The Wrestling Antagonist
Why I’ve checked out
With the news of the CM Punk situation on the minds of wrestling fans everywhere, I find it ironic that he walks away WWE when he did, or maybe it’s not irony at all.
Going into Royal Rumble this year I had mixed emotions. I’ve always found myself too be a massive critic of WWE programming and it seemed to me that they recently landed at a fork in the road. I truly was incapable if deciphering whether or not WWE was about to “boom” or tank. It felt as if the programming was dangling on the edge of being very interesting or self-imploding.
I look at the Daniel Bryan situation and I don’t see a superstar fans just truly want to be number one. Instead I see a man who the fans have elected as their symbol of discontent. They say all big names are victim of being in the right place at the right time, and I don’t feel Daniel Bryan is any different. Daniel represents the fans emotions of the current product.
Since the day WWE changed format to “TV PG”, fans have been more vocal about “creative” than I ever remember. Since that day it feels as if programming has been a snowball rolling down hill, and now in the year 2014, that snowball is a massive boulder that has peaked out.
So for the first time in nearly a decade, I’ve done something I didn’t feel would really happen, I checked out. I have not watched a piece of WWE television since Royal Rumble. Not out of anger or protest, I really just don’t care. I realize now that WWE has turned the Daniel Bryan phenomenon into a work on WWE TV, and truth is they really did not want him headlining WrestleMania this year, and choose to turn it into an angle as an excuse.
I really do not believe fans want Daniel Bryan to win every match he’s in, win the World title, and main event every show till the end of time. However Daniel is officially a symbol of what they do want. Fans are tired of being ignored. Guys like CM Punk, Dolph Ziggler, Cody Rhodes, and so on have become secondary acts to the guys WWE chooses as their face. No one wants to see Savage vs Hogan, I mean Orton VS. Cena six out of twelve PPV’s this year. And I don’t believe anyone wants to see storylines inch along at the rate of a snail. I also believe fans are tired of the “They don’t remember two weeks ago” ideology that WWE has pushed for years now. Believe it or not, we DO remember Dolph Ziggler was unbeatable a year ago, and now he’s a glorified jobber. WE DO remember Zach Ryder, even if you take him off TV.
It baffles me how WWE is willing to change the outcome of a match because they believe the “IWC” has predicted the outcome, but have no issue with it if it involves putting over one of their movie star superstars.
The Royal Rumble may have been the beginning of a new day in pro wrestling. When everyone’s favorite little big man, Rey Mysterio, can come to the ring in a catastrophic showering of boos, you know things are broken. There was a time when Batista could have returned to WWE and fans would have lost their shit, but not today. Today he will be grouped with the rest of WWE’s mistakes.
As a journalist in pro wrestling, we have long prophesied the destruction of pro wrestling in pop culture. Many have said since the PG era began that sure WWE would make it’s money for the time being, but eventually it will catch up with them. At some point fans would become tired of being ignored and I feel the day is upon us.
I feel as a fan now that I have nothing to watch. I know damn well Daniel Bryan is not going to be bumped, CM Punk is gone, and you’re light years from elevating any of the other talents to main event. So if I do watch, I know all I have is three men involved in the nucleus of the show, and I’m not interested in any of it. I need fresh angles, new feuds, and wow moments. It’s impossible to accomplish any of those with what you have now.
So therefore, I am done watching for the time being. I will continue to read the news and wait for the other shoe to drop. I am a freelance writer who does pro wrestling for free as my hobby, but this is no longer entertainment to me, it’s boring. I do hope fans continue to voice their frustration as I will right here. And perhaps the CM Punk Revolution is more real than any of us realize. Many don’t realize CM Punk has become a bigger draw financially than John Cena over the last several year, actually beating him in merchandising. When he goes home, so does the money, and when the money goes home things have to change.
Thanks for reading guys. Follow me on twitter @MikeyPellerito and I will answer all your questions and comments next time. Peace!
