The trouble with concentrating exclusively (or as near to
exclusively as makes no difference) on writing for the main event crew should
be obvious. It means scenarios get recycled and become familiar, creating
indifference in viewers. It also makes it needlessly difficult to elevate fresh
acts, exacerbating the staleness problem.
Every Monday a three hour RAW airs but much of it can be
skipped, too much of what takes place being inconsequential filler. The opening
of the show, the close of the show, the first match, and whatever airs at the
turn of each hour are the only things that are likely to matter long term. Even
then the specifics are repetitive and uninspired.
 |
| Give this guy something to do. Please! |
What’s frustrating is that things don’t have to be this
way. WWE has more than enough guys on the main roster to be able to get a
healthy mid-card scene going. Bad News Barrett, Sheamus, Dolph Ziggler, Damien
Sandow, Cesaro, and Cody Rhodes all have significant enough followings and the
required amount of wrestling ability and personality to draw people into
storylines. That list omits tag teams the Uso brothers and The Wyatt Family, guys
who are ready and waiting for their shot in NXT, guys like Dean Ambrose and
Seth Rollins who are not guaranteed permanent top spots quite yet, and the entire Divas division.
It’s not just the talented wrestlers WWE have access to, it’s
the writing staff too. Over the years WWE as a company has proven capable of
creating balanced television shows that give people the top stars they want
while prepping new talent for the future. It also has a history of putting out satisfying
storylines (and stinkers too, but that’s always going to happen). That the
writing team has changed a lot in nature over the years doesn’t matter. Nor
does the fact the people drop in and out, coming and going from the company and
the creative process. The WWE product is always overseen by Vince McMahon, and
has been for over thirty years. He has proven he knows how to oversee a quality
wrestling show, including the prep-heavy periods of prosperity. It just seems
that right now he’s not bothered about quality (or that he’s distracted by
other things like his company losing money, although in truth that’s not a
completely separate issue).
Even beyond the fact that they still have Vince
overseeing them we’ve seen the current WWE system has capable people involved.
I’m not talking about Paul Heyman or ‘Dirty’ Dutch, although the writing team
could do worse than tap them for mid-card plot inspiration. I’m talking about the
team of writers who put together NXT.
NXT is a different show to RAW, SmackDown and Main Event.
It emphasises wrestling far more and isn’t as long. The talent of those
involved in its writing are obvious. They ensure everyone on the show gets an
introduction that explains what they’re about, has something to do when they
appear, and gets the chance to connect with the audience. Storylines progress
logically with a clear beginning, middle and end, and there’s a reason for
things happening, including losses in matches.
The NXT approach is not something that could be copied
and pasted onto RAW. They’re different shows that target and attract different
audiences. But the approach to storyline construction would be a welcome
addition to RAW. How about handing over writing duties of Dolph and the gang
over to the NXT scribes? The current main roster writing crew would be freed up
to make their sections better and the newcomers would be giving meaning to a bunch
of talented but overlooked guys.
Even if that’s impossible for whatever reason surely
something could be done about the uninspired undercard. I’ve watched wrestling
for long enough to know that it doesn’t take that much to get a good mid-card
scene going. Have Wrestler A and Wrestler B interfere in one another’s matches
and trash talk one another for a month as Wrestler C and Wrestler D do the same
for the Intercontinental championship. Have Wrestler A win his feud and make
fun of Wrestler C for losing, setting them off in their own feud leaving
Wrestlers B and D to do the same, maybe mixing in the birth of a plastic hand
or a mysteriously vibrating gym bag or honour being regained by chopping off
reproductive organs for good measure (because, y’know, that’s entertainment!).
Then wrap up with the final combination before introducing Wrestler E and
possibly even Wrestler F for some fresh combos and new stars. Is having a
meaningful Intercontinental championship match on a pay-per-view really too
much to ask?
Give mid-card wrestlers things to do, basically. The
whole point of the above alphabet string would be to create matches that have
meaning, giving people a reason to root for certain wrestlers and against
others. It would help create anticipation for future matches too. And as much
as WWE may not want to admit it it’s the lure of a hot match that elevates a
show from run-of-the-mill to red hot success.
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