http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/blog.php?6817-Chazztastic Wrestling News and Discussion - eWrestlingNews.com Community en Fri, 24 May 2013 15:44:42 GMT vBulletin 10 http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/images/misc/rss.jpg http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/blog.php?6817-Chazztastic http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/entry.php?16883-Bring-Back-the-Glory-of-the-Tag-Team-Division Tue, 06 Sep 2011 17:58:04 GMT It is a sad state of the WWE that they haven’t focused on the WWE Tag Team Division for the past couple of years. Last year of 2010, the WWE... It is a sad state of the WWE that they haven’t focused on the WWE Tag Team Division for the past couple of years. Last year of 2010, the WWE Tag-Team Championship Title has changed hands 6 times. So far this year of 2011, the WWE Tag-Team Championship Title has changed hands 5 times. In the last two years, the Season 1 NXT wrestlers collectively have held the titles the most. Though professional wrestling is a scripted sporting event and the winners are predetermined, not every wrestler is given the honor to hold the title. To hold the title put’s a tag-team in the same category as that of The Hart Foundation, The Rockers, The British Bulldogs, Legion of Doom, The Hardy Boys, Edge and Christian, The Dudley Boys and other great tag-teams of the WWE. But for the past two years, the prestige of the Tag-Team Titles has lost its luster.

Though the multiple holders of the tag team belts still defended the title to the best of their performing ability, the over-all WWE tag team division has played second fiddle to everything else in the WWE. Very little storylines were written which centered on the belts. The ones holding the belt were usually tied to a faction, specifically the Nexus and the Corre factions, so the tag-teams bare spoke a word and rarely vocalized that they were the best tag-team around. The negative impact in all of this is that it made the tag team belts become just mere jewelry instead of the symbolic meaning of being a champion.

I remember a time when tag-teams of the WWE aggressively pursued the Tag-Team Championship belts. These teams were not mere “put-together” teams just to form a tag-team, but instead, they were wrestling partners who had great chemistry tagging in-and-out of the ring. They played the role that no one was better than them. They held the titles high and protected it from anyone who dared snatch it from them. But now, it’s not like that. Very rarely do we see the teams brag about being the champions. Very rarely do we see them walk with the swag of champions. Oh how far we come from those great days of when the titles meant something.

There are many arguments as to why it’s like that, and there are many arguments on how to fix it. The bottom-line is this: the WWE has to make a conscious decision to focus on these belts. Is it possible to say that there is no time on TV to create a story for the tag-team division? Impossible! For every 60 minutes of TV programming, approximately 20 minutes are allotted for sponsors. The following chart breaks down the total number of minutes of pure WWE Programming:

Show: TV Time - Sponsors Time = WWE Programming
RAW Hour 1: 60 minutes - 20 minutes = 40 minutes
RAW Hour 2: 60 minutes - 20 minutes = 40 minutes
RAW extra time: 10 minutes - 0 minutes = 10 minutes
Smackdown Hour 1: 60 minutes - 20 minutes = 40 minutes
Smackdown Hour 2: 60 minutes - 20 minutes = 40 minutes
Superstars: 60 minutes - 20 minutes = 40 minutes
Total Time: 310 minutes - 100 minutes = 210 minutes


Number of Active Titles in the WWE:
1 - WWE Heavyweight Championship Title
2 - World Heavyweight Championship Title
3 - Intercontinental Championship Title
4 - US Championship Title
5 - WWE Tag-Team Championship Title
6 - Divas Championship Title.

6 Titles/Division Storyline plus 1 Non-Title storyline divided by 210 minutes (210 divided by 7) equals a possible 30 minutes per storyline. Theoretically, there is no reason for the WWE to NOT raise the level of the Tag-Team Division. Even if each division storyline is given a solid 20-minutes each week (since 10 minutes from each division could be used to promote other events), it is still enough time for promos and actual wrestling.

The WWE roster is stacked, so there’s more than enough wrestlers to form teams for the Tag Team Division. Plus, current Hall of Famers like Shawn Michaels, Bret Hart, and possibly future Hall of Famer Edge proves that being in a tag-team can also elevate you to main event status. Now only if the WWE just can sit back and realize that they can return the tag team division to its prominence if they wanted to. All we can do is wait and hope that the WWE see’s what we see. Hopefully it will all work out in the end.

