Breaking The Walls Down - A Sign of Desperation? Submitted by Chris Dailey on Tuesday, June 26, 2007 at 7:05 PM EST
Breaking The Walls Down
Hello all and welcome back to another edition of Breaking The Walls Down.
Please note that this column was typed long before the Benoit family tragedy. I do not want to comment on the circumstances until much more is known. I think we, as people in general, are much too quick to comment without getting all the facts. While the facts, at present, certainly look extremely horrifying, I want to learn more before I begin discussing it. All I can say for now is God bless their souls.
I know it’s been a while since my last column. For that I am sorry. And, going along with that, I’ve decided it’s time for me to retire. I will be typing my last column on 9/25/07. I’ll save all that good bye stuff until then. Anyway, I’ll be skipping Bits and Pieces this week and focusing on a main subject.
A Sign of Desperation?
As I watched him meander around the backstage area, the ring, and once again the backstage area, I thought to myself, “This is ridiculous”. I had no idea how wrong I actually was. As soon as the limo exploded, I knew it went from ridiculous to absolutely crazy. I laid there in bed not really understanding where The WWE was going to take this angle. It was completely mind-blowing to me what they had done. Part of me just wanted to shut off the TV right there, but I left it on. I left it on through the turn to black and all I could keep thinking was, “Why”.
The word why is more such an overused word that some understandably look past its powerful meaning. The word why is such a powerful word that it can make someone who is so sure of their position completely begin to rethink everything. The word why can make people uncomfortable as it can lead to changing everything they know. The word why can plant seeds of self-doubt in someone if they begin to question a certain aspect of their life. But, for me, the word why was used to question the validity of what had happened. Why would Vince want to do this? Why would he think it could benefit the company? Why would he ultimately think it would be a good thing? And, the only thing I can come up with is one word: desperation.
Desperation, another powerful word. In this context, there could be multiple reasons for his desperation, but I feel it ultimately comes down to the general feeling of apathy towards his product that could be his basis for concern. Now, that’s not to say that professional wrestling, and The WWE to be more specific, isn’t doing well and isn’t popular, but that’s not what I’m trying to say. What I am saying is that what I am noticing from a lot of fans is a general sense of apathy regarding the sport in general. Fans are tired the way story lines are being handled. Their indifference is going to start hurting Vince in the wallet and I think he’s starting to come to grips with that. The problem is, he’s going about it all wrong.
Those that were around for “The Attitude Era” know how special that was. The pure exhilaration one felt during that time of anticipation before the show came on was incredible. Always wondering what Austin, DX, The Rock, and many others would do next was something that eagerly kept millions of viewers tuning in each and every week. Since then, however, the product has slipped. It was inevitable. No matter what profession one is in, it is impossible to stay at the top of that profession permanently. It’s not possible. Vince is really starting to recognize this as his thin talent rosters, a byproduct of his early purchases, have begun to show. It was inevitable that acquiring all those companies would eventually come back to hurt him. The way it’s hurt him is the way people predicted. Thin talent pools with either under-developed or little-talented wrestlers has lead to a gradual decline in ratings, ticket sales, merchandise sales, and overall interest.
To add to that is the storyline writing. To date, many wrestling fans have pointed to the lack of in-depth and involving storylines as a sign that things aren’t exactly right in The WWE. Storylines haven’t exactly been revolutionary lately. We’ve had Bobby Lashley in a bitter feud with Vince McMahon which lead to the McMahon snapping and the limo blowing up. The whole feud with the boss has been overdone several times over originating with Bret Hart and Steve Austin. McMahon mentally snapping has been done several times, granted, however, not to this extent. The whole death of McMahon angle has not been done and is something new, but I don’t think it’s eliciting the response McMahon and The WWE intended. On top of that, The WWE is now being said to want to turn McMahon’s death into a comical angle. I really hope that this route is not taken.
I’m not sure what The WWE would be trying to do at this point. Maybe they believe that the fans aren’t dumb and realize the whole angle is a work. If that is true, it is possible that they could be building up for something big with McMahon coming back after feeling “genuinely touched by the fans”. Who knows? But, I think it’s a telling fact that they now want to move the angle towards the realm of comedy. Currently, the angle does not seem to be working in the state it’s in. I don’t think The WWE is seeing the results it desired at the onset of the angle. But, it’s a little late to hurriedly slap together a finish to the storyline or it will come across as yet another abysmal failure by The WWE creative team.
Overall, I believe this angle is an act of desperation in an attempt to somehow garner the shock value that The WWE once had. McMahon certainly has to realize that those times have long gone and it’s time to find a new route to success. I guess one can only reinvent the wheel so often, but there must be some place The WWE can go that doesn’t offend everyone and still gives us an enjoyable storyline. Let’s hope so, at least, or we, as fans, are in for a long ride.
