A Message to WWE: 10 Reasons you are out of Touch

Here are some things Vince McMahon, Kevin Dunn, Stephanie and Creative seem to be missing:

1. No one likes watching humongous guys wrestle anymore. 

In the 1970s when Andre The Giant made infinity dollars, the spectacle of seeing someone that big on TV or in person in a fight made it a "must see". In 2012 however we now have the NBA, UFC and more importantly the internet. How often does a crowd pop for a Great Khali match? How often does a crowd truly pop for a Big Show match (besides when the ring breaks)? How often does the crowd pop during a Kane match?

Things move fast in 2012, way too fucking fast, so in order to keep our attention the wrestling matches have to be exciting. The fans know immediately when a big guy comes out that odds are the match will be a snorefest. The real question is, why is this still going on?

2. Musclehead guys aren't nearly as impressive as they used to be.

Don't get me wrong physiques matter, but the over the top, "must be on steroids" look is far away from it's heyday of the 80's and early 90's. In 2012 guys with physiques like Ryback and Mason Ryan are at the level of well Ryback and Mason Ryan, which is the exact point. Fans have seen enough terrible matches with steroid freaks along with the fact that UFC made it obvious that physiques mean very little in combat. This will never go away because of Vince's huge hard on for steroids, which is bad for his business because the normal guys usually get over more.

3. Talent shines through pushes, burials and stupid gimmicks but should still be PUSHED.

Daniel Bryan has been getting some nice press lately appearing in a fantastic interview with GQ and on my favorite sports site Grantland as well. While trying not to sound like the stereotypical "internet fan", I want to explain why someone like Daniel Bryan is someone you want to keep pushing until you can't push anymore.

First, the traditional WWE fanbase can obviously tell that the guy never has a bad match, and almost always has the best match on the card. Second, he actually seems like someone I know and would hang out with. I don't know many people whose personality matches the gimmicks on WWE's roster, but I know plenty of bookish vegan record nerds who have other weird passions. This same explanation can be used for why CM Punk rose to prominence in the last year, he became someone you could relate to.

Vince clearly doesn't know the under 35 demographic at all, because the world to them looks a lot more like Daniel Bryan, CM Punk and Kofi Kingston than Cody Rhodes, Kane and Brodus Clay.

Theobaud Bauer - Allen & Ginter

Earlier today I purchased this 1888 Allen & Ginter Wrestling Card of a gentleman by the name of Theobaud Bauer. There doesn't seem to be much known about Theobaud, but it is known that he is a relative of former WWE writer Court Bauer, who is also currently working on the best show on TV, Eastbound & Down. This fact was confirmed to me by an exchange of Tweets Court and I had about Theobaud. Another interesting fact about Theo. is this article from the April 11, 1887 edition of The New York Times. The article sparked my interest even more because the match they were reporting on took place in Detroit at the Whitney! (Unfortunately Theo. lost)

The actual 1888 Theobaud Bauer card

So today I decided to purchase my first Allen & Ginter card, after thinking of the discussion we had it seemed perfect to start my collection off with Theobaud's 1888 card which was on eBay for an extremely moderate price. I can definitely tell that my end goal will be to own every wrestling card in these sets.

First though, here is a very quick rundown on what exactly Allen & Ginter was and why trading cards from the late 1880s had professional wrestlers on them in the first place. Alan & Ginter were a tobacco company that were the very first to include collectible cards with cigarette purchases. The sets were known as "The World's Champions" and featured Baseball, Oarsmen, Wrestlers, Pugilists (Boxers), Rifle Shooters, Billiard Players, Pool Players and those are just the sports represented in the 1887 set. The 87 set had 50 cards and  other than the obvious Baseball players in the set, the most sought after cards is are the Annie Oakley and "Buffalo Bill" Cody Rookie Cards!

The 1888 set contained also 50 cards but expanded the sports represented by adding Track & Field, Swimming, Tricycling, Cycling, Tennis, Club Swinging, Speed Skating and Figure Skating. This set was followed by the final installment of "The World's Champions" cards in 1889. The sport additions to the 89 set were rather odd, with some sporting names requiring me to use Google to find them (who knew Go As You Please meant a Walker?). The additions were as follows: All Around Athletes, Hammer Thrower, High Jumper, Runners, Go As You Please, Pole Vaulter and Weight Lifting.

The final breakdown of wrestling cards in these sets would be 7 in 1887, 7 in 1888 and 2 in 1889. With a total of 16 cards, collecting them all does not seem like an overly daunting task.

As a sports card collector since early childhood, it should be fair to state how amazing, important and interesting this set is. Most view trading cards as a hobby for a select few nerdy enough to get a cheap high out of opening up a back, but this set exists in a completely different realm, this set exists as American cultural history! Annie Oakley, Buffalo Bill! These are huge names that actually had a trading card made of them in their time of relevance! How many people have any idea these exist? Baseball Cards are everything right about America, they make me feel 10 again and relive experiences I had with my dad, trading cards on the corner with David Borders and ripping off Alan Knapp in seemingly every trade we ever made. This hobby has existed for at least 125 years, and it is my goal in this blog to keep it going for another 125 with posts like this.

1908 George Hackenschmidt Match Found (Oldest surviving match)

A few days ago while scouring the internet for any information on George Hackenschmidt films, I came across this on WrestlingClassics mentioning that a 1908 Hackendschmidt match has been found in the collection of the New Zealand Film Archive.The video is in rough shape and it appears to be pending a possible transfer to the United Kingdom.