check out my blogspot at http://wrestlingalwaysmatters.blogspot.com

Thanks for reading this blog. Like always, I’d love to read your comments. ]]> Chazztastic http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/entry.php?16883-Bring-Back-the-Glory-of-the-Tag-Team-Division http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/entry.php?13699-Is-the-“Rawkdown”-really-beneficial-for-the-WWE Sat, 03 Sep 2011 15:13:57 GMT Now, I’m going to play devil’s advocate (well, sort of devil’s advocate) for keeping the Split-Brand concept. It seems that one of the main reasons... Now, I’m going to play devil’s advocate (well, sort of devil’s advocate) for keeping the Split-Brand concept. It seems that one of the main reasons for combining the two shows, which I collectively call the “Rawkdown” is to get better ratings for Smackdown. Now the fact is the hottest draws will always be on Raw and they will always be on Raw because that’s the WWE’s bread and butter. The hot draws that are thrown to Smackdown are there for the reason is to help the shows ratings, but in turn, it’s to free up space on the Raw Roster to continue hyping the main wrestler Vince wants to center his company around. That is perfectly understandable. If Raw ratings go down, then the business will go down. Because of this, Smackdown will always be the inferior show.

Now if combining the shows is due to ratings, we must take the other factors into account which is why they are low. First of all, Smackdown is on the Sy-Fy channel. Over all, the Sy-Fy channel does not have the same ratings as the USA channel. So, comparing the RAW ratings versus the Smackdown ratings isn’t really fair because they both are aired on two different channels.

Secondly, RAW on Monday night on the USA channel is so ingrained in the WWE fans psyche that people tune in as a force of habit. I don’t think I will ever forget that on Monday Nights on the USA Channel at 9pm, I can watch RAW. Smackdown on the other hand is different. It has traveled from Thursday nights on UPN to Friday nights on UPN to Friday on the CW to Friday on My Network TV then finally to Friday on Sy-Fy. Plus, ratings across the board tend to be lower on Friday nights, because many people choose to go out on Fridays than stay at home. Does this mean that Smackdown can never get the same ratings as Raw? I will say that nothing is impossible, but both shows are on different playing fields.

My problem of combining the two shows (creating Rawkdown Part 1 and Rawkdown Part 2) is that it’s like you’re selling me the same beer in two different bottles. As a fan, I like the variety of watching different wrestlers, which is what the split brand gives me. By combining the two shows, I can already guess that I’m going to be watching the same set of wrestlers spreading their one or two storylines from one show to the next show. I’m probably shortsighted on this, but I can’t see this getting better and better. There has to be a long term strategy in order for this to really work, but only time will tell as to what the WWE has in store.

Many of you guys have great ideas on what the WWE should do now that the brands are not officially split anymore. For me, I believe that instead of combining the brands, they need to go the other way and even more divide the brands. Kevin Nash said in an interview in describing the difference between WCW and WWE is that WCW was a multi-media company that does wrestling, while the WWE was a wrestling company that does wrestling. This statement is so true because if many of you can recall, WCW was one of many companies owned by Ted Turner. He bought the company not because he wanted to rule over the wrestling world, but to rule over the cable networks. WCW was one of the companies he purchased in reaching that goal. Now if rumors are to be true about the WWE Corporation (and not the WWE wrestling show), they too are striving to become a multi-media company with their own cable channel. You can’t have a cable channel centered around one wrestling show. Now, if they created a form of a “minor league” wrestling promotion with their own belts and exclusive roster, then you will have two shows to air on the channel. Then create NXT 2.0 (see my previous blog) as another promotion, then you’ll have 3 wrestling shows for the channel.

Now, you might think that that’s what WWE has been trying to do with the split-brand. True, but what I’m proposing is that each show have their own Executive Vice President (second to only Vince McMahon) with creative control of their respective shows. A show ran by Vince is different from a show ran by Bischoff, which is different from a show ran by Cornette, which is different from a show ran by Heyman. If Bischoff, Cornette, and Heyman all had a show with the same budget and cable network airtime, each show will definitely be distinct from each other. That distinction is the variety that the wrestling fans are looking for. Some will like one more than the other, but the ultimate winner would be the WWE (Corporation) who will essentially own all the shows.

We all can pretty much tell that this scenario has a 99.99% of not coming about because it’s hard to see Vince giving anyone total control over any wrestling product he owns. Vince had the opportunity to achieve this scenario when he purchased WCW and ECW, but as many of us have witnessed, those two shows (well, ECW was the only company that had their own show under the WWE) were watered down into WWE style. Instead of keeping it’s distinction, it returned the “same beer in two different bottles” analogy.

I have great admiration for Vince McMahon for all he has accomplished in the world of wrestling. Those who grew up in the 80’s that are still wrestling fans today, has seen the evolution of the WWE. The question is, where does the WWE go from here? I don’t have the answer, but neither do I think that the solution is doing away with the split-brand concept. Instead of combining the two brands, create a new promotion out of one of the brands with a separate identity. Theoretically, it all sounds pretty good.


