My Thoughts on Jim Ross state of Wrestling Blog
I
think Jim wrote a fantastic blog on state of wrestling and i have been a Wrestling
fan since i was 5 (now 29) I could really relate to it as what i used to see
even in my lifetime isn’t what we see now.
I
am an avid listener to Ross Report Podcast and enjoying listening to Jim Ross every
week talking Wrestling Business and talking to his guests about the sport and
entertainment we all love. I saw a tweet from Jim on Sunday and it was his
newest blog partially titled “Rant on Today’s Wrestling Business”
You can read
the full blog by clicking the link below
http://www.jrsbarbq.com/blog/jr-asheville-nc-inglesadvantage-headlock-hunger-rare-rant-todays-wrestling-business-brethart
also check out Jim Ross "Ross Report" podcasts at
www.podcastone.com/The-Ross-Report
also check out Jim Ross "Ross Report" podcasts at
www.podcastone.com/The-Ross-Report
Jim has 40 years of experience in the
Wrestling business as Broadcaster/Announcer, Talent Relations, Business
Management and so much more.
Jim
has far more experience and know how than I will ever gain in my lifetime and
is one of the greatest minds in wrestling today.
I write on all my blogs that I am a fan of wrestling
and have been for over 20 years everything that I write is from a fans
perspective I’m not a wrestling “expert” or proclaim to be one I am writing
this as just my opinion and perspective.
Let
me break it down here and explain why from my standpoint. I am using excerpts
of his article here the parts that really caught my attention and inspired me
to write this blog today and then writing my standpoint on it after the quote
(please do read Jim blog in full 1st)
(please do read Jim blog in full 1st)
Please read
and enjoy!
Jim
stated
“I've said here many times that I hope that
all wrestling promotions are successful and make it through their respective
rough waters that many are currently encountering. Nonetheless, some within
these organisations can't handle constructive criticism and seem to take some
things that I say personally which is both childish and unprofessional. It
is my prerogative to criticise bad acting, over scripted promos, no selling
major moves, illogical creative and other eye rolling creative content in an
attempt to re-invent what isn't broken. I think that I've paid my dues, earned
a decent track record within the biz and, above all, I am still a fan of
over 50 years”
Jons Perspective
Jons Perspective
I
don’t think Jim is wrong to criticise production values of some companies, if
you have heard his podcasts he has talked about this in depth and has
said many times that if you’re on TV you need to have a polished product.
You
need to make sure that the non fan flipping the channel happens to see your
product that they are impressed by it visually and then stay with it to see
what it is and to invest their time into the show.
Not only that in the highly competitive world
of television you’re not just competing against other Wrestling shows but
everything else on TV too. Being that I’m from England we know all too well
that bad production and non investment in your product can cost wrestling dear,
we lost British Pro Wrestling in England in early 1990’s because promoters weren’t
willing to invest in the look of their product as a result ITV stated that wrestling
was “too behind the times” and we have not seen British Wrestling back on
mainstream TV since in the UK, to me get your production looking right or get
cancelled its an extreme example i admit but look and feel are so important today.
Jim Continues
“The vast majority of wrestlers these days
are not good promo talents. Reason being is that creative staffs seemingly have
to justify their existence by role playing with these individuals and scripting
virtually every word that the talents say. That system is both outdated and
unproductive as fans today can recognize a wrestler reciting a promo from
memory instead as from their heart within a few sentences.
Wrestling is best when it comes from a
logically, realistic place and is executed inside the ring as an athletic
contest built on common sense and not an acrobatic show that exposes the
business as a sham with no selling and the complete lack of some talent's
ability to properly apply an actual wrestling hold.
The faster some talent perform
the louder that they tell us that their skill set is lacking and that they
are trying to get by on sensationalism instead of realism.
I get taken to task because of my 21 years in
WWE as if I'm picking on the TNA's, ROH's, Lucha Underground's, etc of the
world when nothing could be further from the truth. I've dedicated 40+
years of my life to the wrestling business, proudly I might add, and would
do it all over again if the opportunity presented itself. But that isn't going
to happen. I want the business to be healthy and to prosper long after I'm gone
for future generations to enjoy. At the rate of some of the things that I'm
watching each week on TV are happening, I'm not sure that's going to
occur.
Some feel that we are allegedly in a pending
"boom" period because there is so much TV wrestling product
available o n a weekly. Does average, at times at best average, TV product
indicate "Boom" to any one who actually thinks about it? I think not”
Jons Fan Perspective:
I
grew up watching wrestling via VHS tapes of 1980’s and got to see Hulk Hogan, Jake Roberts, Ted Dibase, Macho Man and so many
more cut great promos and there is a difference today to then. In that these characters
from years ago could make you feel their emotion and get across eloquently their
match or opinion.
