Portions of a column I wrote in January 2005 :

          Starting off the new year with plenty to talk about in the world of wrestling. Unfortunately, you just know 2005 is gonna suck, at least for everyone but ROH it seems. Well, it just so happens to be the case. WWE? Do you really want a WrestleMania with Randy Orton and Bradshaw in world title matches? TNA? Sure, it’d be GREAT if Monty Brown gets the title on Sunday, and that would be a step in the right direction, but will it be enough? I don’t want TNA to die - in fact, I hope it would do well. But it’s not, and doesn’t look like things are going to change drastically enough soon. I hope I’m wrong. On the other hand, ROH has a new champion in Austin Aries – who is good - AJ Styles returning(even if for one show), and Jaime Knoble & Spanky making appearances.
         Looking back, 2004 pretty much dropped off after April, just as I predicted. The first quarter was GREAT, with Benoit, Eddie & the Orton/Foley match. TNA’s been interesting if nothing else, and at least they got a national show... that I never remember to watch. ROH finished off the year strong with Aries/Joe, Jushin Liger and surviving the RF scandal intact. So 2004 was quite a mix!

         Anyway, I’ve got plenty of things to opine on in the stupid world of wrestling : ?
THE RISE & FALL OF ECW : ?I’m sure you’ve all seen this by now, based on the numbers it’s sold alone. I think what people see as “in depth” is somewhat superfluous. I mean, they’re showing it on Fanatix in a 2-hour edited down version, and looking over the chapter listings, I think you can see plenty that wasn’t really needed. Especially considering how all the stars of the last year or so were totally glossed over. Not that I care to see fuckin Justin Credible & Steve Corino, but hey, they DID interview their last (unified, I might add) World champion Rhyno in the program. You’d think he’d get a mention.
Don’t get me wrong, it certainly was in depth in telling the need-to-know facts(Eddie Gilbert, Todd Gordon, the NWA split, PPV, most of the “classic” ECW names((some, like Brian Pillman & the Gangstas, very conspicuous in their absence, though)), TNN & the end), but really, was “Sabu getting publicly fired” and the like really relevant in the grand scheme of things at all?
You also have to realize the political agenda exists no matter how “honest” everyone supposedly is. For instance, is it me or is Eric Bischoff the only one who’s not completely full of shit? Ok, stop rolling your eyes. I’ll grant you he’s only partially full of shit...like claiming he never raided ECW(ha!). It’s a figure of speech, and even though it IS the same thing McMahon did to the AWA & other territories in the 80s, and they DID sign without a gun pointed to their heads, come on, he got SO many ECW guys – not even all together, but at ONCE!(Benoit, Malenko, Guerrero, Rey, Juventud, La Parka, Psychosis, etc., later Sandman, Mikey Whipwreck, Mike Awesome, Raven, Shane Douglas, etc.) that he can’t sell me on that.
That, however, doesn’t mean I don’t think he’s the only one who’s honest about what ECW really was ; Bischoff is RIGHT when he said ECW never even came close to #2 promotion, that it did cater to a small target audience due to it’s emphasis on hardcore wrestling(I, as much as anyone, always point out, as the DVD does, that ECW had great actual wrestling too, and that’s part of what made it work. However, let’s be fuckin honest – the company’s name was EXTREME and the logo had barbed wire dripping with blood. So no wonder they had trouble branching out), and that it was destined to always be a niche, regional company. On the other hand, there’s Heyman claiming that had ECW gotten on another network post-TNN, they’d be #2 or #1. There’s McMahon claiming the WWF always had ‘Attitude’(to imply they never stole concepts from ECW) but didn’t always say it. Yeah, like Men on A Mission and Tugboat, that’s some “attitude”. There’s at least SOME truth to what Bischoff says….in this DVD anyway.
You also have to realize the whole reason they let everyone say whatever they want is, simply, it doesn’t matter. No matter what anyone might say, nothing will change the fact WWF won & owns everything. The only thing it does is possibly sell more DVDs, which is only making the winner richer. Besides, it’s not like ECW ever beat WWF in the ratings 83 weeks in a row or anything, so they get the pass there anyway, just like they do for being in league with their own supposed “enemy” like they were back in the day practically the entire time.
Which leads me to my next political observation : Isn’t it funny how whenever Bischoff or WCW would sign somebody, they “sold out," but when the WWF signed them, they “needed to put food on their family’s tables” or were “exploring other options” and there’s nothing wrong with that? How appropriate! McMahon can sign the Dudleys & their own fucking World champion Taz in a matter of weeks(Days, even?!), and yet that’s ok. However, Raven leaving for WCW was “disappointing”. The WWF can lend Al Snow to ECW on the bet that Heyman said he could make anyone a star, then he goes and DOES, gets him so over so quick to the point where he’s going to get the belt, but then the WWF screws them over by taking him back, but Todd Gordon was bad for trying to get guys into WCW. That’s not to mention the whole 'WWF signs with TNN and TNN drops ECW' thing. Suckers.
Think about it. You realize because ECW was such a suck ass it may have been part of the reason they went under? Look at the stupidest thing they ever did booking-wise with their world title : When Mike Awesome jobbed the ECW title to Tazz. Now, they’re thinking is,”We hate WCW so much that to upstage them, we’re going to have a WWF wrestler beat him” Ok, but that’s YOUR world title. First of all, what sense does it make to have a WWF guy beat a WCW when you can have an ECW guy beat a WCW guy? ESPECIALLY when an ECW guy(Dreamer) was going to end up with the fucking belt anyway? Awesome jobbed to Tazz, Tazz jobbed to Dreamer. Why couldn’t have Dreamer just DDT’d Awesome & gotten it over with? And what did they get out of it? They brought out Tazz for two shows as ECW champion on RAW & Smackdown...I’d like to point out, before I go on, how ECW would always badmouth the “big two”, and when they Dudleys were about to leave as ECW tag team champions(before dropping to Raven & Dreamer), Joey Styles said it’s going to be a “disgrace” when they Dudleys show up on RAW with their tag belts. Of course, that didn't happen but what did end up actually happening was Tazz showing up with their world title on RAW the next year, and not an ill word was said about THAT. He fought WWF Hardcore Champion Crash Holly and Perry Saturn, world title contenders if I ever heard any, in a 3-way. And fucking lost.
Oh, but it gets better, because his next appearance as ECW Champion was facing WWF Champion HHH on Smackdown, and of course, losing to a Pedigree. McMahon sucks up on the DVD saying he realizes NOW it didn’t make ECW look that great. Sure. I hate this man.
So as much as enjoyed ECW, fuck ECW. Yeah, I bought the DVD(I’m a sucker for old footage, and I did enjoy a lot of ECW), but some people are so full of shit it makes me angry. I find it funny that whole Alliance thing in 2001 is erased from history(because when you think of ECW, you think of Stephanie McMahon. Although she was really hot at the time), and even better yet, they plan on resurrecting it in June for their PPV. What a crock. The DVD sells well, they bring back a whole thing for one show? Flair’s DVD sold well, how come they didn’t make him world champion for a week? ECW had it’s time in the sun, it was new and innovative(if not over-rated a lot) at the time, let it fucking be. We don’t want any WWE-produced ECW shows.
Anyway, it’s a good DVD(The 2nd disk could use more matches, and a couple better ones like something with Mike Awesome maybe), it’s always interesting, keeps your attention, and it’s got a cameo by Uncle Howie too.