Leave your comments below. I’m looking forward to hearing your reaction. ]]> Chazztastic http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/entry.php?13699-Is-the-“Rawkdown”-really-beneficial-for-the-WWE http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/entry.php?9432-Nxt-2-0 Tue, 30 Aug 2011 06:03:58 GMT NXT 2.0? With NXT not showing any sign that it will come to an end and have a definitive winner, is it time to move on to the next level of NXT? ... NXT 2.0?

With NXT not showing any sign that it will come to an end and have a definitive winner, is it time to move on to the next level of NXT?

THE HISTORY:
When Vince McMahon and the WWE conceptualized the NXT show, is it possible that they had no end game in sight? NXT started in February 23, 2010, replacing ECW. After a 4 year run, ECW was not producing the same ratings, which prompted Vince McMahon to make a decision that ECW was going to be replaced by a new show which would be the “next evolution of WWE; the next evolution of television history”. On February 9, 2010, it was announced that the title of the new show was going to be NXT, and that the last ECW show will be on February 16. So on February 23, the world was introduced to NXT.

NXT is a hybrid of reality television and WWE scripted programming. Each comprises of a set amount of wrestlers who are paired with WWE Superstar, called Pros, serving as mentors. From season 1 to season 2, the rules of the competition changed from the Pros determining the winner to the Pros and the WWE Universe determining the winner. Season 3 and 4 followed the same format. Now we are in season 5, but apparently things have changed.

The uniqueness of NXT is that it was a “time-based” wrestling competition. Unlike RAW or Smackdown, where the wrestlers are involved in storyline-after-storyline, NXT had a definite end, or should I say it used to have a definite end. Season 1 of NXT ran for 15 weeks. Season 2, 3, and 4 ran for 13 weeks. Currently being in season 5 which started on March 8, 2011, the show has gone beyond the 13 weeks and has yet to give a hint that the season will finally end.

THE PURPOSE OF THE SHOW:
When WCW and ECW were bought by WWE, so was gone any viable competition to the WWE product. Without any competition, there is no way to gauge your level of success since no alternative product was being offered to the public. Since WWE had the sole wrestling product for the people, television ratings and overall revenue went down. This prompted WWE to create separate brands under the WWE banner. At that time, it was RAW, Smackdown, and ECW. Ideally, a certain number of wrestlers were designated to one of the three brands and these wrestlers would only perform on their respective shows. It was set-up this way so as to create a variety of wrestling shows for the public. This wasn’t always the case as sometimes wrestlers would show-up being using on another show aside from their designated show. All the while, ECW was also considered at the bottom of the totem pole, and with it being on a smaller cable network, ratings were never high.

Another drawback of the lack of competition is that there were fewer places where wrestlers can hone their skills and can improve in the ring. In the mid-2000s, many of wrestlers that were signed to developmental contracts with the WWE tend to have had a few years experience in the ring on the independent circuit. So, it wasn’t that hard for the WWE to find people who can perform well in the squared circle. Now, with WWE’s constant push to find more unknowns whom they can mold into the WWE product, we tend to find more developmental wrestlers in the WWE, who are far from the quality of wrestling that the WWE Universe has been accustom to.

With experience being the best teacher, there had to be a way to test the up-and-coming WWE Superstars in a way that explains their lack of showmanship in front of a WWE audience. So, with a dying ECW show and a number of wrestlers who have yet to gain in-ring-WWE-Arena experience, the NXT was born. Any flaws that these contestants would have in front of a live audience would be explained as them being Rookies.

THE PROBLEM:
The start of NXT appeared to have met it’s purpose for the WWE. It gave exposure to new WWE wrestlers. It gave them the opportunity to work in an arena with thousands of thousands of viewers. It gave the higher ups the opportunity to see who had to potential of being on Raw or Smackdown. The problem with NXT was that it created a new Superstar under the show, but when they arrived to Raw or Smackdown, their shine was dulled because they were used as jobbers. That made the time and effort they invested in these wrestlers counter-productive.

Also, being a rookie and promoted ahead of long time veterans rubbed many veterans the wrong way with many opting to leave the WWE for other promotions. Of course, no one can tell Vince McMahon who he should and should not promote, but these problems are seen by many of the WWE Universe who constantly complain regarding these problems. If the problems are not addressed, this will only turn away people from watching WWE programming.

Another problem with NXT is that there is only a certain number of developmental wrestlers in the farm league at FCW (Florida Championship Wrestling). There will be a time when there is not enough wrestlers to enter the next season of NXT.

