Push To Make Raw 'More Edgy'

[metfan51]

http://www.wrestlinginc.com/wi/news/...vince-mcmahon/

The article basically states that WWE officials want Raw to become a different product than what we've seen in the past year or so. It's said Vince McMahon isn't behind the push but open to hearing suggestions. We may also see more Raws that are wrestling dominated more than promos.

[Mr. Tambourine Man]

I'm an advocate of stories that make sense. I really don't think they have to be edgy or push any envelopes. WWE being PG has never been a problem IMO. The problem has always been that the stories are not compelling. They rarely make sense, the characters motivations are weak, and most of all they change them from week to week.

As far as matches are concerned, we've been conditioned to believe that wins and losses do not matter. Therefore, they can have all the wrestling they want, but nobody is going to be interested in anything outside of a world title match.

[metfan51]

The hope I hold out for is a product like 1998. If the WWE announces a Hell In A Cell match for an episode of Raw two weeks from now, I think people would tune in. PG isn't a problem, as the WWE was PG in 1998. The stories aren't great as you said and there are no big names anymore. Now's the time to make someone a huge deal. They fell into Hulk Hogan, The Rock and Steve Austin. Who can fill the void now? The talent is there but how do you get them the break they need? Until the WWE figures that out, the ratings will probably stand still.

[Goldie79]

Now's the time to make someone a huge deal. They fell into Hulk Hogan, The Rock and Steve Austin. Who can fill the void now? The talent is there but how do you get them the break they need? Until the WWE figures that out, the ratings will probably stand still.

Agreed. Its no coincidence taht wrestling has a major boom period... there is a wrestler who becomes a huge mainstream name.
Wrestlers like Hulk, Austin and Rock reached out to a mainstream audience and attarcted casual wrestling fans who hopped onto the product because it was cool, and built around a cool star with bags of charisma. Then when the star leaves... like Hogan in 1992, and Austin/Rock in 2003.... the figures start to drop.

Though Cena is a big star in wrestling terms.... I would put him at a Bret Hart/Shawn Michaels type level... more the guy holding the company together whilst the numbers are down. People outside of wrestling probably don't care or really know who he is.... and the casual fans are probably watching something else at the moment.
The question is how do you make a mega-star???
To be honest with Hogan, Rock, Austin... it came naturally.

[WWE Gary]

Fully agree with you Goldie .

I think making Raw edgier is definitely a great idea . But yes, it was the days of Austin and McMahons feud and the days of The Rock on the mic that really brought it into the mainstream and increased ratings. Even someone like The Undertaker , as popular as he is , couldn't carry the company to the dizzy heights it reached when Austin and Rock were main eventing.

Unfortunatley , although good wrestlers (eg Hart, Shawn , Cena ) are in good supply , guys like Rock , Hogan and Austin are a rarity and only seem to spring up once in a blue moon......or every twenty years or so . They got something special , that cannot be taught to anybody.

[Mr. Tambourine Man]

WWE is never going to be able to create a mega star if they don't even know how to create a star. How many guys have they put in the main event for five minutes and pushed back down the card over the last five years? Or even worse, been the WWE champion but not be treated as the number one star?

A great example is CM Punk. I truly believe CM Punk could have been that Austin type star, or at least the closest thing we could get in this generation. Unfortunately the first few months after Punk cut that promo in Las Vegas he was busy being treated as second-rate to non-wrestlers HHH and Kevin Nash, so the momentum was lost there. Then when he won the belt back again in December of last year, he became probably the first champion ever to not main event so many consecutive PPV's in a row as the champion.

To WWE's credit now they're really presenting Punk as a number one guy, but they are doing it as a heel. They had a chance to really do some big things with Punk as a face and blew it. Now he is just another guy at the level of everyone else.

