Just one week ago, even after watching Vince McMahon embrace a career as a doctor, I wrote about the ongoing feeling on RAW, that the show was becoming “must-see TV”, where we the fans feel the need to tune in every week. I was talking mainly about the McMahons ongoing storyline as the powerful family that was controlling the show. We wanted to see what they would do next. Last week, I was one of the last remaining people who was fairly intrigued with the McMahons and their role on the show. After watching this week’s Halloween-themed RAW, I can safely say that WWE has sprung a leak on its ship.
Book-ended by fairly solid segments, RAW is not a complete loss, thanks to the Smackdown invasion, and the John Cena/Shawn Michaels encounter, which saw HBK emerge as the clear favorite to be voted into the main-event at Taboo Tuesday. Which brings me to Taboo Tuesday, one of my more favorite PPVs of the year. Not because I get to vote, but because the stipulations always make the show (well, they did last year). Sadly, the majority of the matches can be easily predicted. Why? Because WWE is feeding us the “right” answers, most of which we suspected all along.
Last week, Ric Flair, minus enough blood to keep a vampire full for a good month, emerged inside the squared circle, after attacking The Game, and screamed “Please put me in a cage with that man!”. I’m no Einstein (or even a Ben Stein), but I don’t know why anyone would really vote for a Submission match over a Cage match. So, why did WWE have to bring Ric Flair to the ring and scream that two weeks in a row? Are they really that desperate to make sure that the fans don’t vote for a Submission match over a Cage match? It’s ridiculous, and shows that while WWE wants to seem giving towards the fans, they still can’t take the training wheels off for us.
Also on last week’s RAW, WWE seemed to be pushing JBL and Rey Mysterio as the two Smackdown superstars in the RAW vs. Smackdown match. But, who in their right mind would think JBL would get the votes over, say, Matt Hardy? Or even Hardcore Holly? I think Christian will likely have more votes, especially after the latest events (which I will comment on shortly, to tie in with this week’s topic of the leak in WWE’s ship). Then, on last night’s broadcast, The Big Show and Kane were featured in a squash match against Squashees of the Night, The Heart Throbs, followed by a main-event which showcased a Cena/Angle/HBK finish that would make everyone assume that the triple threat would be featured the Showstopper over the Big Red Monster and the self-proclaimed Tower of Power.
We’re not stupid. Okay, not all of us are stupid. I did write a column last week praising RAW. Hey, we all make mistakes, okay? But we all assumed Ric Flair and Triple H would meet inside of a steel cage. We all assumed HBK would go head to head with Cena and Angle in the main-event. And it goes without saying, we assumed there would be a street fight between Austin and Coach (which is changed now). But, we did not need WWE telling us which way to vote. Sure, it’s fine to see campaigning in certain directions, but the past two weeks have been all-out blatant swaying for a Steel Cage, for Shawn Michaels, and for JBL and Rey Mysterio. I’m not going to jump to a conclusion here, but WWE just doesn’t seem all the safe with us choosing their matches at Taboo Tuesday, do they? Why is that? I reiterate, the matches were chosen when they were announced, thanks to one-sided choices in almost every match. And matches without one-sided choices didn’t have stipulations that really mattered (Does Mick Foley really care who he dresses up as? Do the divas care if they’re in leather and lace or cheerleader oufits? The answer is no.). It wasn’t necessary in the least to actually push us in certain directions at all. The WWE seriously dropped the ball by appearing uncertain with our opinions.
To make matters worse for RAW, last night had to be the most random show I have ever seen. Hacksaw Jim Duggan, Kamala (why Kamala?) and Jimmy Snuka came to the aid of Eugene against Rob Conway. Then, in a horribly random 10-minute segment, Coach introduced bodyguard Goldust to help him at Taboo Tuesday, Vince announced Austin would not be participating (more on that later) and brought out Funaki for no reason. This was followed up by Coach’s actual new opponent for Taboo Tuesday, Batista, which then prompted the other backup for the Coach, Vader. Umm, huh? Then, we derive from her absence in the Halloween costume contest that Torrie Wilson is either released or, as WWE has since announced, will just not be participating in the Battle Royale tonight at Taboo Tuesday.
