The Wrestling Bard 04.18.09: Coffee Break III

So anyway, let’s quit the small talk. Grab a cup of coffee and let’s go.

Topic 1: Recently, a writer named Jeffrey Harris has caused quite a stir by claiming two things. 1) KENTA vs. Davey Richards was a better match than Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels. 2) KENTA is the best wrestler in the world, and Taker and HBK don’t deserve to lace his boots. This has caused elitists on both sides to voice their opinions. What is your opinion on wrestling elitism?
My Opinion: First off, Harris has every right to his opinion. Having not seen KENTA vs. Richards (I do plan to), I have no opinion on the match. It may very well have been better than Undertaker and Shawn Michaels. And as far as KENTA being the best “wrestler”, a strong case can be made that he is the very best worker in the business right now. Of course, the 28 year old kid with less than half of the experience of Taker or HBK will probably never compete in front of 70,000 fans, but that discredit his talent. KENTA is a workhorse, pure and simple. However, I must say that he doesn’t even deserve to be mentioned in the same class as Taker or Shawn. He’s a kid. He’s got at least a decade to go. If he is still competing at a level equal to or greater than what he has been recently when he turns 40, then he can be in that class.

However, this is not the main topic. The topic is elitism. In this case, elitism is defined as the belief that some people or things are inherently superior to others and deserve preeminence, preferential treatment, or higher rewards because of their superiority. Some synonyms would be exclusivity, selectiveness, and snobbery. In laymen’s terms, it simply means, “this is better than that because”. I’m not talking about star ratings and what not. Shawn Michaels vs. Kurt Angle at Wrestlemania 21 is undeniably better than most of their matches. What I’m talking about is people who show exclusivity to certain kinds of wrestling.

You have your WWE Elitists, who claim that because WWE is the biggest company in the world, ONLY WWE is worth anything, regardless of the quality of other wrestling. You have people who claim that the Japanese puroresu is the best. Strong style and junior heavyweight wrestling is supposedly better than the WWE style. Others are Indy Elitists who claim that EVERYTHING is better than WWE, ignoring the talents and the beauty of WWE’s dramatic style, in favor of “workrate” and “wrestling” over sports entertainment. And of course, we are prone to ethnocentrism. People in Canda prefer Canadian wrestlers, Mexicans prefer the lucha style, Japanese prefer puro, the English prefer the Lancashire style. To an extent, ethnic pride and pride in the style of wrestling of your people is fine, but when you hold it above everything else, that that’s elitism.

As a fan, I have my own personal preferences. I was a wrestler in middle school and high school, so I have an affinity for “technical” wrestling. I like submission wrestling, catch wrestling, and even MMA holds. I also grew up with WWE and I enjoy the drama and the slower pacing of the “American” style. I PREFER that style to the “OMG workrate” of ROH, or the dance-like lucha, or the King’s Road style of All Japan and NOAH, or the hardcore/garbage wrestling of ECW. However, as a reviewer, I believe it is my duty to be as objective as possible and to not show bias. I have learned to appreciate these styles and recognize when they are done well. Sports entertainment encompasses much more than just “wrestling”, and a **** technical match is just as good as a **** lucha match or a **** hardcore match. I may prefer the technical style, but that doesn’t make it any better (or worse) than any other style.

Elitism is your prerogative, but I feel that it is my duty to avoid it as much as possible as a columnist and reviewer. I may have my personal bias and preferences, but I call them just that. I don’t say “something is better”, I say that “I like this better”. Fair enough?

Topic 2: Christopher Daniels has returned to his “Fallen Angel” persona in TNA. Will he be the “savior” of the company?
My Opinion: I’m a huge fan of Christopher Daniels, and especially the “Fallen Angel” character. I think he’s a fantastic wrestler, good promo man, and a true professional. I’m thrilled to see him back in a marquee position. So I have nothing bad to say about Daniels.

However, this guy will not save TNA. Daniels is a great talent. He can get a good match out of anyone. He can be funny, and he can be serious. Put him in the opening match and he’ll set the tone for the evening. Put him in the middle of the card and he may steal the show. Put him in a main event and your show will end on a high note. But he is NOT the “it” guy for TNA. The “it” guys are AJ Styles and Samoa Joe, and too a lesser extent Kurt Angle. Daniels is a lot like Shawn Michaels. He’s a veteran and a great worker, and everyone respects him. But if he wasn’t there, it wouldn’t affect business that much.