NWA TNA : Turning Point :
Well, I didn’t get to see their inaugural 3-hour PPV in November, but I got to see the follow-up.
Top to bottom, it wasn’t too bad of a show. Pretty decent, in fact.
-The 6-man tag with Sonjay Dutt, Hector Garza & Sonny Siaki against Michael Shane, Frankie Kazarian & Kid Kash was good(esp. that double back drop to the outside by Sonjay!), 3 Live Krew was all there so I was happy, Petey Williams/Chris Sabin was real good except for the cheap finish, Raven/DDP same deal, Monty Brown/Abyss was ok(could have been speed up a little).
-While the entrance made me kinda dreadful for TNA & reminded me of WCW in a REALLY bad way(like 2000/business is practically nonexistent bad), Marc Mero/Johnny B. Badd was in good shape, so good for him. Good to see Jacqueline too in the role I wish to see her in(as ref). Hall & Nash still make me sick. The 6-man with them & Jarrett against Hardy, AJ & Savage was pretty lame. When Jarrett was in it was ok, but anytime Nash or Hall dogged it, it died down. Savage looked TERRIBLE. The crowd’s non-reaction for the hot tag was deserved. He looked really terrible physically(face, body), and the finish sucked.
-The XXX/AMW main event was good. Watching it the first time I didn’t get the “*****, best match ever, get this tape” feel like I had read, but I plan on watching again. Elix’s cage walk made my heart stop! Unbelievable. He is awesome, as I always knew even when I first saw him on WCW Saturday Night 5 years ago. It’s amazing Daniels didn’t get his ankle or leg broken on the superplex spot, with one of the bland long haired Americans landing on his leg. The spots I remember were good, but again, I need to watch the match over again.
Here’s hoping the Alpha Male is world champion this time next week.

WWEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE : New Year’s Revolution :
The WWF might as well have called it what it was : Elimination Chamber 2005, the one-match PPV, because they pretty much acted like that.
-Firstly, how fucking prophetic is it that there’s two freak knee injuries IN A ROW to open your show?
-I don’t like Eugene goofing on Hogan. Just because I see through them. What seems like an innocent goof on the surface comes through in their choice words. Remember before when they’d have Patterson & Brisco come out to his theme, cupping their hands? Or Big Show as the Showster? And they’d say sarcastically, “This seems familiar, where have we seen that before?”, crap like that? You realize they’re BACK to that now? It’s like Hogan never came back! And won their fucking world title I might add! It’s like that’s erased from existence again. Until he comes back for the Hall of Fame or something.
-Happy Regal is as lame as Smilin Brock. Or me using “lame” more than 50 times in a column.
-I’ve lightened up on Trish because I find her a little more attractive than I once did, but she’s still not that great. Not that I expect anyone to get much out of Lita.
-So they have so little confidence in Maven that they have Benjamin squash him. Twice. Why the fuck do they do this? It’s like Nathan Jones at WM19. Why the hell would they build someone up, then pull the plug? It’s fucking stupid. Hey, as long as Benjamin’s the IC champ I’m happy, and as long as squashing Maven makes him look better I’m happy, but really, is Maven THAT bad? He may suck, but come on, not even 5 minutes?!
-It gets even better as Muhammad Hassan started off his match by bodyslamming Lawler like 6 times in a row. I thought for sure Lawler’d be able to work a good match in Puerto Rico, but nope. Looks like Hassan can’t match his mic skills in the ring. I dig Khosrow Daivari & his entrance music though.
-Kane/Snitsky was the 1st decent match of the night, believe it or not. Ok, well, at parts. When Kane was on offense, it had good fire(hardy har har. No, really), but elsewhere it was slow as shit. & they added “It wasn’t my fault” to Snitsky’s music like I wanted.
-The Elimination Chamber was as it usually is – merely ok. The highlight was Benoit’s diving headbutt off the chamber, followed by the Liontamer/crossface combo. That was great. Batista played the Goldberg role of 2003 – monster late in the game who destroys & eliminates people. His spots of gorilla pressing Jericho into the camera man, then Spinbusting him onto Benoit were awesome. Dave continues to plant the seeds & build his feud with Hunter really well. Orton still fuckin sucks. It doesn’t get more humiliating than not only blading right on camera(not even doing it as good as Michaels in the spot he stole it from in the first HITC), but losing to the pedigree with a huge wedgie. HHH wins again(What a SHOCK) as Rod & I laugh. And who raises his hand for his 10th world title(5 WWF, 5 WCW)? His butt buddy of course. Nothing ever changes.
Although I think they are changing the Orton/HHH WM main event. I mean, they already announced it for the Rumble right? & that’s 2 fuckin weeks after Revolution. Idiots. Anyway, now that it looks like a 3-way for Mania with Batista & Orton taking over for Michaels & Benoit, that shows me they’re losing faith in Orton. Wonder how this’ll effect the outcome, since I was sure they were gonna force-feed the Orton win to end the show whether anyone liked it or not. We’ll see.