George Hackenschmidt

This match is EXTREMELY important for historical purposes, so after hearing about this I dropped an e-mail to the good folks at Wrestling Observer/Figure Four Weekly, the issue was then discussed on the latest podcast featuring Bryan Alvarez and Karl Stern. who had a fascinating discussion on the earliest wrestling videos known (the earliest isn't a full match but is posted below).

This match is immensely important for historical reasons and this is also the type of project that will not be followed through upon without vigilance over time. I want to encourage anyone who cares about this to contact the New Zealand Film Archive through this form so they know what they have on their hands and ensure the film remains in everyone's attention span.

YES YES YES YES YES

The fan reaction to Daniel Bryan’s 20 second WrestleMania match was the most notable event of Monday’s Raw. According to some attendee reports, Bryan received the second biggest reaction of the night (said to be less than Brock Lesnar but bigger than The Rock). This reaction happened because the Raw after Mania usually has many “smart” fans who were upset at not seeing a Daniel Bryan match the night before.

This unique reaction including the YES, NO and SI chants may have cemented Daniel Bryan’s role in the WWE going forward. Instead of the slimy heel who is a terrible boyfriend, Daniel Bryan could be portrayed as someone who let the title go to his head and now realizes this.

The potential for Daniel Bryan is huge right now, it is up to the WWE to capitalize on this.

Building Wrestlemania 28

Yesterday’s Raw proved that WWE still has it in them to promote a match and make it seem like a huge deal. Even though it went on a little too long and lost its point near the end, the opening segment with Chris Jericho and CM Punk was phenomenal. The build for this program has been somewhat non-existent so this segment was necessary. The most refreshing aspect of this program is that is simply being built around the championship and who is the “best wrestler in the world”. With this built I hope that their match at Wrestlemania is long and exciting, which it definitely has the ability to be.

The major downside of this Raw was the lack of development for the Bryan/Sheamus program, this isn’t a huge deal as there is plenty time before the show to promote this match. Either way it says a lot for two performers who were on Wrestlemania’s dark match last year, and now are wrestling for the second most important title in the company.

The most talked about part of the show was The Rock’s promo and Cena’s confronting him on it. The Rock was fantastic as usual and John Cena was somehow better than that. John Cena’s performances have been so strong over the past two weeks that it seems like a completely different character. Cena is now serious and passionate, not cracking terrible jokes and trying to be funny.  Cena’s post-match reaction on last week’s Raw (February 20^th) immediately caused many in the crowd to switch sides from booing Cena to cheering him. This is a testament to the talent of John Cena.

So far the build to Wrestlemania has been spotty, with some parts being great and some being lackluster. It will be a fun month to see where these programs go!

Ring Ka King and Wrestling's Global Reach

On January 28th a new wrestling company debuted on The Colors Network in India by the name of Ring Ka King. This project is the first professional wrestling company to run in India (besides a few ill fated WWE shows about a decade ago) and the early success seems high, with the debut episode being the most watched wrestling show in history! This was followed up by an excellent article in GQ

Debut Episode of Ring Ka King

The Ring Ka King product is unique,it is written and created for the Indian audience, this is made obvious with the long dance number that opens the first episode. The production of this show is absolutely top notch, at times looking significantly better than Monday Night Raw. Ratings for Ring Ka King have been good with Colors even adjusting the show's schedule to increase viewership. Most interestingly about this situation will be the company's further actions if the show remains successful. TNA had an opportunity to enter in to a completely new and untapped market, allowing them to define the norm for professional wrestling in this huge country. Products like Ring Ka King are integral to the long-term success of TNA and professional wrestling as a global sport.

TNA utilizing a brand new IP in an emerging market created an interesting scenario for the brand. It will be interesting to look at the future of the company and how or if they integrate the Impact Wrestling brand in to the Ring Ka King product.

Although this form of professional wrestling is not for everyone, I encourage anyone who is a fan to check out the show, which can be seen on YouTube for free!

Watch Ring Ka King on Colors YouTube Channel here
Follow Ring Ka King on Twitter here

The Biggest Wrestlemania Ever?

Wrestlemania 28 is shaping up to be the biggest Wrestlemania of all time and it will be interesting to see what the final lineup will be. As of February 21st, here is the speculated lineup for the show:

The Rock vs. John Cena
Triple H vs. The Undertaker (Hell in a Cell)
CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho for the WWE Championship
Daniel Bryan vs. Sheamus for the World Heavyweight Championship
The Big Show vs. Shaquille O’Neal

In addition we will have appearances by Mike Tyson, Ric Flair & The Four Horsemen and Edge. There is also heavy speculation of Metallica performing a song at the show too. Even if that does not happen, this will be the most star-studded Wrestlemania in history.

WWE have done a fantastic job making this event seem like a huge deal all year long. Since the PPV is over a month away, speculation on a domestic buyrate would be presumptuous, but as of now everyone feels optimistic on this being the all time biggest. The most important issue WWE will have is that their biggest stars are only part-time performers. Unfortunately the event's card seems designed to utilize past stars rather than getting any current stars over. The biggest opportunities at mania will be for CM Punk, Daniel Bryan and Sheamus, all of which former champions.

In order for future successful Wrestlemanias, WWE must prioritize the building of new stars!