The Solution:
The best compromise is to elevate NXT 1.0 (being a competition) to NXT 2.0 (being an independent brand with it’s own title). For those who are keeping up with NXT, we can already see how those involved are getting away from foolish competitive games like an obstacle course or question-answer games. Storylines have begun to develop amongst the competing contestants. Though we are reminded that this is a competition, there is very little acknowledgement as to when the competition will end. This can only go on for so long. It’s been far beyond the 13-Week time frame like the previous seasons. Apparently, the WWE is stuck at this point in the competition and have yet to decide as to where to go from here. This is where transitioning from a competition to it’s own brand with a title will make complete sense.

The only way for a future WWE Superstar to reach the next level is by working with/against another future WWE Superstar. Only by testing your talents against another person can a WWE Superstar find his voice and his personality. Only by playing that created storyline can you see if it the two wrestlers can get over with the audience. If either of them get over with the audience, then we know that they can hold their own on Smackdown or Raw. If they do not get over, then it is better that the WWE have known this rather than promoting them to Smackdown or RAW and having them fail.

With the RAW and Smackdown being stacked, there are many fan favorites who are not in the main event story angles or on TV. To put a Rookie into a main storyline ahead of these fan favorites only angers the fans. When fans are angry, they turn off the TV and do not buy tickets. So, by keeping the rookies on NXT in a feud and letting them gain the fan support on that level, the fans will not be so turned off when the time comes when he or she is promoted to RAW or Smackdown.

Also, transitioning NXT from a competition to a show (NXT 2.0) would eliminate the need to continuously find new contestants for the next season. If there are any FCW talents who show promise or if any of the higher ups want to see that person react in front of a live arena audience, NXT 2.0 would give them that opportunity to test the waters. NXT 2.0 would be the perfect buffer between FCW and RAW or Smackdown.

THE TRANSITION:
Right now is the perfect time to transition NXT 1.0 to NXT 2.0. With Triple H as the COO, he is also in charge of NXT. With “The Board of Directors” not having “confidence” with Vince McMahon, it is Triple H’s duty to fix anything that the “Board” deems not working. So, the show announces that it will now declare a winner. Before the winner is announced, Triple H shows up on NXT and vents his disgust over the show. He does a promo on how obstacle courses and word games are NOT what make a person a WWE Superstar. He puts the blame on Matt Striker. Matt Striker says that he’s only following what he was told to do. Triple H says that, that was during Vince’s time and that the Board wanted him (Triple H) to fix this, and since he (Matt) was in charge to over see it and doing a piss-poor job, he tells Matt to FIX IT or else he’s fired. From that point on, Matt becomes the GM and comes up with an NXT Championship Belt. He says all the NXT Redemption Contestants are now going to have a tournament for the belt. After that, NXT 1.0 has now become NXT 2.0. Also, to get a NXT 2.0 wrestler to go to Raw or Smackdown, their roster can be a part of the WWE Draft which is done after Wrestlemania.


Thanks for reading my fantasy booker plans. Only if, right? Feel free to leave your comments below. ]]> Chazztastic http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/entry.php?9432-Nxt-2-0 http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/entry.php?1819-Be-a-Bully-or-Be-a-Star Sun, 21 Aug 2011 02:58:12 GMT In recent news after Summerslam, on August 19, 2011, Lisa Wright, Managing Director of Council for Unity, wrote a letter to the be a STAR Alliance... In recent news after Summerslam, on August 19, 2011, Lisa Wright, Managing Director of Council for Unity, wrote a letter to the be a STAR Alliance (beastaralliance.org) questioning their affiliation with the WWE. The letter was sent after she received an e-mail, which pointed out the “fat jokes” regarding Vickie Guerrero, apparently referring to Monday Night Raw when Vickie Guerrero was at the announcer’s booth and Jerry Lawler was making fun of her weight. Ms. Wright was showing her concerns because the Council for Unity is one of many companies which affiliated with the be a STAR Alliance. The following is her statement:

"I recently received an e-mail regarding your alliance with the WWE. The e-mail pointed out the "fat jokes" about Vickie Guerrero. Wrestling as I perceive it consists of name calling and threats culminating in violence to settle conflicts. How does this fit with your mission to `Show Tolerance and Respect?' Are you saying this behavior is alright for entertainment value? As an employee of a member organization listed on your website, your questionable judgment reflects poorly, not only on you, but on all the organizations listed there.