Today It feels like wrestlers aren’t allowed to fly and see what happens as Jim says, they have to have everything written out and it feels devoid of that emotion because its not coming from the heart of the person saying it. In life people can feel and see when someone is lying to them and can see when someone isn’t who they are and is trying to be someone different.
Today It feels like wrestlers aren’t allowed to fly and see what happens as Jim says, they have to have everything written out and it feels devoid of that emotion because its not coming from the heart of the person saying it. In life people can feel and see when someone is lying to them and can see when someone isn’t who they are and is trying to be someone different.
They can tell when someone isn’t speaking from
he heart and meaning it. Wrestling today can blossom and prosper but companies
seem to want to try to get it down to a science and have this perfect formula
that is always going to work, being too constrictive is never going to find the
next big star, I would venture to say that if Steve Austin or The Rock came up
in this era their promo style, delivery and ability would be very different for
what we know and love them for.
Jim then goes
on to say
“The product is by and large over thought and
those in creative charge seemingly feel compelled to take a tried and true
product and put their personal finger prints on it as if they are going to be
the one who is forever known as "changing the wrestling business
forever." The wrestling business changed forever when the territories died
due largely because local promoters got lazy and complacent and did not
want to move into the modern era of marketing and producing TV programs plus
they stopped developing new, young stars. Blame who you want but the
territory system stopped doing what brought them to the dance and that was
featuring new stars in compelling rivalries that were based in easy to
understand, common sense story lines produced in weekly, episodic television.
Plus, the talents back in the day were, by and large, better story tellers than
we are fed today with some exceptions.
An essentially, easy to watch, non complex
hour of TV that virtually anyone could understand and enjoy was what worked
best for many of us lifers.
Where have those days gone?"
Jons
Fan Perspective:
This
was the part of the blog for me that really caught me it made me in terms of
WWE and Jim talking about “non complex easy to watch TV” WWE PPV’s recently and Network Specials and
how the pace of WWE seems to me to be too fast. So much happens in the space of
two weeks at this point and WWE are burning through things so quickly that i can’t
take it all in as a fan.
There is so much content to digest and get your head around that it gets too much. Raw is 3 Hours, Nxt 1 Hour, Smackdown 2 Hours PPV/Special 3 Hours that’s 9 Hours from WWE, not to mention Main event, Superstars too and that’s just from WWE don’t forget to include TNA,ROH, Lucha Underground and GFW to that list soon.
There is so much content to digest and get your head around that it gets too much. Raw is 3 Hours, Nxt 1 Hour, Smackdown 2 Hours PPV/Special 3 Hours that’s 9 Hours from WWE, not to mention Main event, Superstars too and that’s just from WWE don’t forget to include TNA,ROH, Lucha Underground and GFW to that list soon.
For
any fan of any product that is so much time to invest, Wrestling needs to be
doing storylines that everyone can relate too, not everyone is going to enjoy
everything you cant please all the audience all of the time, but I feel that
especially in the case of WWE that the long term effects of their strategy with
programming is leading us down the path of less meaning and with less meaning
as I said before in this blog means less investment and that leads to less fan live attendance and interest.
Jim Continues
“Perhaps some day someone in a promotion will
understand that simpler is better and the majority of fans don't want bad
acting or predictable promos but instead want to get lost in personal
issues featuring the stars settling the conflict in the ring utilizing superior
athletic representation.
It's just not that hard to figure out from
where I sit or perhaps the feedback that I receive from some young fans on
Twitter @JRsBBQ is true....times have simply passed me by”
Jons
Fan Perspective:
I love getting my mind so absorbed and lost in
wrestling its been said before but watching a live show or TV show I want to
get lost in the entertainment and enjoy what I’m seeing in front of me and
forget all my problems, issues and my reality and immerse myself into something
that I love. I don’t believe that Jim is lost and behind the times at all,
because I don’t believe that wrestling in itself has changed what has always
drawn the most interest is 2 men/ladies/groups in conflict with one winner and
one loser one good guy one bad guy. It works and has been the foundation for
many great feuds over the years as an example see Austin vs Mcmahon.
I think wrestling maybe is overcomplicated
itself in 2015 that wrestlers feel that they need to be something different to
what they should be. If the company will allow it and be less restrictive, The
Talent in my eyes should be themselves that’s when you get the best out of them
and the company employing them gets the best of who they are.
Let the talent Turn things up, amplify your personality
and let things happen naturally, if wrestling companies could create, foster
and encourage and environment like that with less micro management, and a
little more leeway the wrestling business could thrive creatively once again.
Thanks for
Reading and again Thank you to Jim Ross for an excellent thought provoking blog
and giving me inspiration to write this
Jonathan
Orchard
@jon422002
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