CybawSpace Wesling Fedawation :
This past Saturday Brian & I went to the CSWF in Wayne, NJ. My primary reason for going was this was advertised as Russo’s final appearance before “retiring” from wrestling, and it was right in my own backyard(Nationally speaking), so how could I not go to someone who’s given me plenty of material to work with, entertained me so(usually indirectly) and is the most lovable idiot in wrestling?
Had the website bothered to tell us what time the show started, we might not had missed the prelim match, which means we also missed the Q&A with Russo. FUCK, I had some gems lined up.
They also lied about the ticketprices on the website, saying $12 but G.A. was really $15. Dicks.
The first match made everyone look like stereotypical plain indy wrestlers. The Solution Vs. Mike Kruel/Josh Daniels. The only thing I really remember was how loose the ropes were. They were like bungy cord. If you ran into them, you’d probably stretch into the wall. & the fucking ring crew never tightened them! They didn’t even have a ring bell. “RECORD CROWD” of a few hundred or so. All these TNA names, they still can’t get a ring bell? They had a redheaded broad banging with a wrench or something on the metal barricades at the end of the bleachers. So indy.
Sonjay Dutt Vs. Jimmy Rave was ok, hampered by the ropes a bit.
Julio Dinero has a new gimmick now where he’s a Tango dancer. He comes out to tango music with this broad who looks like she skipped the senior prom to be there, and they obviously don’t know how to tango for real because they just do the walk from one side of the ring to the other, the only tango move everyone knows. Forgetabble match. He can take this gimmick further too,heh, it’s funny.
Abyss took on QueeQueg…sorry, Mana, in what everyone unanimously agrees was match of the night. Awesome brawl. Good big man spots, although when they’d hit the corners it looked like they moved the ring a foot each time. Fight into the crowd, vicious chair shots. The first time Abyss cracked Mana over the head, the back panel you lean your back on went flying off into the crowd! Everyone was like !! :-o Abyss is great, and after pinning Mana following a Black Hole slam, he did it again, then once more after chants of “One more time!” He gave ‘em what they wanted, gotta like that,heh.
Way too much of this “guy in red shit no one knows” run in & attacks other guy we don’t know. Who the fuck cares?
Shark Boy took on a guy named Ken Scampi after the never-ending intermission where the ring crew did nothing to fix the ropes. Very disappointing match, very bleh, although we did get out signature Shark Boy spots. Glad he bit Scampi’s valet in her badonka donk ass.
Russo then came out, didn’t talk long before introducing Big Vito. Although long, he gave a heartfelt & tearful speech about breaking into the business with Russo 14 years ago. I’ve always liked Vito. Then Russo gets back on the mic., and babbles on and on about having heart, not selling out your heart, hear heart heart, God God God. I was smiling the entire time though, just hearing that voice live was a thrill(in a funny, sarcastic way). Bootleg the video to hear me scream “Pudding!”
April Hunter(looking HOT!) took on Traci Brooks. It had some good psychology in theory, but they could be tighter & harder hitting to make it look better. Speaking of tight, Trinity turns on Traci after the match. Who gives a shit? Why didn’t they just have a three way? I’ll reserve the sex jokes about that three way because I’m trying to pay some dignity to women’s wrestling & I appreciate people like them trying to do so. They can improve though.
Borash came out. Here’s the thing with TNA – overall it’s better for TNA to survive & thrive. They’d be another place to go. NWA Champion Jarrett came out to team with Matt Striker(Not ROH Matt Stryker). I can’t hate Jarrett, even though he made himself world champion. He’s a good, if not old school, wrestler, and I like him, or did anyway. They fougtht CSWF tag team champions America’s Most Wanted. I should point out after this that the fat guy who owns CSWF announced they are joining the NWA as NWA Cyberspace. Anyway, it was a decent formula tag match. Nothing more.
Main event was Slyk Wagner Brown defending his CSWF heavyweight title against Michael Shane. I thought it was boring. So did Brian. We left. Probably never to return. I only wanted to see Russo anyway.
Although Christopher Daniels & Elix Skipper are announced for the next show. Damn. Ah well, I probably still won’t go.

The Death Of WCW :
I bought it on a Friday night, started it at 6pm or so, and finished reading it around 12 or 1pm Saturday. It brought me back since it’s chaptered in years, and I lived through most of them,heh. Watching the tv, reading the net, hoping to God the Radicals(especially Benoit) wouldn’t leave, etc.
I won’t go into detail other than to say you’ll learn a thing or two that you didn’t before, it’s amazing how much stupidity happened, and it’s quite an interesting story. The book gives proper credit to Bischoff as having revolutionary ideas and the like, which is definitely true. Then also how he went out of his mind in 99. ?Lastly, one person who doesn’t get a lot of credit for things is, in fact, the lovable idiot Vince Russo. Now, we all know he’s an idiot(I don’t need to explain this, do I?) Well, I think he’s lovable, or likeable anyway, because I think his heart was usually in a good place. He intended good, but it got really muddied in the translation,heh.
In broad terms, one good thing Russo did he never gets credit for is coming up with something – ANYthing – for every one in the roster. In the years since he’s gone, you see that the WWF has really reverted back to the “concentrate on the top names only” mentality, and that sucks. I mean, that’s not to say Russo came up with GREAT ideas (Marianna faking abuse by Chazz, Hardcore Holly’s “I’m a big shot” stuff, anything involving Mark Henry or the Blue Meanie), but hey, at least they were DOING something every week. When’s the last time Val Venis did anything? Russo did the same thing in WCW. Hey, it may not have been good, but he wrote as many people into the show as he could, and that’s a good thing. He was the first to put the title on Bret Hart, he picked up pushing Benoit where Bischoff left off(Yes, Bischoff started pushing Benoit in summer 99 just before he was “fired” or whatever the fuck it was), he would eventually push Booker, Jarrett, Vampiro & Steiner as new faces(albeit too late), and at least he was trying something new, as opposed to the ‘revert to old feuds and stars main eventing’ mentality that followed with the brief Sullivan run. Hey, that’s not to say again he didn’t do a billion stupid things, but that’s easy to say, heh. I’m just saying he wasn’t a TOTAL disaster.
Time for bed, and I’ll see you in a few weeks.
-E


An excerpt from a column I wrote in April of 2004 :

