WWE and TNA: How Taking a Leaf out of the Past Can Save the Wrestling Business

Whilst watching any of the major wrestling promotions in the U.S., the same problems that seem to constantly be arising can be seen. There is either a talent who has little or no TV time, who the fans relate to as being underutilized by their company, or talents who are featured in programmes who the audience is unable to connect to through their lack of character and charisma. Comparing this continual feature of wrestling programming with the quality of programming from 10-15 years ago, and you can see a steady decline in the correct utilization of talents.

The questions that arise from this observation are, firstly, what has changed in the last 10 or so years to have caused this to happen, and secondly, what can be done in the future to reverse the current state of decline?

It would be easy to use the old fail-safe argument in reviewing this problem: It’s all been caused by bad writing.

However, one look at the industry over the last 25 years can attest to the fact that wrestling has been cursed with subpar writing for decades. The racist and tasteless stereotypical portrayal of racial stereotypes, as seen through the teams of Hunico and Camacho and Hernandez and Anarquia, is an example of the same bad writing behind Nikolai Volkoff’s singing of the Soviet national anthem, the streetwise black character played by Elijah Burke is the same as the characters played before him by Harlem Heat. To blame the writing for the decline in the quality of created characters will only get you so far.

So if the writing isn't the reason for this decline, then what is?

It is clear to me that part of the reason for the decline in character development and the utilization of performers is the demise of both the territory system, and then of ECW. In an interview conducted recently on wrestlinginc.com with former WCW and ECW star Scotty Riggs, Riggs brought up the reason why many of the ECW stars of the '90s are still enjoying lengthy careers today and why they still receive the kind of reaction from the fans that they received in the ECW days.

Riggs stated, 

"

Paul Heyman actually sat down and said, "This is the way I want to use you and for a six-month period of time." Then, he went through a-b-c-d-e-f and g with me. The funny thing was when I actually sat with him and started working with him, that's exactly what happened.

"

The ability of Paul Heyman to provide long-term plans to the performers allowed them to change and adapt their personas based on the direction they were to be going in over the next six months. This allows for characters to successfully develop to the point where the fans, being able to follow the direction of the character, can relate to the performers' promos and matches accordingly.

These days, however, the viewer sees the effects of the lack of long-term planning. In the WWE, the fans see storylines and programmes decided upon and changed at the last minute, with big set-up storylines fizzling out, such as the Awesome Truth conspiracy story from last year.

In TNA, the problem is magnified, with the added problems stemming from the influx of talent vying for very little TV time through the gut-check segments, as well as the open fight nights causing storylines to be developed over three weeks, which stunts the performers' ability to develop their characters.

It can also be seen through the rapid-fire switches between face and heel on both shows. In the WWE, R Truth turned heel, and then he was turned face a couple of months later because Vince McMahon saw the potential in Little Jimmy merchandise. In TNA, Kurt Angle has turned a total of three times in the last 12 months, with another face turn in the works it seems from recent Impacts.

In order to create stars of the future who will continue to provide a sustainable draw over the long term, both companies need to institute a number of changes.

In terms of writing, the current writing staff would benefit from long-term planning for each character in their companies, as well as for every division. This will allow for the writing of the shows to be accomplished more economically, but it will also provide against the possibility of characters losing their popularity through prolonged non-interaction with the fans (such as Ken Anderson's and Rob Van Dam’s latest return stints in TNA). This also benefits the presentation of each show, as long-term planning allows for more time to develop ideas, allowing for a smoother and less contrived television show each week.

In terms of overall business, both companies may actually benefit from a reduction on the number of PPVs offered per year. By reducing the number of PPVs to a more manageable number, the writers will be able to flesh out and add depth to developing feuds, which in turn causes more anticipation for an upcoming PPV bout, and both companies could see as a consequence an increase in the PPV buy numbers, which have steadily lowered for the WWE and have barely been able to cover costs when not in fact making a loss in TNA.

Finally, both companies need to have a better developed sense of placement of talents within the overall company. Each performer should have some kind of role that makes them beneficial to the company as a whole.

Instead of being placed in meaningless feuds, or not being featured, older performers such as Kurt Angle and Doug Williams should be used to put over younger talents in long-term feuds. The young stars should have a place on the roster in terms of their rise to the top so that if someone were to become injured or unavailable to work, then the next guy in line for the spot would be able to effectively step up and take his place on short notice.

If someone does not fit into any of these roles on one division, then the company they work for should then assess the talents in terms of their potential contribution to other divisions, and if no contribution can be ascertained, then they should be let go rather than stay stuck in a position where they are unable to develop further and help prevent this decline for future generations of wrestling fans.

Feel free to leave your opinions on the issue, or just on the article itself.