"As an organization whose mission is to prevent violence and bullying, we must be careful who we partner with and what messages that partnership sends. As we look for funding, ways to market our mission, and new partnerships, we must remain aware of the cultural forces that impact those that we serve. Furthermore, we must be sensitive not to promote the very negative behaviors that we have spent our professional lives trying to prevent. I fail to see how an alliance with the WWE will do that. We must be aware that in our business, as in life, actions speak louder than words. The WWE may, in principal, be against bullying and the violence that so often accompanies it, however, the very nature of the business is not conducive to a culture of inclusion and peace that we here at the Council for Unity seek to create. To that end, we respectfully request the removal of our organization from your web site."

I understand her view and applaud her for taking a stand, BUT if she actually went to the beastaralliance.org website, she would discover that be a STAR Alliance is founded by The Creative Coalition and the WWE. So, she was basically questioning the WWE’s affiliation in an organization, which was co-founded by the WWE. In short, she was questioning WHY THEY WERE A PART OF SOMETHING THEY CO-FOUNDED?! Well, if she is not comfortable that the Council for Unity is listed as one of the affiliates of the be a STAR Alliance, then it is her prerogative to request their organization to be removed from the website.

Now as a turn of events, the following day, Lisa Wright has issued a retraction and an apology regarding her criticism of the be a STAR Alliance’s anti-bullying campaign with the WWE. In a letter sent to Diva-Dirt.com, WWE and the be a STAR Alliance, Wright says she changed her tune on the matter after further research and receiving intelligent feedback from some of the wrestling organization's loyal fans.

Wright wrote, "After careful consideration and research on my part, plus some intelligent feedback from some of the loyal fans of WWE, I realize that perhaps I reacted too harshly and without enough information. I have been reminded that the important issue is the prevention of bullying and the protection and support of those that have been victimized by it. Ultimately, my own actions, intended or no, have had a negative impact."

She continues, "I hereby offer an apology to the Be a STAR foundation and the WWE. I also wish to rescind my request that my organization be removed from the Be a STAR Alliance website. There are often many ways to reach a goal; the important thing is that we support each other on our journey."

She adds that her initial letter was never intended to be made public and that it was never her intention to disparage the be a STAR Alliance, WWE, their wrestlers and many fans.

MY PERSONAL ASSESSMENT
Now my personal take on the news report is that Lisa Wright was being a MAJOR BULLY on a corporate level. If you reread the tone of the first letter, she apparently was telling the be a STAR Alliance that they don’t know what they're doing and that they are only partnering with the WWE for financial support and in doing so, they are a walking contradiction of what they are promoting. Because of this, their organization does not want to be associated with the be a STAR Alliance. People who work on the corporate level and interact constantly with lawyers know the power of that letter. That letter is a corporate BULLYING tactic to criticize an organization for sponsors to pull out, with the idea that you can cause a domino effect with other companies to follow suit. Vince McMahon knows the receiving end of that bullying tactic first hand when during the Attitude Era sponsors were pulling out particularly due to the protest by the Parents Television Council.

Could she have handled the situation more professionally? Very much so. I assume that the reason why she didn’t handle it professionally was because she wasn’t speaking on behalf of the Council for Unity when she sent that letter. If it were a professional call to send the letter, the wording would have been more appropriate. Though she has mentioned that her “own” actions had a negative impact, she knew what she was doing when writing the letter and was expecting the negativity to be towards the WWE, indirectly trying to get them out of the alliance which the WWE co-founded. This reminds me of reading those stories of total strangers calling the police regarding child abuse on parents who are disciplining their own kids. You don’t know the whole story so please don’t let your personal perception cause you to act hastily.

Also, I find it humorous that practically all the Board of Directors for the Council for Unity are from New York with some being executives in the Entertainment Industry. I am guessing that quite a few of those that hold a seat on the Board know Vince McMahon personally and probably have his personal number. That is my assessment as to why Ms. Wright’s retraction letter came out immediately after news of her original letter reached the Internet. I do not believe that the loyal fans with intelligent feedback were from the Internet community. I am sure that many fans wrote to her, but I believe that the loyal fans mentioned were the higher ups within the Council for Unity organization.

And that’s why BULLYING is wrong, boys and girls! You may think that you’re big and bad, but little do you know, the person you are bullying is BIGGER AND BADDER than you.


-chazztastic


PS - I believe the WWE is all about bullying, but that's why we like it. The heel v. face, is the storyline for practically every match. How can the good guy rise to victory if there wasn't a heel trying to bully him down? But, I also believe that kids know the difference between bullying and a wrestling show.

(this article is based on the news items reported on the ewrestlingnews.com) ]]> Chazztastic http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/community/entry.php?1819-Be-a-Bully-or-Be-a-Star