WWE Bragging Rights this Sunday didn’t really do anything for me. I think the best match on the card was Dolph Ziggler and Daniel Bryan.
It seems reminiscent of the old days when a mid card match seems to be equally as good as the main event or even better but then again what can I expect when the main event is Undertaker and Kane for the third straight PPV in only 6 weeks?
The whole concept of Bragging Rights is obviously flawed as they started to try and bring prestige to this title with statements about the winning team being able to take the trophy home for a week within the year each. These efforts along with talking about being able to brag for 12 months about being the better show seemed to be pointless as I cannot remember the last time Smackdown turned round and said that they were the better show and showed off a trophy.
To go along with this we now have a trophy that has changed from last year to a Stanley cup rip-off made from used bean tins! Very inspiring.
Everything seemed fairly predictable as you might expect but the one aspect that frustrated me slightly was the promo for the Survivor Series PPV with Wade Barrett. Prior to this promo I believed that Barrett will more than likely obtain the WWE championship through John Cena’s services this Sunday. However, after the promo where Barrett was sat down explaining how the plan will come together and Nexus’s true meaning will become apparent, I felt annoyed that it seemed more obvious that Orton would more than likely manage to keep the title and drop it at Survivor Series instead.
Just a small note but this kind of timing was not needed. They did it with Randy Orton when he won the Rumble in 2009. The entire opening of the PPV was about him kicking Vince in the head rather than the match itself. So who I wonder is going to win? If the promo hadn’t been placed there at that moment then there still would have been some doubt but after that it felt obvious.
Your video opportunities are designed to create wonder and doubt. How many times do we all wonder who the victim of the Undertaker will be every year? Then when we see the promo before the match and the type of build up it creates it leaves us wondering whether they actually would do the unthinkable and end his streak.
They have the power to create doubt with predictable matches yet they seem to squander it when it didn’t need to be done. Maybe I’m just thinking too deep into it.
I’m still to this moment wondering why Santino was involved in that match. I’m not even sure on what to think or how to put into words how pointless it all seemed.
In a market where the world is in recession I could completely understand fans not buying Bragging Rights. It hasn’t had an effect on the standings on each show and it took the thunder from the Survivor Series style of match a couple of weeks away from the main show.
The current PPV theme suggestion has taken the wonders of what is next and completely ruins your memories and thoughts on various match types.
Take Hell in a Cell. Can you remember anything that happened in this year’s efforts? Compare that to your own memories of Brock Lesnar V Undertaker, HBK V Undertaker and Mankind V Undertaker.
We have TLC coming up and can you remember anything of last year’s efforts? What about the Elimination Chamber? Exactly. Gone are the days when you would have Vince announcing a Hell in a Cell match to which both superstars shit themselves thinking they will die during the contest (and they would make it look like they nearly did too.)
I must say that the themed PPV’s took my fancy when I heard that Over The Limit was coming up. I expected all wrestlers to have appeared pissed out of their heads and vomiting around the arena. Shame, it could have been more entertaining.
I do apologise if my editorial has become a moaning column but I really feel that we are in some of the darkest days in wrestling. Yes I will always watch, yes I will always love wrestling, but it doesn’t mean that I don’t count and at the moment I feel in the complete minority.
I know money is everything and that children + wrestling = money but come on WWE, don’t be so cold about it and don’t insult my intelligence! Mix some things up, build some storylines and put on some wrestling matches that entertain me. Stop asking people to spend more and more in harder times and drop your PPV amounts. Take more care with your product!
For the last 5 years I have saved up ridiculously to be able to afford going to the USA to watch what I as a person believe is the biggest show in my world, Wrestlemania. But at the moment I watch the product and people around me make me feel embarrassed to watch it again. Why should I continue to fund you by buying a ticket and travelling thousands of miles?
I spend far too much time explaining that it used to be better to people and I see far too many people dropping wrestling for UFC these days.
As for the recent Stand Up for WWE campaign, I am quite shocked on the support it has received. In some ways I don’t want to go against the company I have watched for most of my life but if I support it then surely that means that I agree with the PG rating and its current direction don’t I?
If Linda isn’t successful in her campaign then doesn’t that mean that there is a chance things will return more to the older days with less restriction? If she wins then surely we have to watch the products current state to continue so why should I support something that never needs supporting?
If you want something supporting then do something for the fans. Not the Universe, the FANS! The people that have watched WWE all their life, the people that currently pay money they cannot afford to watch a product they are not happy about.
I’m not bothered if you stay PG as you can still make realistic television without over-the-top swearing and sexual remarks. Just please be aware of it. Because you know we all stand up for you, you know we all agree with your charity work and military aid but also think about the state of the world, the people and the changing industries around them.
Do you agree? Am I off the mark? Send your support / comments / abuse to beansontoastuk@msn.com and if you want to get in touch through Twitter you can follow me at @BeansOnToastUK.
Martyn