[Mighty Boosh]

I chatted with two guys at a social the other week, we talked about how much we loved wrestling in the 90's and most our discussion was about guy's like Rkishi or Edge and Christian (as a team). Both stopped following the product and one of them said he can't watch it, it's boring because they start every show with about 20-40 minutes of talking. This guy isn't a big wrestling fan, he just loved it as a kid, yet he was turned off by the talking. So a more wrestling orientated product can only be a good thing, I'm willing to guess there's plenty more people turned off by the amount of talking, if someone who isn't particularly interested in wrestling says there's too little interesting then something must be wrong.

As for making it edgy, I can't see it happening if Vince is against it. Sure he's taking suggestions, so what? Vince will do what he wants.

Will making it edgy make it better? Not really, they need to simply improve the product and I think the one thing that will help them do that is going back to wrestling, "a little less conversation a little more action!"

[Darth Shizzel]

I think if they want the E to a bit more edgy they need to let the wrestlers get more involved with the storylines, only a few will be able to handle Vince like Taker, Hunter, Kane and even Cena but not to the point where they have creative control like Nash and Hogan did in WCW.

[balfrey]

The hope I hold out for is a product like 1998. If the WWE announces a Hell In A Cell match for an episode of Raw two weeks from now, I think people would tune in. PG isn't a problem, as the WWE was PG in 1998. The stories aren't great as you said and there are no big names anymore. Now's the time to make someone a huge deal. They fell into Hulk Hogan, The Rock and Steve Austin. Who can fill the void now? The talent is there but how do you get them the break they need? Until the WWE figures that out, the ratings will probably stand still.

I think WWE is indeed in a transition period. Who can fill the void? Maybe they should start with Ryback. He's already gotten the monster push. Only now is for WWE to get behind it 100% and let Ryback have the opportunity to main event WM against CM Punk. Reverting back to The Rock, Undertaker, and Brock Lesnar will only damage the opportunity to push their full time younger talent. At least that's my opinion.

[metfan51]

As crazy as it sounds, the WWE for the time being should be centered around Daniel Bryan soon. Let's face it, he doesn't look like the ideal WWE Superstar, he isn't a household name but he gets one thing that few Superstars get, that being a great reaction every time he comes out. How many heels could come to the ring for months and be cheered by a large majority of every crowd he can perform in front of. The 'Yes' thing never really died and he got an even bigger reaction when he chanted 'No.' He's the kind of guy who can get over with a major promo and win. When Bryan speaks, people listen. I would have said the same thing for Punk but like stated, he became just another Superstar since turning.

Now, how do you make a big star. It's not as hard as it seems. Get someone who won't listen to authority, challenge authority and become a champion of the people. If you got the chance to watch the Owen Hart-Vince McMahon video I posted, that's a perfect way to make someone a household name. Because if Owen was around today, God rest his soul, he would have become the WWE Champion for sure after a promo like that.

[Mr. Tambourine Man]

Bryan is probably going to be forever haunted by the fact that he is so good that they feel they can beat him nonstop and he's still going to be over. Which is true. But if you look at like Dolph Ziggler or Chris Benoit in the past, those type of guys can only reach a certain level being booked like that.

[WWE Gary]

Daniel Bryan is probably the most over guy in WWE today . Whether he is heel or face he can get an awesome crowd reaction . The persona his character has , lets just say he's not all there , is great .....and quite unique. He is , imo, the closest thing the business has to the potential Rock and Austin had before they became mega stars . His size and look don't do him any favours but I think with the right angles and the right push , he could be huge.

[Mighty Boosh]

I do think WWE is in a transition period and I think Punk could play a huge part in this, when we look back we may even see him and his MITB storyline as the catalyst. Punk holding the title for so long could very well be the beginning of something. D Bryan however is amazingly over, I think in the next period of WWE he'll be one of those faces you associate with the product. Rock N Wrestling had Hogan, Piper, Savage - Attitude had Stone Cold, Rock, Undertaker, Kane, Mankind, HHH - PG has Cena, Batistia, HHH, Orton, Edge - the next era will most likely feature Punk, Bryan and I think I'll take a risk and throw Ziggler in there.