Does Daniels deserve a TNA title run for all of his hard work and loyal service? Yes. Will putting the belt on him bring TNA’s ratings into the 2.0’s? Unlikely. Will Daniels be the guy that carries TNA into the future? No. He may be good enough to have the Ric Flair/Shawn Michaels level of respect from fans and other wrestlers, but he will not transcend the industry like Hogan, Austin, or the Rock.

Topic 3: The Draft took place this week. RAW has a ton of star power, Smackdown! has a ton of talent, and ECW is filled with young talent and veterans. Your thoughts?
My Opinion: First of all, I LOVE how the supplemental draft happened. While I don’t think Vince books his company to “screw the IWC”, I believe he was messing with us with the order of the supplemental draft. Let’s face it: the draft took place from noon to three on Wednesday. Kids would have been in school during that time, and when they got back, they just saw that tag teams had changed brands. Only the IWC would have cared enough to sit down as Vince moved the teams one at a time, in a pattern designed to make us think that he was splitting every tag team. In the end, only Jesse and Festus were split up. And ECW now has the making for Hart Foundation 2.0 (TJ Wilson, DH Smith & Natalya), so no harm, no foul. Overall, the IWC uproar of the “end of tag team wrestling” was much adieu about nothing. Sometimes, it’s nice to see Vince toy with the IWC like a cat playing with a mouse.

Now, let’s look at things. RAW’s main event scene is very heavy on star power, much like it was last draft. RAW has John Cena, Triple H, Randy Orton, Shawn Michaels, Batista, and The Big Show. Just below that are MVP, Matt Hardy, Ken Kennedy, The Colons, Chavo Guerrero, The Miz, and Kofi Kingston. Several of these guys have talent, but it certainly isn’t the best “pure” assortment of wrestlers. However, all of these guys have some name value or star potential. All is good.

Smackdown! “lost” Triple H, but ultimately, that just means that it has lost it’s glass ceiling. HHH is past his prime in the ring, while Smackdown! standard The Undertaker, who is more talented than the Game and has less of an ego, remains to keep the star power. Jeff Hardy is also a huge star that is popular with the kids and is arguably now the top star of the brand. Edge remains as a top level heel and another workhorse. And speaking of workhorses, Smackdown! is now full of them. Chris Jericho, Rey Mysterio, CM Punk, John Morrison, and Shelton Benjamin are all great workers. The big guys, Umaga, Khali, Knox, and Kane, are far from the worst. Smackdown lost Big Show and Kozlov and keeps these four. Not bad.

ECW is hardest to gauge. It lost arguably it’s hottest act in Mizorrison, but kept stars such as Evan Bourne and Jack Swagger. Christian, Tommy Dreamer and Finlay remain as veteran forces, and Helms may finally get a chance to succeed. DJ Gabriel, Ezekial Jackson, DH Smith, Tyson Kid and Paul Burchill will get the chance to improve. Kozlov and Henry won’t light the world on fire, but they wouldn’t on any other brand either. Overall, I think the draft went very well. For the IWC, Smackdown! is likely the “go to” place for wrestling.

Topic 4: Which match/matches from the 1980’s do you feel will stand the test of time as classic matches?
My Opinion: Obviously this is the most subjective category. My first pick would be the “Holy Trinity” of wrestling, that being Ricky Steamboat and Ric Flair’s classics at Chi-Town Rumble, Clash of the Champions VI, and Wrestle War. Ric Flair’s matches with Terry Funk, both the “I Quit” Match and the match at GAB ’89, will likely also stand the test of time. Steamboat also had a classic with Randy Savage at Wrestlemania III that will be remembered. And I may get flack for this, but Hogan and Andre from the same show is pretty timeless. Hogan’s match with Randy Savage at Wrestlemania V will probably also have a long lifespan. Flair’s Clash of the Champions match with Sting will likely have a good lifespan as well.

Outside of America, Jumbo Tsuruta and Genichiro Tenryu had an outstanding contest when Tenryu beat Tsuruta for All Japan’s triple crown. And of course, the seven match series from the Dynamite Kid and Tiger Mask will probably live forever. And because I love you guys…

Have you read these yet?

Michael Weyer, the most underrated guy on 411!

Daniel Wilcox, 411’s resident workhorse!

Joseph Martinez, who has one of the best concept columns on 411!

Jake Chambers, my nemesis who actually entertained me this week with his new column!

Dan Torkel, fellow member of the 411 1-year club!

Mike Chin, who is almost as important as his columns!

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