                                                  Austin + Goldberg + TNA = New #2

   
    I'd been following the Austin/WWF contract drama the last week or so, and Austin's gone again now. First thing I thought was that it really rendered that whole Brock/Goldberg match from just a month ago TOTALLY meaningless, because at that point the only person who was gonna be around afterwards was Austin, so he was the only person put over, albeit after the Goldberg win. Fine, but now that shithead's gone too, so what's the point? Why not have Hogan come back and beat all of them? haha.
    Second of all, Austin hasn't been on the shows since Benjamin beat HHH the first time post-Draft, hasn't been mentioned at all, nor have the fans shown they noticed much via "Austin" chants or "We Want Austin" or ANYTHING, and I certainly don't miss the fuck. Hey Austin, in case you didn't notice, 2000 was their most profitable year, and you WEREN'T THERE (except for the last few un-notable months), so up yours.
    Yeah, he's the most over wrestler ever, he sells the most merchandise, yadda yadda yadda, but the ratings aren't exactly dipping as a result of him not being there, and all he's done since he came back after leaving the first time was suck the heat away from any segment he was involved in. By that I mean, no one would ever get over because Austin comes out, gets cheers no matter what and no one pays attention to anything else. So if you think Austin stunning Dupree on the lottery RAW was giving "the rub", forget it.
     I just hate that Austin, this piece of shit whom I've never liked for more than a month combined, is held above everyone else in the fans eyes. I'm sure if they knew Austin was leaving at WM, Austin wouldn't have gotten the heat that Brock & Goldberg did. Hell, when Austin came back at NWO 2003 to fight Bischoff he got the same pop he always did after quitting the company the year before and getting the patented WWE smear-campaign on Confidential. So fuck him, I'm glad he's gone for now.
    At any rate, now that Austin's gone & the news popped up of New Japan & Pride being interested in his services, coupled with the fact that Goldberg still has a few matches left in Japan on a contract with Pride, it occurred to me that if Austin Vs. Goldberg finally happened in Japan it would make HUUUUGE $. Then the news came that TNA was interested in getting involved somehow, perhaps to provide an undercard for an Austin/Goldberg PPV where a tape of their match from Japan would air in the main event slot.
    Lawrence & I were discussing this possibility earlier and I mentioned a few things like the potential Fox Sports Net deal set I believe for June, and a Sat. night timeslot, plus the heat between Austin & Jarrett from the past that would prevent the deal from happening. Although I think to make this happen, TNA would have to spend A LOT of money for Austin & Goldberg and whichever Japanese company would host the event. I think between Panda Energy Corp. & Fox Sports, they could get some backing for it. They could take all the money they spend on Sting or Luger or wanted to spend on guys like Hogan, The Outsiders & Savage, maybe get rid of a few of their more useless talents like Sonny Siaki, Goldylocks and Monty Brown(who I read is terrible) (09 edit - DAMN! Was I totally wrong on that guy!) , and put it all towards Austin & Goldberg.   
    Someone should definitely go stroke Austin's ego, because it's a win-win situation. All they have to do is put it this way to Austin - if he wants to prove his worth, to show up the WWF for thinking his 'stock' will fall without being on their TV every week, to re-emphasize that he's the biggest draw in wrestling history and is still one of the hottest if not the, then he should do TNA because people will tune in to see him. TNA wins more viewers and lots of money due to Austin, Austin gets a big payday and proves all the points I mentioned earlier.
    So, let's presume for a moment that it works. Austin/Goldberg is signed for Japan(and being the two are friends, and they'd be booking their match together, I'm sure one would take the dive for the other. Doesn't really matter which), and it's set for the match to be shown as the main event of a show that TNA produces and has the undercard for. Now, do you show it on PPV, or do you try to have Fox Sports put it up against RAW on a Monday night?
    The Monday night thing was Lawrence's idea, and although(like Goldberg/Hogan on Nitro in '98) people will point out, rightfully, that giving it away from free TV means you lose out on a HUGE payday from PPV, it does have a lot of merits to it :
    For one thing, you'd need to get the word out a couple weeks in advance. Let's say this happens in August. By then, Austin will have plenty of time to get in shape if need be, and the Fox Sports deal should have been done months ago. What you do next is you buy ad time during RAW like WCW & the WWF used to do. If people watching RAW saw Austin/Goldberg was happening, they'd be THERE. You have Austin & Goldberg record promos building up to the match to show on the Fox show, a couple of them to lead up to the big show.
    So, do you give it away on a Monday head-to-head against RAW or PPV? Well, people said WCW was crazy to oppose RAW in 1995, then they succeeded, and I'm telling you now that if TNA went up against RAW with Austin/Goldberg as the main event(pre-taped or not, pre-taping has nothing to do with ratings because marks which are the huge majority of the audience don't read spoilers, and even if they knew the finish they'd still want to watch it, I think) would destroy RAW. It would be the biggest slap in the face and best thing for TNA to do to establish themselves as a #2. Sure, they're #2, but a distant #2 and by default if nothing else. This might make them a little competitive. Financially, it makes a ton more sense to put it on PPV and make a ton of money there, so I guess I'd have to go with that, but either way, the hype strategy remains the same, AND when the show finally arrives, here's what they need to do :
    Since Austin/Goldberg is a one-time thing, they need to let us know that. Honesty is the best policy. They can say,"One time only, TNA brings you the match you've wanted for years but were denied - Now, finally, STEVE AUSTIN VS. GOLDBERG! Plus, all the TNA superstars including AJ Styles, Christopher Daniels & Red, etc. etc. etc." Because they NEED to have a strong undercard to open the eyes of new fans, and WWF fans, to hook them. So let's go through them name-by-name :
    NEW TNA CHAMPION as of earlier tonight, AJ Styles! He has to be the lead-in to Austin/Goldberg, in a title defense. He's simply probably the best wrestler in North America that the WWF doesn't have under contract, and I'm happy he beat Jarrett for the title tonight, making him a 2-time world champion. By this point, all of the ex-WWF guys that TNA wants will have their 90-day no-compete clauses up, so I say Styles could defend against either Christopher Daniels or Sean O'Haire. Daniels would have to be my pick though because when O'Haire finally gets a title shot, he should win it. Anything less, like a draw or no finish, would suck. So Daniels, who is amazing, can have a great match with AJ for the world title leading into Austin/Goldberg.
    As for the rest of the undercard, I don't have any specifics as far as matches go except a few details :
    For one, I know they want to sign Kanyon, Spanky, Zach Gowen & probably Terri to form a "cast-off"(aka reject) faction of ex-WWF guys. NOT a good idea. This isn't the nWo, and it's not like they have Austin,Rock & HHH either. These guys barely did anything of note in the WWF at all, so it's better not to make it obvious that they're #2 by having guys from the bigger company who couldn't cut the mustard band together. In fact, NO ONE who's an ex WWF or ex WCW guy should be spotlighted or put over in the least. ECW got big via their own stars. Sure, they had ex "big 2" guys like Bigelow, Raven and Douglas, but they were used totally different than they were in the big leagues and did new things. ECW was built on home-grown names like The Sandman, Sabu, Taz, Dreamer, etc.
    So TNA should go the same route. I like Jeff Jarrett a lot, but don't ask me to buy him as a world champion in 2004 over guys like Styles & Daniels. Don't expect me to get excited about Lex fucking Luger, or the Harris Brothers. Ex-ECW rejects like Simon & Swinger don't do much for me either. Raven & Sabu get a pass from me over everyone else there for various reasons, but they're the exception more or less, and Sting. Though I don't want Sabu or Sting in any main events really either.
    Anyway, what I say is, if they want to sign these ex-WWF guys, then put them in one big match. A 6 or 8-man tag. Say....Kanyon, Zach Gowen & Spanky Vs. D-Lo Brown, BG James & Konnan(Ron Killings is TNA established I would think by now & can have his own singles match to destroy the "It's K-Kwik who couldn't get off of Sunday Night Heat" image) to get it over & done with.
    The only other match-specific thing I'd do is either have ("the Amazing") Red in the X title match, preferably winning it, or the finals of the X Cup tournament, or whatever the international tag team tournament is called, because it's supposed to be held in an Ultimate X match, which for those of you who don't know is the match with the giant X criss-crossing the ring. I believe TNA's held two of those matches & they've both supposed to be really great, at least the first one was.
    So, as for the rest of the roster, I'd be sure to include Sean O'Haire, Raven, Elix Skipper, Low-Ki, Sabu, Sonjay Dutt's supposed to be good, Teddy Hart, Jack Evans, Frankie Kazarian's decently talented, Abyss is supposed to be a good big man but I'm not a big fan of his masked-Kane-like looks, Shark Boy & New Jack I loved but I don't think we'll ever see New Jack again,heh, Kid Kash, Trinity, Jerry Lynn, and I'd try to get guys like Dusty Rhodes and Ricky Steamboat, any 'legends' that would be willing to appear to celebrate the NWA's history and to be involved in matches, like say Steamboat ref.s Styles/Daniels.
    That's just off the top of my head going down the results of the last TNA show looking at their roster. O'Haire they've expressed interest in once his no-compete clause is up and he should be shot to top with the WWF's restrictions on his workrate taken off. He should have the match right before the title match, with a good victory over someone, maybe Sting. Raven should also get a huge push because he's totally talented and hasn't been used to his full potential in years. Hopefully he'll grow his hair back. I also don't want crap like Russo, the lame TNA broads like Desire and backstage skits taking up too much time. They should draw the people in first with their stars & their stars' wrestling before they try to 'hook' us in with storylines or the like. The characters needs to be established first before we care about who turns on who or what comes next. And stay away from bringing in 'big stars' who show up for one time and don't do anything like Luger, or like Hogan certainly would have done. They should also do some good video packages before the matches to show highlights of what TNA stars have done in the past. THAT's where they can show Jarrett nailing Hogan with the guitar, to say,"Look he beat up Hogan too" instead of the point being to build to a Jarrett/Hogan match which never happened anyway.
    So at any rate, that's the set up for TNA's "big show" whatever that might be. I'm sure no one will have half the brain to think this up, but it's certainly, in my eyes, what they need to do if they want to make money and get bigger.


