I'm a 35 year old male who grew up in the era of saying your prayers, drinking your milk and eating your vitamins. This was the era known as the Golden Age of Wrestling. I was hooked from day one and, despite a lull in the mid 90's (when, to be honest, everyone was turning away from the product), I have continued to be a fan and watch the WWE (formerly the WWF) grow and provide quality entertainment.
Back in the 80's, wrestling was about your good guy versus your bad guy, with a number of larger than life and cartoony gimmicks to keep the kids hooked. As the years have gone on, the gimmicks have been dropped, but there's still the good guy versus bad guy mentality. As the years have gone on, storylines have got better, but there have been moments of pure mediocrity.
After watching the 2014 Royal Rumble, I was shocked to see that the WWE writers, bookers & Vince McMahon himself, fail to capitalise on the one person that could take their company into the next era - that man is Daniel Bryan. He's probably the most over wrestler in the business to date, as the crowd rally behind him at every single point. Did you see the reaction he got when he turned on Bray Wyatt at Raw a few weeks back? Everyone in that building was cheering for him, and was behind him. Then at the Royal Rumble this past Sunday, he had a match-of-the-year contender against Bray Wyatt. Everyone in the audience - as well as those watching at home - wanted to see Bryan run down as a contender in the Rumble. When the live crowd realised he wouldn't be, they made sure that their voices were heard. This got such a big reaction that major news channels were reporting on it (the BBC for one).
The WWE missed a trick here - the crowd reaction alone should have provided the perfect storyline - Bryan enters the Rumble and wins, makes his way to Wrestlemania & wins the WWE World Heavyweight championship in front of 75,000 screaming fans. However, this was not to be. Instead, a 40+ part-timer (who incidentally is best friends with the COO of the company) comes in, garners minimal fan support, and wins the Rumble in the most sloppy of manners, garnering a shot which should belong to the most deserving of talents.
Here lies the problem for me, Vince McMahon has this idea in his head that his champions should be 6ft + and built like a brick shithouse. Unfortunately Vince, it's not the 80's anymore, and steroided freaks of nature are not the norm. Us wrestling fans will get behind anyone that has the talent and desire to succeed, and can elevate the talent they're working with. Sure, Batista was a good asset years ago, and there's no doubt that there are fans who are glad to see him back, but to see him take a spot that should be given to someone who has busted their gut for the past year after 4 years inactivity in the wrestling world was a slap in the face. I know that his entry in the Rumble match prompted a victory for him before it had even begun, but the WWE has been known to swerve us at times (remember Jericho as the winner to face Punk, only for hi to lose to Sheamus?).
Vince McMahon seems to feel that, if a wrestler doesn't draw in attendance as champion, the belt will always be placed on a guaranteed draw - unfortunately, this means John Cena or Randy Orton. I remember back in the early 90's when Ric Flair passed the torch to Bret Hart, who worked so hard in every match only for Vince to feel that a bigger name needed the belt - that was Wrestlemania 9, and Hulk Hogan winning after "retiring" & refusing to drop the belt back to Bret Hart. There needs to be a period of change that they stick to. Granted, the period of 95-96 was the worst ever for the WWE. They tended to shy away from the technical wrestlers (Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels, etc) and stuck the title on Diesel and have Mabel as a "contender". Following the introduction of the Attitude era, times did change and new superstars were formed, and lines were crossed with very mediocre storylines but this became the most famous era in the WWE.
I remember the bad gimmicks & god-awful storylines (Mae Young giving birth to a hand for feck's sake!) & the numerous swerves and turns (thanks Vince Russo!), but what I also remember is the ever increasing title changes that occurred. What happened to a champion winning a title, holding onto it for months & dropping it to a deserved contender? Back in the late 90's the WWE title changed hands almost monthly. I want to be shocked when a title change occurs, I want that feeling of how it was in the early days - back in the 80's a title would only change hands maybe once a year on a major PPV. In my view, a champion should help build up the title to either drop it to an on-fire heel/face, or to a more deserving talent.
