Shining a Spotlight 12.29.11: Outlook for 2012

WWE

It was a bad creative year for WWE, no denying that. The Punk saga fizzled, Cena was seen as hogging things too much, Christian’s title reign was short and HHH and Undertaker only stuck around long enough for a bad match at Mania. That ties in with decisions like basically nuking “NXT” and doing away with “24/7” cable channel. Plus, as noted, the loss of Edge was a big blow. But the company did have highlights like rebuilding the tag division and some good shows.

As the year ends, WWE is rising more with Punk and Daniel Bryan as the champions, something to get fans excited again. There are rumors of WWE worried about the shifting ratings for Punk segments and might end his reign soon. Once again, it brings up an issue so many in the IWC don’t want to face, which is that we’re not the majority of the fanbase WWE listens to. They pay attention to ratings and sadly, those aren’t what they should be for Punk’s stuff. I know it’s wild but then, we’ve all seen that sort of “Logic” abounding for WWE as of late. It also brings up a key problem for the company, trying to balance fresher guys with the mainstay stars.

I know a lot of folks hate Cena in the spotlight all the time but the guy still gets monster reactions, one way or another. Same with Orton, it’s why guys like that keep getting the big pushes and all. Cena is being well used with the build-up to the Rock and addressing the fans’ booing of him. I still doubt they’ll turn him heel as the man moves a ton of merchandise and fans still pop for him so WWE will still push him. It might be interesting to think of them using Cena to try and give more of a rub to other guys but it’s probable one way or another, he’ll have the title on him sometime this year as he’s a safe bet for the company.

They are trying stuff like Bryan and we can hope the crowds react as well as the IWC does. The man may not have a long reign as he’s not as charismatic as Punk but his in-ring skills should lead to a push and I would love it if they actually let him defend at Wrestlemania. The company does still know how to push guys; look at the way Zach Ryder has been built from a mid-card goofball to a guy huge with the crowds and now U.S. champion. The shows may mix things up too much as guys like Swagger and Sheamus, once champions, now appear lost but potential to get another push down the line. WWE should still be trying to get and push some new faces but the talent they have now could be used for the rebuilding of the tag division. Look how well Kofi and Bourne have clicked, surely other guys mixed in can push the division to something fun again.

It’s interesting that 2012 is the 10th anniversary of the “brand extension” when it’s been pretty much forgotten today, guys on other shows all the time. Getting rid of it is just a formality now, better to concentrate on the guys rather than the set-ups of various shows. WWE is still doing great business to be sure, if not as sensational as the company would like. They are still the leader in merchandise and touring and the ones with the attention of the mainstream media. But that by no means gives them the excuse to just keep on “same old, same old.” Sure, be good to get some past guys in, such as the rumored return of Jericho (come on, he and Punk exchanging promos would be fantastic TV) but remember that building new stars is a must for the business.

The lack of Vince on screen this year actually seemed to help, fans were getting a bit tired of his usual antics. HHH may not have worked out as well as the on-screen boss but still shows that Vince doesn’t have to shove himself on camera all the time for the show to work. We still need a bit more fresh faces for the company as a lot of the guys have been around for quite a while and fan reaction to that can be poor. “NXT” may not have been that popular but did give some new guys a chance and the company can use that. Elevating Punk and Bryan is good but WWE still goes a bit too “nostalgic” such as Kevin Nash, which hasn’t really worked out well. I know it may be futile hoping for smart sense from WWE but then, they have given us Punk and Bryan as champions at the same time so maybe they can turn a corner in thinking.

It is pretty sure that the next few months should give us good stuff as the company always does well building toward Wrestlemania. Rock/Cena is sure to add to the buyrate but the question of what happens afterward is key. The company is still in great shape, despite its naysayers but no denying they need a much better creative year than 2011 to continue that dominance. Hopefully, this year has a bit more fun for fans to keep WWE on top.

TNA

TNA started off rough in 2011 with Jeff Hardy’s troublesome title reign and the Immortal stuff. But they close out the year in pretty good shape. While the circumstances were convoluted, Robert Roode is great as the heel champion and they should get plenty of mileage out him defending the belt against various challengers. The X Division has been nicely pushed once more as again the showcase of TNA to good effect. The return of Gail Kim has given the Knockouts a shot in the arm and best of all, Vince Russo stepping down as head writer means a lot less “Crash TV” stuff.

Still, it’s hard to be totally confident since, as a long-time TNA watcher, I can remember a dozen times they’re on a roll of good shows but then follow it with months of the most painful programming you can imagine. They do seem to have learned something from the “New Monday Night War” debacle, realizing that, as good as they are, they’re not quite ready to go head-to-head with WWE. They have gotten more attention as a bit more on the ball than WWE this year but still a lot of issues. Not the least of which is their roster.