This essay, titled "WWE : Grow Up" was written in January of 2003. It's quite an interesting look back considering where the industry/business/"sport" has, or hasn't, gone since. The introduction is by Gary Michael Cappetta, as it appeared on his website :

(The followiong essay was forwarded to me by "E", a friend and the accomplished director and videographer of my "Bodyslams! & Beyond" stage show.  What possessed "E" to pen this thoughtful piece is anyone's guess.  Nevertheless, I found his perspective so incisive that I asked his permission to share his essay with the readers of bodyslams.com.  And he obviously agreed.)

I've been watching and studying professional wrestling for well over a decade now, since the age of 8. Reading every possible book, web page, magazine, opinion I could/can find. Watching countless hours of matches from all over the world. Memorizing names, dates, title histories. Talked to people in the industry, outside the industry, basically learning all I could absorb.

As an artist, I consider pro wrestling one of the, if not the, finest of arts. I also quite consider it a sport, but to simply confine wrestling to one category is an injustice - it's far too complicated for simple definition. At it's best, pro wrestling combines every element of drama, suspense, entertainment, spectacle and storytelling/athletic excitement. Having been in the ring myself and learned from various people/sources, wrestling is a detailed and complicated performance art. Comparisons with movies, TV shows, comic books and soap operas are somewhat accurate as wrestling certainly has elements from those. But, when you look at the big picture, wrestling combines several of the greatest arts - acting, videography, choreography, music, writing, graphic design, etc.. All in great detail when studied.

The drama created through a well crafted story line, characters and acting such as the Ultimate Warrior/Macho King feud with the retirement & reuniting with Ms. Elizabeth is as good and, dare I say, more realistic than any movie (mostly due to the nature of wrestling - the blurring of reality. The actors/wrestlers are there, live on TV in 3D flesh and blood shot with real cameras, unlike a movie for example). The depth of emotion and story in the original theme music of Kane is as well-written and elaborate as any book. The crispness, intensity and effort in a Chris Benoit match make you forget the winner is predetermined. And the skill, vision and precision of a well-directed & edited video montage can make any match seem like the most important of all time. Combine this with the mythological/psychological role that wrestling plays in the minds of it's millions of fans around the world, you'll find it's a shame that the mainstream public and society in general fail to appreciate what pro wrestling can be in it's purest form. It is, however, a bigger shame that pro wrestling prevents itself from ever having a chance to change that perception.

As it is right now, the pro wrestling scene in North America is in a dire state. The WWE/WWF, the only major league/mainstream promotion left, is in serious trouble, losing almost as many fans as money as of late. Not to bore you with numbers, largely because that would be a whole other column, but according to Tom Zenk's report (which was compiled using legitimate wrestling media sources), the WWE went from a worth of $1.1 billion in 2000 to $570 million in 2002. Consider this is without WCW & ECW for competition and the fact that it's worth roughly half of what it used to be, and it's quite a scary outlook for the future. The WWE has failed miserably over the past 2 years in several experiments. The XFL, the World, Smackdown Records, WCW/ECW invasion, the 'brand split', the nWo, and above all, with their fans. Not only did the WWE fail to capture the combined 3 or 4 million WCW & ECW fans when those companies folded, they lost fans of their own. In their heyday (1998-2000), the WWF drew twice as many fans ratings-wise as they do now. If they had brought in the WCW/ECW fans, they might still be around that number.

Maybe. After all, the WWF has done no favors to the 3 million hardcores who still watch. I don't need to go into HHH, necrophilia, the ratings poison that is Shawn Michaels, the burying of the most over stars like Booker & RVD - you know what the WWE is doing to turn off it's fans. But why? Simply, I think the WWE needs to grow up. I'd be remise if I didn't mention that there certainly was and still is plenty of wrestling states-side and world wide aside from the WWE, but since the WWE is the only nation-wide/international company left, I think it deserves the longest look.

If you look at the 40-year history of the WWWF/E, you could easily compare it to a human male, and the analogy is striking. In the first 20 years of the WWWF, there were no truly big changes. Much of the time was devoted to the straight-up 'fan favorites' like Bruno Sammartino & Bob Backlund. The whole style of matches and production barely changed in those 20 years. You could liken this to a toddler, as the WWWF was learning their trade. The foundation of things they expanded upon in the next era of Hulkamania(the babyface champion overcoming heel after another, even the television from the late 70s followed much of the same format in regards to interviews, graphics and matches into the late 80s) was laid in these years, much like a baby learns to walk, speak and other basic skills. Basics that would be built upon later in life.

Which brings us to the childhood of the WWF, starting almost exactly 20 years after their birth in 1963. In late 1983, Hulk Hogan returned to the recently renamed WWF from the AWA and it didn't take long for him to win the title in January 1984. The period between this and the next stage wasn't quite as long as the last, but proved to be at first a golden era and then near-cataclysmic failure. The 80s and early 90s of the WWF was very much like a young child before puberty - innocent. Hulk Hogan played the hero to millions of children, teaching(or preaching) the 'right way' to live life through his actions and demandments. Even his theme song Real American, though not intended for him, could not have more appropriate lyrics for the time. Just as a child is mostly sexless before the brain releases the necessary hormones around the teen years, the WWF at the time was straight up good guys Vs. bad guys, good/evil, and without the raunch and 'attitude' of the years to come. Any 'negative' traits like betrayal, jealousy and aggression were reserved for the heels, characters simple enough for a child's mind. Wrestling was still at the time something the entire family could watch and was incredibly profitable, culminating in what may have been the defining moment in the history of wrestling - Hulk Hogan Vs. Andre The Giant at WrestleMania 3.