I keep reading that paragraph, and something is off. Hacksaw Duggan? Kamala? Goldust? VADER? What the hell is going on? We have went from a stable show, to a show where everyone says “Well, let’s throw all of this at the wall, and see what sticks!”. It’s not working. There are certain decisions being made that are doing more harm than good. WWE needs to stop bringing in past talent. I was fine with it for Homecoming, but we’re at the point where we are relying on past talent to carry the current show. I was all for the McMahons on RAW if they had a reason on the show, even though 90% of the fans or more believed that valuable airtime was being stolen from real talent like Shelton Benjamin, Kerwin White, and many more. But adding Goldust and Vader to the show isn’t a necessity. It’s cool, I admit that, but in the long run, it’s going to take away from the quality of RAW, and… dare I say it… make Smackdown the “A”-show.
If bringing in all of this past talent (Vader, Goldust) and inactive talent (Vince McMahon, Mick Foley) wasn’t enough, WWE is losing its actual talent that is, well… talented. A tragic news story broke on the weekend, that claims Christian has quit the WWE. I was deeply saddened by the news, especially when I realized the poor run that he has had in the WWE for the past few years. Now, I really enjoy seeing Chris Jericho, but I wonder what could have been if Jericho moved to Smackdown and Christian stayed on RAW to start a one-on-one feud with John Cena. I believe that was WWE’s original plan, but it never followed through. Possibly because Christian wasn’t over completely with the fans, but he still deserved more than being the next best thing to a jobber on Smackdown.
What’s worse for Christian is that he can no longer be known as Christian wherever he goes. Why? Because WWE has trademarked his name, as well as many other names that have since left WWE. You won’t be seeing the Dudley Boyz in TNA. Nor will you be seeing Billy Gunn or the Road Dog. You won’t be seeing any trademarked name outside of the WWE. Do I think it’s stupid? Not necessarily. I’m not an average internet fan who deems something stupid without any reason that is valid. I believe it’s a smart business move on WWE’s part. But at the same time, it ruins some careers who really do fly by on their name alone. Sure, Christian quit, so why should he have the right to his name? Some guys aren’t so lucky. They get fired, losing their dream job, and they lose their entire identity, without once ever having a say in it. Is that unfair? Sure. Why shouldn’t it be? Besides, what’s the reason that WWE would do this, besides wanting to make money off the name themselves? Do they fear the competition? Well, I think to fear competition, you have to have competition to begin with. And before the blood-thirsty TNA fans sink their teeth into my column and tear me apart, I’m not saying TNA doesn’t pose a threat. I’m just saying that right now, TNA is really a smaller version of WCW without all the money to throw around. There are a lot of changes to be made before they become competition, but either way, the WWE seems to be making it easier in some ways for the competition to emerge, and in other ways, they are forcing the competition to do it the hard way.
Is the WWE a sinking ship, waiting to fade away? Of course not. Anyone who thinks that has a few screws lose in their head. But, if RAW is any indication, there are major changes that are needed, and those changes need to be made sooner rather than later. It’s fun to see a WWE legend every now and then, but it seems that Homecoming is stretching itself out for much longer than a 3-hour event. It was all fun for one night only, but it’s November now. Out with the old, and in with the new. Smackdown is doing just fine with their talent, even though I question the decisions to bring in a Midget division. And, if you’re going to bring back Kamala, cover him up a little. Scaring children isn’t a necessity.
I promised my readers that I would deliver an unbiased opinion on wrestling. I know that some of you may brand me as a loyal fan of the WWE, and you’re probably right, but after writing last week’s column (when I honestly believed WWE might be going in a good direction) and watching last night’s show, I needed to get all of that off my chest. It’s been a while since I felt this way about WWE (or about RAW in particular), and hopefully I won’t feel that way again anytime soon. Next week, I will be back with a topic that isn’t just a review of RAW or Smackdown. I realize these past two columns aren’t my best, so I’ll be sure to cook up something great for all of you to read. Until then, have a fun first week of November.
All feedback is welcome and encouraged for “The X-Factor”. Where else will I be able to hear from you, the readers? Be sure to e-mail me at carl_macqueen@ns.sympatico.ca and I also would like to thank Douglas Nunnally for nominating me two months in a row for the Columns Spotlight on TheWrestlingVoice, which has given me two consecutive months with a nomination as Column of the Month. It’s a real honor!
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