WWE - Wrestling Fan?

[BendtheBar]

I haven't watched WWE wrestling since about 1999. This weekend I happened to watch a documentary of the history of Wrestlemania, so on a whim I decided to rent Wrestlemania 27 and see how things were going in the WWE.

To me, it seemed like the talent pool was thin. Maybe I am filtering things through my youth, but back in the day there were so many imposing wrestlers and stand out personalities...

Is it just me, or has the WWE gone down hill?

It just didn't feel like the wrestling I used to enjoy. Maybe I am just growing old...but most of the matches were blech. More than that, most of the athletes were blech.

[Bodybygamma]

Stopped watching when it went from WWF to WWE. Anyways ECW ECW ECW!

[LtL]

TNA wrestling is where the talent is at. Better storylines, better wrestling, more impressive high fliers and led by Hulk Hogan. You heard it here first: TNA is the new ECW.

LtL

[storm1507]

My history of watching wrestling is about the same as BTB. I just can't get into it anymore.

[BendtheBar]

I really don't know what they're trying to go for in the modern era. Maybe I am too old to understand. Even the top stars, like Randy Orton, are extremely bland to me.

[LtL]

WWE is now too pedestrian and PG. They have tried to play it safe and ended up boring everyone over the age of 10 to tears.

LtL

[MC]

Triple H's influence in the WWE is in direct proportion to how shitty it has gotten and continues to be. Since he first started dating Stephanie McMahon, he has wielded tons of influence over storylines (when he battled a rising Kurt Angle and refused to turn good), to just a few years ago, refusing to approve a storyline that would have had The Rock return to do a huge Westlemania angle. his envy of Rock and Austin's cross over media success is legendary. So, he constantly pushes his friends (like Shemus) and kills rising powers when he feels threatened. He also keeps himself on TV even when it's not working.

The other thing is that there really aren't enough guys on the roster who can make the bigger, less athletic guys look good. One of the reasons Ric Flair, Ricky Steamboat, Sean Michaels and Bret Hart were all so amazing, was that they could step into the ring and pull a good match out of just about ANYBODY. In a more modern sense, Kurt Angle, Brock Lesnar, Sheldon Benjamin, Edge, and Christian are examples of solid wrestlers who can pull good matches out of lumbering giants. Sure, Shemus looks impressive, but he's not a great wrestler.

Randy Orton had tons of potential, and he looked like he was gonna be a huge star, but after the whole "No more AAS in WWE" thing, he got smaller and seems to have "lost it" a bit. Same with Chris Jericho.

[BendtheBar]

I watched WWE Classic last night, and there was a match from 1990 - Dustin (not Dusty) Rhodes vs. Jack Diamond. It was a low card match, but was more entertaining than anything on the 2011 Westlemania card. I wish I was exaggerating.

Regarding HHH - when I saw the big match of Wrestlemania 27 was HHH vs. the Undertaker, I felt like I was back in 1999 again. I had seen that match 20 times in the late 90's. It didn't do much for me.

I think Orton, and many of the modern guys could have potential. The problem appears to be at the top.

I look back at WCW/WWF in the mid to late 80's, and even though that was PG, they had a crazy talent pool at wrestlers that stood out. And such a wide variety of personalities. From Abdullah the Butcher to Snuka to Road Warriors to Flair....there are at least a hundred stars in that era, all different from one another.

I want to turn on TNA, but I see it's Sting, Hogan and Mankind...and I guess, my gut says...can we move on now? Isn't there anything new and exciting?

Bring on the next Goldberg...

[Carl1174]

Originally Posted by Bodybygamma

Stopped watching when it went from WWF to WWE.

Me too... i watched the WWF in the late 80's and it was great fun, Hulk vs Macho Man or The Ultimate Warrior, Miss Elizabeth, Zeus, The Butcher, Bushwakers, Undertaker, Million Dollar Man, Jimmy Heart, The Anvil and loads of other good stuff.

I havent watched it in years and missed the whole Rock era and Hollywood Hogan or whatever he used to call himself, and could pick HHH or any of the modern guys out of a line up to be honest. I try not to watch it now so as to not ruin my rose tinted memories of what it used to be, or perhaps im just getting old !!

Carl.

[BendtheBar]

I wouldn't mind having a weekly show to tune into every now and then for fun. I get tired of American Idol and all the womany shows my girls watch. It's hard to watch MMA when they are up because they are still too young to understand it, and it scares them.