WRESTLING…WHERE YA AT?
Sometimes when I sit down to write, nothing comes to mind. It is one of the struggles of ADD that I deal with on a constant basis. Those that have it will understand. For those that don’t, it is likely to happen when you are put on the spot, or have to come up with something immediately. The answer is certainly in your mind, but you can’t find it.
Your thoughts start spinning like a roulette wheel and you just hope that the ball lands on what you are looking for. Today was no different for me. I didn’t have a specific topic in mind when I sat down here at my computer, and my scrambled thoughts couldn’t find me one quickly. One exercise I do is to take my mind off of it and come back later, so I went and read Vince’s new blog that he posted today. Luckily for me, he posted something that I found really interesting and will not hesitate to steal. He mentioned how there is nothing interesting, compelling, or intriguing going on in wrestling these days – and I absolutely agree.
I’m going to take you back to 1999. Raw was hitting a home run every single night. Nitro, while not near as compelling, had talent like Hulk Hogan, Ric Flair, Sting, and Randy Savage to keep you interested during lackluster storylines. There was always something to talk about. All my roommate and I wanted to do was watch wrestling, talk about wrestling, or play wrestling video games. We would REWATCH Raw and Nitro. Could you imagine doing that today? Who wants to rewatch Raw from this week? We would discuss all week the events of the prior Monday and what we thought would happen the following week. The material was compelling enough that you couldn’t wait to see what happened next – and had fun trying to figure it out for yourself. The only show today that leaves that impression (on me anyway) is Lucha Underground. The rest of the weekly wrestling shows just seem like filler. Nothing that happens on the show is begging you to watch the following week.
We have talked (and talked and talked) about the reasons for wrestling not being cutting edge and must see television here at VinceRussoBrand.com, whether in blogs, podcasts, or VIP video interviews. I really don’t feel like covering all those bases again. It gets repetitive and frustrating. Fans who watched wrestling during both of its glory periods can’t help but be frustrated at how disappointing today’s creative efforts are, especially when we know how good they could be. We get excited when we see a glimmer of a creative seed ready to blossom, only then to be disappointed when it is drowned by a flood of bad booking that could put any insomniac to sleep.
Anyone like me who remembers the greatness of the 1980’s, the rise of Monday Nitro and the nWo, and the brilliance of the Attitude Era are probably asking themselves the same question. Wrestling…where ya at? This structure of entertainment will always have to potential to take over television. Hard to believe, but sixteen years ago Raw was beating Monday Night Football. Wrestling can get to that point again. All it will take is effort and dedication from those who put the show on paper.
Follow Jeff on Twitter: @JeffLane22
