I have to say, it seems as if every corner I turn in the internet world of professional wrestling I read complaints people have. I hear wrestling fans actually hoping that ECW gets cancelled. I hear the same fans who whine about the lack of hype and build for events, complaining about the lack of instant payoff in the “Save_Us” videos. And worst of all, I read what fans who got wind of pro wrestling via Vince McMahon’s ideas do nothing but criticize the very product that they watch 5-8 hours a week.
And who are we to judge? Who are we to say, “Oh I could so write a better product than that no-knowledge of wrestling Hollywood writer!” I realize, as fans, we have the right to like or dislike each weeks’ episodes. But why the heck do we have this “Internet Wrestling Community.” Why isn’t there the type of thing for the NFL, or for Grey’s Anatomy?
I think it’s because wrestling is for children, and wrestling fans never want to let it go. The reason why we criticize it so specifically and whine every week is because we are holding on to this product that we should have stopped watching after Junior High, and expect it to still please us. Wrestling fans are awfully immature, and don’t know how to grow the fuck up. There. I said it.
Anyways, I just wanted to take a moment to ask myself the very question that everyone else always has an answer for…Is wrestling nowadays GOOD? Or is it BAD?
To me, good wrestling is entertainment first. Good wrestling is when you actually care about the matches. It’s when you’ve emotionally invested in who will win. You have one person you want to win, and some person you want to lose. The history of the feud has to get you hooked, and each punch, kick, stomp, suplex, etc, gets you to react in favor or against, whether it’s the wrestler you want or not.
Now, does that exist today? I think it does. But I think it’s harder for the long term, internet wrestling “Smarks” who watch it every day for many years to get that invested in matches anymore. We grow to become immune, as everything is a “been there, done that.” EVERYTHING. When was the last time people cared about Wrestle Mania? We’ve seen most dream matches possible – Rock/Hogan, HBK/Hogan, Flair/Foley, Bischoff/McMahon, etc.
There isn’t much that a high flyer, spot wrestler can do that we haven’t seen. That includes the Hardy Boys.
Wrestling fans have had the worst attention span, so long term, built up heated feuds like Austin/McMahon, and WCW/NWO. Like I mentioned earlier, there’s been a MONTH of hyped Save_Us videos and people are complaining! A week after they started and No Mercy came and went, people were upset.
So…good? Maybe not. But it hasn’t been BAD.
TNA is showing……promise. ROH is getting better and bigger. And WWE has stars growing and current stars coming back. And with lots of returns and switching…Jericho, Booker to TNA, ROH on PPV…
So I guess wrestling is POTENTIALLY good. 
And just wait until John Cena comes back!
Interesting post.
As you know, I’m kind of on the opposite side of the fence on this subject. Allow me to offer my rebuttal!
This part of your article stood out the most to me. I agree with you to a point–but in a different way.
I get sick and tired of the IWC judging matches with star ratings. Idiots who have never wrestled a day in their lives constantly bash matches and say how they are “DUDs” or only give them “*1/2,” which is absolutely ridiculous. I do get annoyed when I see two guys like Rey Mysterio and Finlay being cut short, but I also realize it’s not their fault they couldn’t have a complete match.
On the flipside, I have no problem with people judging the angles and storylines. A lot of what we are seeing in the WWE right now in terms of booking is total garbage. It’s the same crap we’ve seen a million times before. Same for TNA. Can’t come up with new ideas? Let’s bring out DX or the Outsiders again! Or how about the Hart Foundation “2.0!” Hey, we know that was cool in 1997, but what the hell!
When bookers and story writers can’t come up with new ideas, they deserve to be crapped on. Seriously, how hard is it to come up with some new factions that weren’t created back in 1997? It shouldn’t be that hard. Hell, people have come up with new stables throughout the history of the business.
You mention ECW–I am one of the many who thinks the new ECW should be axed. It’s total junk. Granted, there’s only like four wrestlers on the show, so they are working with a limited roster, but the expansion with Smackdown still hasn’t brought it new life. Kane v. Mark Henry v. Big V v. Khali is just pathetic booking. At least put the big guys with someone who can work a halfway decent match with them.
As for the Save_Us.222 stuff, I was disappointed at first that they didn’t pull the trigger last week, but Jericho is right about that–his return should be a surprise. So good for them, although if he comes back the day after Survivor Series, it still won’t be much of a surprise. They should pull the trigger at the PPV or the week before to shock everyone.
Anyways, to wrap up this winding response, there are some good things going on right now in wrestling. Santino…AJ Styles…ROH…hmm…that’s all I can think of at the moment, but I’m sure you could think of some more. Still, I’d say overall it’s tilted toward “BAD” right now. Problem is, I’m such a die hard fan, I can’t stop watching.
“I have to say, it seems as if every corner I turn in the internet world of professional wrestling I read complaints people have. I hear wrestling fans actually hoping that ECW gets cancelled. I hear the same fans who whine about the lack of hype and build for events, complaining about the lack of instant payoff in the “Save_Us” videos. And worst of all, I read what fans who got wind of pro wrestling via Vince McMahon’s ideas do nothing but criticize the very product that they watch 5-8 hours a week.”
You MUST be talking about the Wrestlecrap board