I've gone through the WWE roster and the options available to the WWE for growth are high, and the future looks good. However, Vince McMahon needs to understand that change will be better in the long run. Take Daniel Bryan - giving him a shot at the Rumble and building on the momentum he has would be the best for business. Maybe they want to do that story next year but who's to say that momentum would still continue until then? Roman Reigns is being built up to be the next face of the company - he's big and agile and has the look that Vince loves, but does he have the charisma to carry it off? In my opinion, he does.
I've gone through the WWE roster to determine what I believe - and this is purely my opinion, which may differ from yours - should be the best for business going forward:
1) Daniel Bryan should be inserted into the Wrestlemania main event. After the Royal Rumble, Batista ended up flipping off the fans & taking the piss out of them, and Daniel Bryan. It is understood that Vince is not at all happy with this, as well as the egotistical rantings that Batista has been spouting since agreeing to come back. Maybe his punishment will lead to a match with Bryan for the Wrestlemania main event, with Bryan winning. This could be due to interference from Del Rio, which would lead to a match between the two. This way, Batista can still get a pay-off but the momentum continues for Bryan. I know that Bryan is now in the Chamber match for the next PPV, & that its likely that Sheamus will turn heel setting up a Bryan vs Sheamus match, but there's still time to change this. Bryan winning at Mania has to be the culmination of a story that began last summer. I for one would be happy to see Bryan vs Orton again!
2) Take the tag team titles off of the New Age Outlaws. Just because they're HHH's boys they get a shot when teams like the Uso's & the Real Americans are busting their guts and putting on good matches. Ideally, a good Wrestlemania opener would be a fatal four way tag team ladder elimination match with The Brotherhood (Rhodes & Goldust) vs The Uso's vs The Real Americans vs either the Shield (Roman Reigns & Seth Rollins) or Rey Mysterio & Sin Cara. Given 15-20 minutes of high action & energetic pace, this would elevate all those involved. I believe that either Cesaro or Swagger will turn face this year (my money is on the former), so they deserve a tag title run before that.
3) Make the WWE title mean something - stop monthly changes or swerves entirely. I realise that CM Punks 434 day reign of the modern era will never likely be beaten in my lifetime, but it could be if the build is right. My view is either put the title on a heel who retains and builds credibility only to be beaten at Mania or one of the other big PPV's (to give it a big feeling) by a white-hot face (like Bryan at the moment). This can be highlighted by building up the chase for the title. Alternatively, put the title on a face who loses it to a heel with tremendous heat from the crowd. Either way, the champion needs to be able to work and draw crowds in. That can be done if the story is built well.
4) Unify the Intercontinental & US titles - its time to make the IC title mean something. Back in the day this was a stepping stone to the next level, a WWE title run. Nowadays, neither title is defended often, and the prestige for the IC title has long gone. Put this on an emerging face or heel, or a veteran, & let them hold it for a while but defend it on TV & PPV.
5) Elevate new talent!!! Just looking at the roster you have an abundance of talent that can be elevated to higher midcard or even WWE title level. These include Daniel Bryan (the most over wrestler in the company), Bray Wyatt, Antonio Cesaro, Big E Langston, Damien Sandow, Justin Gabriel, Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins, Tyson Kidd & Dolph Ziggler from the main roster, whilst Bo Dallas & Sami Zayn look like amazing developmental prospects. Speaking as a fan, I don't want the same matches each week/month. Give us something new. Also, if something doesn't work out as Vince wants it, don't go back to the tried & tested way of going with John Cena, Randy Orton et al. Out of the current roster, I respect Orton & Cena for what they've done, but neither of them needs the title as part of their character.
Based on the Rumble - and the negative press associated with it since it finished - it has become clear that maybe the WWE has no idea what they're doing. Unless they rectify this, they could end up like WCW - the same bookers picking the same matches, and preventing younger talent from exceeding. As a fan, that's not what I want. As a business, surely that's not what they want.
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