Wrestling-Bleak and Hopeless?
You know, I don't write a lot about wrestling. But for the first time in a while, I can't help but do it.
A while ago, there wasn't all that much going on that I saw in wrestling as "hopeful" or generally good to look forward to in the future. Just a few old favorites I enjoyed watching, a good new champion here or there, maybe a new guy I liked.
Then ECW came back. If only for one night, the rebirth of ECW led way to a new hope. A year after it's revival on pay per view, Rob Van Dam-the person who first brought the idea to Vince McMahon, became both WWE and ECW champion. All was looking incredible. A mere 3 weeks later, Van Dam is busted for pot and driving too fast, he loses both titles, and ECW plummets. With a few sparks of hope left in the brand, the original stars rallying, so on, it would seem that all hope wasn't lost. Then McMahon himself won their world championship. With original stars being released from the company week-by-week, it has become apparent that ECW's revival as a WWE brand is nothing but a failure.
So that brings me to the other two brands. Sure, they have starpower, entertainers, and a few great new faces that'll surely entertain for years. So then why is wrestling bleak and hopeless in the future? Because seeing John Cena beat any obstacle in his way is not wrestling-its sports entertainment. Whereas I have no problem with sports entertainment, it seems that WWE wishes to make Cena their modern-age Hulk Hogan.
Unfortunately, this is NOT 1986. What Hogan, or any entertainer of the era, did in the 80's and 90's can NOT be duplicated, and I think that's what WWE, and even TNA's problem is. What was once creative and innovative is now bland, overdone, and copied far too much. An ECW reunion once a year-could've been gigantically successful. Launching ECW as a separate brand has led top stars such as the Big Show, Kurt Angle, Sabu, and others to leave the company out of frustration or be kicked out. And the alternative to WWE's weekly programs is no better, not even better than the mockery that ECW has become. Not even Van Dam, Sabu, or the Sandman if they were to change companies would do a thing-because it's not the ability anymore. It's entertainment value. And aside from a few shining individuals and individual situations, it's something that professional wrestling as a whole simply doesn't have anymore. And not even the greatest "sports entertainment" can help it, because even that is suffering.
And so that leads me to things aside from my business-based opinions.
Sometimes, the greatest fairytale story needs to stop at the happy ending. Where hope was lost, then found again. I've learned this after what I mentioned with Rob Van Dam, that even the greatest dreams come true can be struck down in their moments of glory. So maybe, as bleak as the present may be, we can look to those moments that made us smile, and remember them for the feelings they gave us, the memories, and the realization that while things may suck now, that at least we got to be around to see a greater time; and perhaps someday we can again.
A while ago, there wasn't all that much going on that I saw in wrestling as "hopeful" or generally good to look forward to in the future. Just a few old favorites I enjoyed watching, a good new champion here or there, maybe a new guy I liked.
Then ECW came back. If only for one night, the rebirth of ECW led way to a new hope. A year after it's revival on pay per view, Rob Van Dam-the person who first brought the idea to Vince McMahon, became both WWE and ECW champion. All was looking incredible. A mere 3 weeks later, Van Dam is busted for pot and driving too fast, he loses both titles, and ECW plummets. With a few sparks of hope left in the brand, the original stars rallying, so on, it would seem that all hope wasn't lost. Then McMahon himself won their world championship. With original stars being released from the company week-by-week, it has become apparent that ECW's revival as a WWE brand is nothing but a failure.
So that brings me to the other two brands. Sure, they have starpower, entertainers, and a few great new faces that'll surely entertain for years. So then why is wrestling bleak and hopeless in the future? Because seeing John Cena beat any obstacle in his way is not wrestling-its sports entertainment. Whereas I have no problem with sports entertainment, it seems that WWE wishes to make Cena their modern-age Hulk Hogan.
Unfortunately, this is NOT 1986. What Hogan, or any entertainer of the era, did in the 80's and 90's can NOT be duplicated, and I think that's what WWE, and even TNA's problem is. What was once creative and innovative is now bland, overdone, and copied far too much. An ECW reunion once a year-could've been gigantically successful. Launching ECW as a separate brand has led top stars such as the Big Show, Kurt Angle, Sabu, and others to leave the company out of frustration or be kicked out. And the alternative to WWE's weekly programs is no better, not even better than the mockery that ECW has become. Not even Van Dam, Sabu, or the Sandman if they were to change companies would do a thing-because it's not the ability anymore. It's entertainment value. And aside from a few shining individuals and individual situations, it's something that professional wrestling as a whole simply doesn't have anymore. And not even the greatest "sports entertainment" can help it, because even that is suffering.
And so that leads me to things aside from my business-based opinions.
Sometimes, the greatest fairytale story needs to stop at the happy ending. Where hope was lost, then found again. I've learned this after what I mentioned with Rob Van Dam, that even the greatest dreams come true can be struck down in their moments of glory. So maybe, as bleak as the present may be, we can look to those moments that made us smile, and remember them for the feelings they gave us, the memories, and the realization that while things may suck now, that at least we got to be around to see a greater time; and perhaps someday we can again.