WWE TLC 2011: Does This Year's Show Matter as Much as Fans Think?

The TLC pay-per-view event has been a favorite of fans across the country since its inception in 2009, largely due to the chaotic and exciting nature of the various gimmick matches sprinkled across the card. There is something about the spectacle of the ladder and TLC matches that creates excitement amongst even the most jaded of fans.

In an era where everything has been made kid-friendly and executives from major toy and television companies are breathing down the neck of Vince McMahon, something as simple as a chairs match or a table match are a welcome sight.

As exciting or refreshing as we wrestling fans find the TLC show, is it really all that important to the company in the long run? Does the show hold any real significance in the short or long-term future of WWE? As much as it pains most fans to admit, it does not.

The TLC event is merely a pay-per-view with a specialty gimmick, designed solely for the purpose of spiking buy-rates during a typically slow month in the business. While the matches are often visually pleasing, and some even reach "Match of the Year Candidate" status, the impact is often relegated to the night of the event and, perhaps, the following Monday.

The WWE Championship Match at this year's event will likely be a show-stealer. CM Punk can do no wrong this year, Alberto Del Rio has proven himself a skilled in-ring performer and Miz often holds his own with wrestlers better than he.

Other than providing Punk a signature win to really announce his arrival as one of the top stars in the company, and end a spectacular 2011 for him, nothing outside of a significant (and unwelcome) injury would make it an important bout even a month from now.

Perhaps the only occurrence from the TLC event that would have any future repercussions would be the arrival of Zack Ryder as a bona-fide Superstar in WWE with what many believe will be his first major singles championship victory, that being the United States Championship match against Dolph Ziggler.

The TLC pay-per-view is always a fun one. And at this time, during the Holiday Season, that is always welcome. And do not mistake this as a negative take on the fan-friendly event. Fun pay-per-view events are always welcome, especially considering the poor showings the company has had this year (in the forms of Over the Limit, Capitol Punishment, Hell in a Cell, and Vengeance).

But between every bump off a ladder, every steel chair shot to the back, or every broken table, let us not attempt to portray the show as anything more than a three-hour, $45-60 piece of pure entertainment.

Especially when the creative team has already begun to focus their attention on the Royal Rumble and, more importantly, Wrestlemania XXVIII.