the youngest inductee into the Hall Of Fame (next to Eddie Guerrero who was also 38, but older in days)and a lot of the criticism hotting the IWC is that he is too young and the company should wait a while before inducting him. My question is, why? He will never wrestle again, that is fact. Strike while the iron is hot. The wrestling world has a short memory and while we as fans do not, I believe that a Hall Of Fame induction in five years time would not have the powerful heart felt reaction that I am sure it will on March 31st this year. Age has nothing to do with it. People are also stating that there are others more deserving of the spotlight this year. I partly agree as there are many men and women who deserve recognition, but you have to look at the politics surrounding the big names that people are dropping into conversation.
The Macho Man Randy Savage for example. He is more than worthy of a place in the Hall Of Fame, but if all of the rumours about his alleged affair with an under age Stephanie McMahon are to be believed, then I don't think we will ever see him in the WWE Hall Of Fame. Owen Hart I'm sure will come through sooner rather than later I just don't think it will be this year. With everything from Owen's widow threatening to go legal at the very sight of her late husband on WWE's programming, and the WWE's careful treading, it may be a while before we see this, or for that matter, an Owen Hart DVD. The other name being thrown around was Mick Foley. It seems logical to have Foley in the Hall Of Fame, but again I think that will be saved for another year. Finally, there's The Rock. I'm sure Rocky has a lot left in the tank as far as wrestling goes and that will be saved for when he can no longer go inside the squared circle.
There is no question in my mind that Edge (Adam Copeland) deserves his place, and on behalf of someone who will be in attendance on March 31st in Miami, Florida, I for one am really looking forward to saying a proper goodbye to the Rated R Superstar.
After a visit to a wrestling forum on the topic of Edge being inducted, there were many who were happy with his inclusion. There were many who were happy, but felt that there were others more deserving of the accolade in front of Edge. And then, as there always are, were the people who were not happy and thought it to be too soon.
Me, I'm happy for Adam Copeland. I think he is just as deserving as anyone to be inducted into the Hall Of Fame. Lets look at his career. He started with the WWE in 1997, thus has given a good 14 years to the company that bore him and brought him in. In 1998 Adam Copeland debuted on TV for the first time as Edge, a loner character that entered the arena through the crowd.
He won 14 tag team championships, most of them as part of a team with his on screen brother Christian. He won five Intercontinental titles, one US title and was WWE and World Heavyweight Champion 11 times. His total belt tally over his career hit an amazing 31.
On top of all that, he is one of only two men in the companies history to hold all men's titles. He won the King Of The Ring Tournament in 2001 and the Royal Rumble in 2010. It's hard to argue with facts.
At 38, Edge will be the youngest inductee into the Hall Of Fame (next to Eddie Guerrero who was also 38, but older in days)and a lot of the criticism hotting the IWC is that he is too young and the company should wait a while before inducting him. My question is, why? He will never wrestle again, that is fact. Strike while the iron is hot. The wrestling world has a short memory and while we as fans do not, I believe that a Hall Of Fame induction in five years time would not have the powerful heart felt reaction that I am sure it will on March 31st this year. Age has nothing to do with it. People are also stating that there are others more deserving of the spotlight this year. I partly agree as there are many men and women who deserve recognition, but you have to look at the politics surrounding the big names that people are dropping into conversation.
The Macho Man Randy Savage for example. He is more than worthy of a place in the Hall Of Fame, but if all of the rumours about his alleged affair with an under age Stephanie McMahon are to be believed, then I don't think we will ever see him in the WWE Hall Of Fame. Owen Hart I'm sure will come through sooner rather than later I just don't think it will be this year. With everything from Owen's widow threatening to go legal at the very sight of her late husband on WWE's programming, and the WWE's careful treading, it may be a while before we see this, or for that matter, an Owen Hart DVD. The other name being thrown around was Mick Foley. It seems logical to have Foley in the Hall Of Fame, but again I think that will be saved for another year. Finally, there's The Rock. I'm sure Rocky has a lot left in the tank as far as wrestling goes and that will be saved for when he can no longer go inside the squared circle.
There is no question in my mind that Edge (Adam Copeland) deserves his place, and on behalf of someone who will be in attendance on March 31st in Miami, Florida, I for one am really looking forward to saying a proper goodbye to the Rated R Superstar.
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