While the business started to decline in the 90s for numerous reasons, the child stage still was not over. Even into the New Generation era, not much had changed overall in regards to the product. This time, Bret Hart mainly played the quintessential good guy. By the time Shawn Michaels reigned as champion, the WWF was starting to change however. Puberty was on the horizon.

1996 was a strange year in the WWF. Consider this the WWF as a 12-year old boy, going through physical and mental changes as the hormones seeped through his body in preparation for the teenaged years. 1996 was the transition year between the New Generation (childhood) and Attitude(teenager). Faced with being beaten in ratings competition with WCW Monday Nitro, declining ratings and eventually, possible bankruptcy, the WWF started to realize change was needed. Talents such as Diesel, Razor Ramon, The 1-2-3 Kid, Jeff Jarrett, Yokozuna, Jake The Snake Roberts & the Ultimate Warrior all left the WWF in 1996 as Lex Luger and Bam Bam Bigelow had done in late 95. The WWF went full-swing into the very controversial Goldust character, even receiving complaints from Gays Rights groups. Bret Hart was out most of the year. Racier and aggressive story lines started finding their way onto RAW, such as Vader attacking President Gorilla Monsoon, Steve Austin breaking into the armed Brian Pillman's house, British Bulldog accusing Shawn Michaels of coming onto his wife, & Diesel flipping off the Undertaker at Royal Rumble 96. The WWF was clearly starting to change, and the metamorphosis would continue into completion during 1997 thanks to the writing of Vince Russo.

The WWF came of age when it coined the term "Attitude". By this point in November 1997, Stone Cold Steve Austin was the most popular wrestler in the WWF and probably the world. Though the WWF lost the entire year ratings-wise to Nitro, the WWF never gave up and under the team of Russo and McMahon, it was clear by the end of the year that the WWF was now a teenager. Rebellion, a natural feeling in teenager towards parents and other figures, was now a common trait in many characters. The newly-formed D-Generation X of (mainly) Shawn Michaels and Triple H defied Commissioner Slaughter, maturity and common decency at every step. It's probably not a coincidence that the word "Sophomoric" was used to describe DX many times. And the 'every man' Stone Cold Steve Austin, who defied ANY authority figure the WWF could find (eventually even Vince McMahon) as he realized he was being screwed over by The System/The Man which was just using his neck injury as an excuse to strip him of the belts he held and not give him clearance to wrestle. Stone Cold appealed to people on the basis of 'every one wants to do to their boss what Austin does to his', but almost the exact moment the WWF lost it's innocence had to be Montreal.

Coincidentally enough, the very first "Attitude" video promo debuted at the Survivor Series 1997. It was a package that made you proud to be a fan - wrestlers in a warehouse stating their athletic credentials and injuries. Funny enough, it included Bret Hart, who later on that night - the official birth of Attitude - was to be screwed on international television by Vince McMahon, changing the course of history, clearing the way for the 'Attitude' Bret disagreed with, and of course saving McMahon a few million. As one of the three catalysts that led to the WWF's rise to prominence (the first being Austin, the third Mike Tyson), it begot the Mr. McMahon character, the fully-realized anti-Austin for Steve to play off of for the next few years. Once Mike Tyson appeared, the media took notice of this new, teenaged WWF and the WWF gained more attention and fans than ever. Vince Russo, who happens to have that mentality (and other complexes) himself, went full-swing in these years.

From WrestleMania 14 to 2000, the WWF got a lot of media stories, and very few positive ones. McMahon, who once touted the family-friendly WWF, now laughed and actually defended such angles as Val Venis' castration, Mark Henry's oral encounter with a transvestite, DX's 'suck it' catchphrase, Austin (the hero to millions, especially the teenaged demographic not coincidentally) drinking beer and flipping people off on TV, and Austin's eventual crucifixion in media appearances, disregarding legitimate claims that the WWF marketed towards children. The mentally-disturbed McMahon also had the nerve to claim that the WWF does not do murder or rape, when Kane tried killing the Undertaker at the Royal Rumble 98 with gasoline & a lighter, HHH paid Rikishi to hit & run Steve Austin(who retaliated with an attempted murder of his own a year later at Survivor Series 2000), DX kidnapped Stephanie McMahon and was seen taking 'her' dress off in the locker room, and Jim Ross' face was shoved against his will into Vince's bare ass. There are many more examples, but the bottom line is the juvenile mentality of the Vince’s was backing this new WWF all the way into excess, figuratively spitting in the face of all critics who had the nerve to question the multi-million dollar company. I can't tell you how embarrassing it is as a wrestling fan to not be able to watch some wrestling in the presence of my family in case they happen to see Val Venis make not-so-subtle (and totally sophisticated) penis references, Jaqueline pop out of her dress again in the millionth Evening Gown match with plastic Playboy-centerfold Sable, Beaver Cleavage reference incest, The Godfather pimp scantily-clad "hos" and Pat Paterson pull out his dirty underwear in front of a 400-lbs. Samoan in a thong. It's embarrassing because at moments like those, when a non-fan would say, "Why do you watch this crap?", there's nothing to refute it. They never ask that when Kurt Angle wrestles, however. How funny.
It's embarrassing to have someone like Vince McMahon represent the industry, responding to a letter from the PTC with language and attitude more befitting of a high-school lunch room, and going on a talk show with Bob Costas to all but start a fight on live TV. Probably the best is covering his ass after Owen Hart's death by having the audacity to claim Owen was to be lowered "in true super hero fashion" down to the ring - totally not going into the fact that Owen was booked to be up there that night as part of the gimmick of the Blue Blazer, a parody of the virtuous Hogan-like 80s characters as punishment for actually having morals and refusing to do an angle wherein he has sex with his tag partner's valet. Like that teenager with an attitude, Vince McMahon doesn't care, as long as he's making money on his own terms, further proven by the Over The Edge 1999 PPV continuing, the next night's RAW and the RAW after Brian Pillman's death. Of course, while these practices may have led to the most profitable era in WWF's history, it wasn't without a price.

