SmackDown Asks Us to Forgive RAW. It's Not Good at Watching Its Limit (^_~)...

A Good Friday to You, Enthusiasts!

 

I hope it finds you well. So, there’s a few interesting tidbits floating around. Shall we break them down? I don’t see why not.

 

The first item of interest is Sasha Banks teasing an inter-gender match with Carmella’s “sommelier”, Reginald. I have nothing against inter-gender matches if they are well paired. So, my problem with this is Banks being about a buck 25. Reginald is not a big guy but I’m sure he weighs more than that. So, the point I’m getting to is that it’s hard to buy this match. So, I’m expecting some sort of hijinks to ensue. Now if she was facing someone like Drake Maverick, I could buy it because they’re damn near the same size. But a woman facing off against a guy who weighs more than her given weight-class is hard to believe unless said woman has martial arts in their repertoire. So, if Shayna Baszler came through or Ronda Rousey took this match, I’m more likely to accept it because they could use their skills to offset the size/strength difference. It’s possible they could win. That’s how Jet Li did it in all his movies when facing large opponents. You use the “Kung Fu”. Pro-wrestling does not equal Martial Arts. Not to say there isn’t skill and applicable self-defense tactics involved it’s just probably no contest against true, skilled martial artistry.

 

That leads me to an overlying point. I’m not against reinstating kayfabe, it just has to be done realistically. As times change and information becomes easier and easier to gain and exchange, the concept must evolve as well. The current problem is that people are trying to obtain real information and the line between what’s real and fake gets increasingly blurred. So, WWE and pro-wrestling in general should start handling themselves more like a government intelligence agency. They should be mis-informing and dis-informing all the time just so it’s too difficult to discern what is real. That should make it easier to keep surprises under wraps as well. WWE is currently having a bit of a problem keeping its content believable. The problem with that is that they stumble into the ridiculous which leads to a loss of respect and consequently interest. I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again until they start getting the hang of it, they need to smarten up. It's one thing to use humor, quite another to become a laughing stock. I doubt WWE is trying for the latter.

 

I’ll circle back to that point a little later but to keep with recent gossip/news, Xavier Woods had a rebuttal to The UnderTaker’s latest interview on The Joe Rogan Experience. UnderTaker was bemoaning the “softness” of WWE. In his day, people came to the locker room packing sometimes. Men were men. They were gritty and hardened, not afraid of a real fight types. That’s all fine and good but times have changed. And that’s not singular to the WWE. Modern Society is further civilizing. It’s getting harder and harder to validate content like pro-wrestling because at a glance, it promotes violence. Shouldn’t we have evolved beyond that by now? 30-40 years ago, being tough was applauded because times promoted it. A man didn’t want to be labeled a wimp or a pushover. They should be able to defend a lady should a thief try to take her purse and whatnot. Now, a person is encouraged to call the police. Everyone now equipped with a cell phone, it’s easier to document an assault and call for help rather than play the hero. The need to be able to handle yourself is now more akin to a person carrying a bad element. You’re out looking for trouble not ready to defend yourself or a lady’s honor. Times have just changed and I have to agree with Woods’ sentiment that it’s for the better. It’s good to have a united locker room. They have to trust one another. I know that wasn’t always the norm but let’s face it, this is their job. Nowadays, it’s far better to be professional than “hard”. No disrespect to the real bad-asses out there but we all know that this is for play. Save it for the zombie apocalypse.

 

So, that brings us to tonight’s SmackDown. So, RAW wasn’t that bad but there were definitely some segments to be desired. Most would say that the fake Drew McIntyre and Gillberg bit was a solid swing and a miss though David Krumholtz did his best to keep it afloat. Unfortunately, The Miz and John Morrison just don’t have very good taste and We the Audience aren’t in the mood for the silliness. It’d be tolerable if it was funnier but I don’t think they know how to be. In this sort of case, they should be willing to get outside help. Perhaps they should do some research and see if they can get help from some up and coming comics. Comedy Knockout is about their speed. Perhaps start there and see if they get some pointers or writers for their bits. WWE should be willing to branch out more in this way because it’s clear there has been a disconnect with the general public. Efforts to bridge the gap would only be an improvement. Same goes for the unexplained “theatrics”. Though Randy Orton cut a solid promo, no one believes he’s “burned”. Come on. Ruin that money-maker, please. And I’ve already stated how The Fiend and Alexa Bliss are not supernatural. Fucking crazy, certainly. Paranormal, no. At least not without due process and all that was done is Bray Wyatt commissioned a Halloween mask. The bulk of fans are fanboys/girls now. They are immersed in far more fleshed out and inspired content. Slapping it together will only lead to a loss of respect. The audience is smarter now. Many are probably smarter than WWE’s creative department which would explain why they’re having such a hard time pleasing us. WWE has big decisions to make in the years to come. Their position won’t hold if they can’t get in front of the audience. They’ll be dismissed as out of date and inane. If they want to maintain their street-cred, they’ll have to get fresh and witty real quick.

 

SmackDown has been respecting the audience’s intelligence of late and I’ve been hearing very few complaints. Tonight, Big E. will give Apollo Crews another shot at the Intercontinental Title. And Bayley will challenge Bianca BelAir with an “obstacle course”. We’ll have to guess what fills the rest of the 2 hours. Funny tweets get retweeted and as for Likes well, if SmackDown is smart, they start to quicken the pace for the Royal Rumble. Next week is Go-Home week so a very long fuse should be lit right about now so that it goes KABOOM come Jan. 31^st. Let’s see if they’re timing themselves right.

 

See You in a Bit,

-Nicole Alexis (^_~)