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Submitted by Morpheus on Tuesday, March 14, 2006 at 6:28 PM EST
J-Man’s Train of Thought #16: Unfair Expectations… Hello everyone, and welcome to the Train of Thought, brought to you J-Man here from the Columns Forum of LOP with my first, albeit hopefully not last, contribution to the main page. God damn it feels good to be up here, if only it is for a week or two, but as I said, hopefully I’ll be back soon… Okay, so first off, a sincere thank you goes out to every single one of you who voted for the Train of Thought in the February COTM competition. My words can’t really describe how much I appreciate it. Having a column posted on the main page is an honour in itself, but to me, the prize of knowing that I am regarded so well by my peers, and the fact that my columns are enjoyed by many of you is the greatest thing about winning the competition. Also, a very much-deserved mention must go out to Jules, who was a formidable opponent throughout the voting period. Something tells me that next month will have a good ending for you my friend… So anyway, my lovely readers, where be the Train a-headed on this occasion, you ask? Well it’s something that has been nagging at me for a little while now, and it is in regards to the small guys of wrestling. No, its not exactly about how underused they are, or how underrated their skills may be, but something else entirely, and it involves both the X-Division of TNA Wrestling as well as WWE’s Cruiserweight division. Most, if not all fans constantly compare WWE’s Cruiserweight Division to TNA Wrestling’s X-Division. Both are the outlets of which the ‘small’ guys get to strut their stuff. The cruiserweight matches on WWE Smackdown and X-Division matches on TNA Impact are the times of the respective shows that us fans prepare and expect to be bombarded with impressive aerial assaults, and innovative high-risk, high spot manoeuvres… …But is this a fair expectation on our part? Is it right to compare the WWE Cruiserweight division as a direct contrast to the TNA X-Division? Is it fair to directly compare the two divisions, when in reality they are technically not the identical counterparts that many fans believe them to be? Allow me to explain… The WWE Cruiserweight division is essentially a division for lesser heavy wrestlers (220lbs and under) to compete in, and to vie for their own allocated title, the WWE Cruiserweight Championship. Therefore, realistically speaking the same principle of this division would apply to that of say, boxing. Cruiserweight boxers still box in the same way as the heavier ones do, so why should cruiserweight wrestlers be coerced into wrestling a different way, mainly with the encouragement of using as many high spots and other typical ‘cruiserweight moves’ as possible? Yes, many of the cruisers’ light weight lends itself to the fact that many are adept to using high-spot techniques, but does that mean they should use them? For instance, do all heavyweight wrestlers have to use power moves and gorilla press slams just because it fits in with their increased strength attributes? You can tell with some small wrestlers, such as James Gibson, that he doesn’t really like using the high-flying style. Therefore he tries to avoid using it in WWE matches, in favour of a more mat-based approach. But then, some fans will then criticise him of not being ‘good enough’ just because he hasn’t used these the high moves, which is very wrong in my opinion. TNA’s X-Division however, is a little different. This division was designed as an outlet for performers (of any weight) to specifically showcase their aerialist move-sets and incorporate the concept of innovation that you could supposedly not find anywhere else; such innovative concepts of course being aerial, high-risk and original manoeuvres. However, this “innovative” X-Division style, although being stereotypically associated with being about aerial moves, is a little more than just that. People forget that simply being a high-flyer and using Phoenix presses and 630-degree Senton splashes is not the only way to being “innovative”. This is how bigger guys like Samoa Joe are recognized as being great X-Division competitors – Joe is renowned for being innovative not because he uses high-flying and high spots everywhere, but is more renowned for his ‘stiff’ and aggressive style, moves such as the facewash as well as moves that are unlikely but especially impressive for someone of his stature. The same principle can be applied to Low-Ki, for his machine gun kicks and other martial arts techniques (although he did also use some high spots). It was TNA’s method of having that extra something that would let them stand apart from their nearest counterpart, World Wrestling Entertainment. I have no doubt that the TNA management, whilst brainstorming the idea of this division, were heavily taking into consideration the fact that many fans had expressed unhappiness with the way in which the Cruiserweight division was being handled in WWE. They wanted to give the displeased fans an alternative to watching the ‘toned-down’ and ‘lacklustre’ cruiser matches being thrown at them on Thursday / Friday nights. But like I mentioned earlier, whilst the Cruisers division is merely an outlet for lesser heavy wrestlers to perform, the X-Division competitors should rightfully be expected to produce many more innovative spots. Therefore the cruiserweight division shouldn’t realistically need to compete with it, since in a way the two divisions are of different design and purpose. Yet, despite this, the fans have stereotyped all the smaller wrestlers in both WWE and TNA as being high spot-lovers and are subsequently expected by fans to use fancy aerial moves, since their low weight lends itself to that ideology. And the reason for this expectation? Western fans were exposed to what the cruiserweight wrestlers could really do since the days of ECW, and since then the fans ate up this new type of small-man match, and it has stuck with them. It’s like the curse of the stray cat: You feed it once and now it stays (yeah, I just ripped off James Hetfield, here’s hoping Lars doesn’t come looking for my sorry ass…). Another reason why I think the WWE cruiserweights should not be held in direct contrast of the X-Division stars is because of the weight variations. All WWE cruisers must be less than 220 lbs, but as mentioned, to be a part of the X-Division you can be of any weight; it’s not just for cruiserweight wrestlers. I understand that it is quite easy to fall into the trap of comparing the two divisions, but it really is difficult to do so in a fair way, simply because due to it’s “No weight limits” moniker, the X-Division utilises a few heavyweights such as Samoa Joe (280lbs), Ron Killings (230lbs), Sonny Siaki (247lbs), and even Elix Skipper (228lbs). Now, I don’t know about you, but when someone tries making a ‘tale of the tape’ between Samoa Joe and Gregory Helms, I’m not really convinced that it weighs out evenly. We also need to take into consideration the fact that the WWE highflying cruiserweight style has been toned down; no doubt at the ordering of a certain individual whose surname is McMahon. This further removes the Cruiserweight division from being a mirror of the X-Division. This choice of action has certainly come under scrutiny by many fans, but I for one believe it to be a wise decision. Not only does it aid with keeping the workers healthy and safer for a longer time, but it also encourages the WWE cruisers to pick up their mat-based game a little. With that said, I’ve outlined how the two divisions of WWE and TNA vary somewhat, and that it isn’t always fair to assume that the WWE cruisers should try to (or are even allowed to) match up to the TNA guys as far as high spots and insane flips are concerned. So that leaves the question: what are the WWE cruiserweights to do in order to improve their product? The answer lies in the fact that many wrestlers who weigh less than 220 lbs can actually wrestle without the need of high-flying and pop moves. Okay, that’s a pretty obvious statement, but yet it seems that some fans don’t quite understand it. I was watching my Eddie Guerrero DVD again the other evening, and one match from the DVD that I always go back to is that of Eddie taking on Chris Jericho in a cruiserweight match up from the 1997 Fall Brawl. For the most part both men wrestled as two heavyweights would typically have done (which brings a touch of irony, since both men went on to capture various heavyweight titles), and the lack of aerial manoeuvres and high spots didn’t detract from the match at all. It added more to it, if anything. At this point I’ll just let it be known that I’m not out on a crusade here to vent my hatred for flashy cruiserweight moves or anything, because frankly I don’t mind a high spot or two, but this match, among many others goes to show that they are not necessarily always needed to produce a good-quality cruiserweight match. As long as a story can be told and the crowd can be immersed and entertained, then any match between any weighted wrestlers has the potential to be a good one, regardless of whether an impressive top-rope move or a suicide plancha is used. For examples of other matches that showcase some cruisers’ mat-based talent, you need not look any further than any Ring of Honour or IWA Mid-South matches involving such stars as James Gibson, Spanky, Paul London, Kid Kash, AJ Styles or Petey Williams, to realise that the skill is actually there, whether they showcase it during WWE / TNA programming or not. Simply put, too often some fans are proclaiming that “AJ Styles is way more entertaining that Greg Helms”, or “Chris Sabin is better than Jamie Noble”, merely because the TNA guys will fly around a little more. But WWE Cruiserweight matches should never be called ‘boring’ simply because they don’t incorporate as many high-spots as the X-Division. The cruisers have had to tone down their acrobatic style, and must now look towards more traditional methods of carrying matches, however now the small guys in WWE are faced with a new problem – the fact that many wrestlers in WWE are handcuffed to some extent. For those who don’t know what that means, handcuffing is when a promotion will restrict some of the things a wrestler can do ring-wise, for varying reasons. A prime example is Brock Lesnar, who used the Shooting Star Press as a finisher regularly whilst training in Ohio Valley Wrestling. When he was called up to WWE programming, it was dropped (albeit for one certain occasion, which I’m sure we can all remember…) probably to fit in with the ‘raw power, animalistic’ approach of his character. John Cena is a fine example of another wrestler who has been handcuffed drastically. Guess what folks, in OVW, John Cena was a decent wrestler! But that idea was scrapped when he became a ‘thug’ and the illusion of a tough-as-nails street gangster being a good technical wrestler didn’t fit with his character. I bet he’s kicking himself over that one now. So anyway, many cruisers are very much handcuffed not only in what they can do aerially, but then also by what technical wrestling they can do, in favour of the more WWE-traditional punch and kick style. To get a good idea of what I’m on about go watch James Gibson take on Bryan Danielson in ROH. They can go 30 minutes flat out in an impressive technical bout there, but Gibson is restricted from doing so in a WWE ring because of the aforementioned punch / kick method. However, as much as I oppose the perceived parallels between the two divisions, it’s still true that the Cruiserweight division is indeed relied on by WWE to be competition for the X-Division. The unfortunate fact is that the majority of wrestling fans prefer to see the smaller guys wrestle only if they are producing mouth-watering high spots, or wild and extreme stunts, despite their ability to provide excellent, in-depth scientific matches. As mentioned, this comes down to the cruisers being first exposed in ECW and WCW, and having to use these moves to get over with fans who generally preferred to see the big, muscled wrestlers go at it. I guess that if the majority of wrestling fans really did want to see smaller wrestlers set a great standard of well versed, mat-based matches, then Ring of Honour would definitely have a much larger fan base, right? In my overall opinion, the WWE cruiserweight division needs to maybe choose more of a distinct path in order to maintain interest from the fans. They should decide whether they are going to take TNA head-on, and allow for the ban on some of the more hazardous top-rope moves to be dropped, or instead raise the lid on the technically-handcuffed cruiserweight stars such as Kid Kash and James Gibson, allowing them to prove to the WWE audience that they can do much, much more than simply look pretty. Well, that just about does it for this special main-page edition of the Train of Thought. I hope you have all enjoyed today’s outing, and once again I’d like to thank all those that voted for me in the February COTM, for giving me this opportunity. To those of you reading this that have not yet signed up with, or even visited the LOP Columns Forum, I strongly recommend you do so if you wish to see some of the greatest wrestling columnists writers around. All feedback for this column can be given either in the CF, or at youcantrushthesethings@hotmail.com. All feedback is welcome and wanted. Thanks for reading everyone. J-Man logging out, leaving you with something to think about… *NEW GALLERY* Must See Hot Shots of the TNA Knockouts CROSSING THE LINE!
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