Sponsors started dropping like flies in light of the PTC's campaign against the WWF, a problem which still lingers for the WWE today (and any other wrestling company, thanks to the WWE) as advertisers back away due to the 'stigma' wrestling has earned itself. Inevitably, lawsuits are filed(and covered by the media) where wrestling is blamed for juvenile behavior, backyard wrestling and in many cases the death of a child. Substantiated or not(and realistically, they aren't), the WWF did itself no favors with the television it produced. And their stubborn stance on what exactly they are did nothing to help.
The entire term "sports entertainment" is rooted in evil. Firstly, the entire reason the term exists was so McMahon could evade a tax of sporting events in one of his biggest markets, New Jersey. New Jersey was(and is again, thankfully) a prime area for wrestling until McMahon got greedy and said "we're not a sport, so we don't have to pay your tax". The term 'sports entertainment' is actually a perfect choice to describe wrestling, as you would think it would cover all aspects that make up this unique entity. But the entire design is poisoned - it's designed to take the focus off the in-ring product and on what happens backstage. Off the work of men like Chris Benoit, Kurt Angle and Eddie Guerrero and on the fact that Undertaker's trying to stab Austin with a knife on the embalming table, Mark Henry had sex with his sister, Torrie Wilson's kissing Dawn Marie, and Mae Young giving birth to a hand. That's what the term 'sports entertainment' was designed to do, to make the zombie-like fans spout what the WWF wants them to say - "It's a soap opera for men". It put the focus on the Shock TV, and as a result, not only didn't this make the WWF look bad in the media when things come up, matches barely got any time on WWF TV. Gone were the days of 10 minute matches, let alone 15 minute squashes like the 70s. Now, RAW viewers were lucky to get 2 minutes per match, at least in the undercard (Storm 1:28). The impatience of the American teenager. As Jim Cornette correctly said, there's nothing wrong with wrestling fans watching a wrestling show to watch wrestlers wrestle. The WWF forgot this, especially in 1999.

This slowly started to change in early 2000. The WWF just debuted Taz, the Human Suplex Machine and former ECW champion, and days later debuted the Radicals(consisting of most importantly Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero and Dean Malenko), not to mention newly-debuted Olympic gold medallist, Kurt Angle. All of these had built quite a cult-following, appeared within months of each other, and good reputations as hard-workers. Real Wrestlers. I think the WWF realized that the 'punch/kick/brawl through the crowd/chair/table spot' main events that had been the mainstay between Austin, The Undertaker, Kane, etc. for years wasn't going to quite cut it anymore, unless they wanted to be upstaged by these talented mid-carders. So HHH steps up his game around that time and starts putting on ****+ matches throughout the year, pre-quad tear. Austin returns from neck surgery and has better matches than he's had in years. Rock also keeps up with them all. It was a small change, but in the right direction. However, not enough, and the WWF still has alot to overcome, which leads us to today.

WWE. The end of "Attitude". Supposedly. So what does that mean? Where are we now? Critics (and the WWF itself) have the mentality to find 'the next big thing' that will embark a new era just as Austin/Attitude, the nWo, and Hogan had done before them. It seems we're between eras. Attitude is over, but what is now? Post-Attitude? And what is the next step that will bring about the next 'golden era'? A concept, a talent, what is it? Before we get to that, let's look at the company's age.

Attitude is over. The teenage years are over. But, the WWE still feels like one. I liken the WWE to a young man, possibly starting or going off to college, but not yet ready for the real world. The WWE still longs to be that teenager (to be that rebellious, carefree bad-ass), and it's obvious by it's actions. McMahon can claim the end of Crash TV all he wants, but Dawn Marie kissing Torrie, Ass Cream jokes, Stacy loving Testicles and their admitted attempt to get attention via staged necrophilia prove they don't really believe that. Bottom line, the WWE needs to grow up. It needs to mature, especially since the WWE is the only representative of the industry visible to the mainstream & most public. The WWE needs to take responsibility for that, and it's clear that someone as immature, out of touch and now senile as Vince McMahon will not do that. So, I propose to tell you what I think needs to be done to the WWE to correct itself, and maybe the business.

Firstly, the focus needs to be redirected. With the undoubted success of Kurt Angle and now Brock Lesnar, you can't deny their amateur credentials. You'll notice a lot of critics of the current WWE product from Mick Foley to Gary Cappetta to many of the IWC all say similar things - the WWE needs to focus back on the in-ring product. The wrestling. It's the bottom line to the wrestling product. In fact, when you think about it even further, the entire reason for the existence of story lines, characters and even 'sports entertainment moments' is to make you want to pay to see a match. Even something as stupid as Mark Henry sleeping with Mae Young is intended to make you think, "Ha ha, this guy is funny, I want to see him wrestle, so I'll pay for this ticket or buy this pay per view." Whether it's successful or not, that's extremely debatable, but that's the real reason such things exist and in the past few years, the focus has come off the in-ring product and more of these skits, which is totally absurd when you consider how much time you spend watching the TitanTron when you attend RAW or Smackdown.

While I certainly don't agree that wrestling should be exactly like it was in 'the old days', there are certainly aspects that can be emulated, not the least of which is focusing on what happens in the ring. With the recent rave reviews for the Smackdown matches of the Guerreros, Chris Benoit, Kurt Angle, Rey Mysterio and the fact that the build to the eventual Angle/Lesnar match at WrestleMania 19 has started, I have some hope and most of my hope for the future of wrestling lies in Kurt Angle and people like him.

I believe that if this next generation of product for the WWE is going to concentrate on wrestling, there's no perfect man to have at the helm than Kurt Angle. Kurt Angle is without a doubt arguably the best wrestler ever, as no one that I know of has ever completely conquered both amateur and professional worlds. Not only is Angle former NCAA champion and Olypmic gold medallist (with a broken neck no less), he's in the National Wrestling Hall Of Fame. To think someone could do so much in the amateur world, then go to the WWE/F, master every aspect of character and ring psychology, and have **** matches with the likes of Austin, Rock, & Benoit is amazing. In the pro world, not only has Kurt held every title(plus the WCW World & US titles) in the WWE sans the "world tag team" belts, he is a complete package. He has impeccable timing in the ring and on the mic. He is a great heel, serious or funny, and same for babyface. He is total professional who never complains and helps people out backstage. He even has good entrance music, and the fans like the character so much they even made up their own chant for it. And he also believes as I do that the focus needs to get back to wrestling.

I'm not saying everyone needs to be a total package like Angle. Chris Benoit doesn't need to be as charismatic. His skill and precision in the ring make up for it and define his persona. Stone Cold had everything but pretty much sucked as a heel. Scott Steiner may be past his prime but has physical presence and believable attitude. Goldberg is very far removed from these men in terms of technique, but he has charisma and intensity. Hulk Hogan is even further away from Goldberg, and old, but his character, charisma and personality (plus nostalgia) more than made up for it.
And that's what I'm talking about - integration.

The WWE needs to combine aspects of the old-school and the new-school and come to a middle-ground. You can do things for fans of all styles. Technical, brawling, high-flying, etc. There can be things the casual fans will like, the smarts will like, and both. I know personally that many within the WWE itself who have been in the business for a while feel the need to change too. Agents who look at the young wrestlers and say they don't know how to work, and if the agents say something, they wouldn't know what they're talking about anyway. That needs to change. There's a reason a wrestler goes to a wrestling school.

While I do feel the focus needs to be back on wrestling, also the integration must be between wrestling and good story lines/characters. Good wrestling can only go so far before you want drama, a back story and characters with motivation and goals whom you want to see win or lose. A face to get behind, a heel whom you want to see get his ass beat. Perhaps back to the basics. That's why I think Steiner/Triple H is having a great build so far. Steiner isn't being made to look weak, HHH is playing the pussy heel great, putting Steiner over strong, and the motivation is simple - Steiner says he's better than HHH, wants to prove it & wants the belt. No Katie Vick, no divorce, running over dogs, hug fights or crying over spilled coffee.

On the other hand, there can be characters and story lines with more detail. I thought the back story behind the original Mankind character and even Kane was great(before muddled later). While certainly over the top, at least they had a story and explanation behind the masks, the mandible claw, the fire. Reasons for why they feel the way they do and what they do. Then look at guys like Bling Bling Buchanan, or the horrible gimmicks of 1995, who have NOTHING to them whatsoever in any way. It's not like he even has wrestling talent to make up for his lack of charisma. What I'm saying is in regards to the angles, they can be simple & good, or detailed & good. Either way, there's a difference between good (Steiner/HHH) and bad(Katie Vick).

And further, the corporate structure needs to change. Vince McMahon is obviously inadequate, not to mention cheap and selfish. If he wasn't, Stone Cold would still be around, the WCW/ECW invasion would have been successful, and the fans wouldn't be deprived of matches they really want to see like Goldberg/Austin, among many other things. His children, despite having grown up in the industry, are also incompetent. The first thing Stephanie McMahon booked was the ending of Survivor Series 2000 where Austin for all intents and purposes killed Triple H in his car. Shane has zero say despite pushing for Attitude years ago and is barely mentioned ever for whatever reason. Linda is more figurehead than anything. Brian Gewertz failed in Hollywood, and is quite failing in wrestling. Triple H has done more things this year to Brock, Flair, RVD, Kane, Austin & Booker T than I can count and clearly is out for himself, not the industry he 'loves' so much. Jim Ross is a lying pig and always has been. The head of talent relations has more failures than I care to remember, most notably Austin leaving this year.

And Paul Heyman, while sometimes has good ideas, is doing two things wrong - booking himself as a star, and doing too many of the same matches. Heyman did the Guerrero/Malenko Classic series in ECW and has been trying to catch lightning in a bottle ever since and failing. Tanaka/Awesome, Jerry Lynn/RVD, Tajiri/Super Crazy were all done to the point where you couldn’t even name one match they had on what show and when, and ECW doesn't exist anymore either. Maybe it's not a coincidence that he's writing during the WWE's downtime. While the same 6 people on Smackdown had great matches for months, it only goes so far. The WWE has on their roster names such as Pat Patterson, Jim Cornette, Michael Hayes, Arn Anderson, Dean Malenko, Fit Finlay and Johnny Ace just to name a few, who have all been in the wrestling business a long time and no doubt will have better understanding and better ideas than someone like Brian Gewertz and other television writers.
Furthermore, the WWE should take responsibility for a few things. First, the booking for the ego needs to stop. If the golden rule in wrestling is whatever makes money, they should bide by it. Rob Van Dam, Booker T, even Raven, when given the proper outlet and chance, will draw money. They all have mic and wrestling skills, have catchphrases, characters, and most importantly are all over with the fans. While I totally understand the reasoning behind wanting a 'happy locker room', locker room be damned if it means 'rewarding' guys like Bradshaw, Hardcore Holly & Billy Gunn when they don't have half the talent of a Tajiri or a Tazz, who get castrated for being small even though they're more over than those bigger hacks. Getting a pop doesn't mean they draw(even Hogan proved this, like Undertaker and Michaels), and putting guys like Big Show over people like Sean O'Haire just because they're big, because they invested alot of money in them or were in the WWE for years despite not drawing a dime is a complete, idiotic waste. Like paying Kevin Nash millions a year, that defines waste. And that needs to stop.

Next, the WWE needs to start recognizing and revering the past. The business and even the WWE alone have a rich history that they should take pride in, especially since they own everything WCW(probably ECW soon too). The Attitude/quick payoff era pretty much ruined this, as events between even current superstars were forgotten very quickly. When Austin/Rock happened at WM17, not once did anybody mention or show in video packages the fact Austin/Rock have had an issue since late 97 or even fought at WrestleMania15. When Triple H returned in January, the Two Man Power Trip was never thought of again. The old saying of those who forget the past are doomed to repeat it comes to mind. Many fans notice this type of stuff. They're not as stupid as the WWE would like to think - they remember, and if you reward them for that, it's great. Considering 3 million or so fans watching now have stuck with the WWE after the fad died and mainstream fans left, the WWE would be wise to cater to them instead of desperately trying to get the mainstream fans who left back.
Besides that, nostalgia can be a powerful thing, as Hulk Hogan this year proved, because our memories are in the past - warm, perhaps childhood memories. So many people, like me(probably you) grew up watching wrestling. In fact, part of the inspiration for this essay was the fact I felt like wrestling grew up with me at the same time, in terms of maturity. I was a kid when Hogan was around, a teenager when nWo appeared, etc. And especially since the past was so rarely looked at in the Attitude era(and that the only place I can find WCW anymore is old tapes or Confidential), I get excited about things along those lines, like the Hulk Still Rules DVD. I think the WWE would do a great service to the fans, itself and the business if it revered (but not lived in) the past a little more. And even if you want to totally strip all humanity and sentiment from it, there's money to be made off the past via DVDs and things of that nature.

Speaking of the past, that brings me to my final step that the WWE needs to take in order to mature - take better care of it's workers. It's still ridiculous to think that in a multi-million dollar company such as the WWE, wrestlers are still considered "independent contractors". Surely the government would take a closer look at this company if wrestling wasn't considered a joke. In that respect, McMahon is lucky, but for the wrestlers, it's not the lifestyle it should be. The WWE should create an environment where wrestlers wouldn't feel the need to be on painkillers, steroids and such drugs to maintain their schedule or get a push. The WWE should be able to provide insurance and benefits so wrestlers who don't happen to make millions like the ones at the top can plan retirement. Along these lines, lots of ex-wrestlers like to talk about unions. Sgt. Slaughter, Jesse Ventura, Bret Hart, Roddy Piper and probably others have all mentioned a union or starting a union at some point, but no one ever does anything about it. Wrestling needs to start appreciating itself and taking care of itself, and as the only representative in town, I say this is the WWE's responsibility.

I know little of this is likely to happen, but I have not and will not give up hope. Even in the sad state the WWE's in, even if it one day goes out of business, wrestling will always exist. Not in the same form, for sure, but it will always be around. Wrestling is the oldest sport in history, and probably the most pure, primal and natural at it's base. It's in our nature. Every ancient culture had it, and it was probably around in pre-history. Even my kittens wrestle. The 20th century has spawned this unique, profitable and amazing version of wrestling - a combination of sport and art. It's a deeply psychological and mythological never-ending series of events, and no matter what happens in the grand-scale, wrestling will always be around. I just hope that the WWE can mature, show some pride and take the next step to enlightenment.

I hope you agree with my vision.