WWE guys are no saints to be sure but it’s still amazing that TNA insists on keeping Flair, Angle and Jeff Hardy, three guys who have massive legal stuff hanging over them, still seems a poor move. For Jeff, TNA seems ready to push him as being Eddie Guerrero, cleaned up his act and all. Maybe he has, I’d like for him to have gotten clean but this is still a man who’s blown more opportunities than nearly any worker I can think of in the last decade. Giving him yet another push to the main event when he has a lot hanging over him isn’t the smartest move for any company, let alone one who needs good faith like TNA does.

It’s always been frustrating to see a company with so much potential make so many dumb mistakes. The days of TNA trying to prove themselves are long gone, they are a real wrestling company. However, they still act like they’re a smaller group trying to get attention in the wrong ways. Spreading out the touring this year has been good, shows TNA doesn’t need the Impact Zone crowds to be over nicely and their influence is far-reaching. If anything, the Impact Zone crowds just feed TNA more with how easily swayed they are to call stuff awesome when it isn’t (which shows how bad TNA can be when their mood is bad). Getting out there before crowds (who actually pay for the shows) is good and hopefully TNA can increase that in the coming year.

TNA does face the same issue as WWE, which is spreading their talent roster out more. The best part of the Roode/Storm saga is that TNA is giving the main event slots to two home-grown talents rather than relying on some ex-WWE guy a decade past his prime. But they still need a bit more of a shot as a lot of guys in TNA have been there quite a while. The partnership with Ohio Valley Wrestling should be a good thing, giving TNA more of a chance to grab some young talent and mold them well. After all, this is the territory that gave us Cena, Orton, Batista and Lesner, quite likely to produce some stars TNA can build up and really call their own. Their line of “wrestling matters” has been joked about a lot with goofy antics but Russo stepping down as head writer means they really do have a chance to go back to the being hard-hitting alternative to WWE they once were.

Hopefully, TNA can continue the great run they ended 2011 with. My biggest fear is that they’ll suddenly decide what the fans want is Hogan winning the title or sign up some other long-in-the-tooth guy for a run he’s not able to handle. The once-good tag division is a shadow of itself although Morgan and Crimson as partners is intriguing. It’d also be nice to see the TV title treated like an actual championship, not a side thing for Eric Young and Robbie E’s “comedy” antics. The Knockouts are still the better female division, as long as they stay away from stuff like car washes and such. 2011 showed TNA being able to rise above its usual critics and put on a pretty strong year overall. 2012 should continue that trend as, with their 10th anniversary, the company will be able to really make its impact felt on the wrestling landscape.

ROH

Our own Ari Berenstein will no doubt be doing an excellent analysis of ROH’s upcoming year in his Column of Honor so I won’t be as in-depth. 2011 was a good year for the company as they stepped up the game after their sale and the new owners smartly not interfering too much. The Kevin Steen angle was wonderfully done and their shows continue to be top-notch. The spreading out into a weekly TV show can only help them increase their popularity, which is needed as most mainstream fans only know them by reputation.

But they have their own issues. The recent “Final Battle,” the culmination of the Steen saga and featuring the much-anticipated Richards/Edwards fight, was met with a lackluster reception, the New York crowd rather dead and mixed reviews. There’s also the issue with the tag division as, despite their greatness as a team, Benjamin and Haas’ reign was a wash thanks to a lot of bad booking. Indeed, there’s been a lot of that for the company, their TV time not used to the best effect. The Briscoes reminded me of how the AWA and NWA tried to book the Road Warriors as heels but the crowd kept cheering them on and happy when they won the belts back. Dan Severn was a waste of time and once again, ROH really needs to step up the production values. It really doesn’t win a lot of new fans when their shows look like they’ve been done by a high school video club.

ROH still has a great roster of amazing workers but their usually smart ways of using them have taken a bit of a hit this year. Getting rid of Cabana was a bad sign that they don’t want “comedy” workers, which is robbing the company of some of its personality. Indeed, there seems to be a lack of heart ROH had under Gabe Sapolsky, that spark seeming to fade this year. That’s very worrisome as the company has been succeeding so well under its own vibe, not trying to emulate WWE and such but now seems to be going a bit too far trying to be the alternative and that can cost them. The poor reaction to Final Battle shows even the usual ROH marks are cooling a bit to poor shows which makes their upcoming year important.

Like TNA, ROH will no doubt be doing a lot to push a celebration of its tenth anniversary. Steen should be giving them lots of life with his act and they still possess a terrific roster of indy guys as well as the respect of most in the IWC. However, as big as they are, they are still an indy and seen as a lower company in the eyes of many fans. The mix of booking and presentation doesn’t win over more used to the flash of WWE and TNA. Hopefully, this year can see them rise a bit more as long as they realize that resting on laurels and the usual style won’t do the job anymore. If they can make it work, we can see honor for a lot of wrestling fans paid off.

So however it ends up, it’s sure that 2012 will be a year wrestling fans will pay attention to and hopefully give us more to cheer over than 2011 did. For the final time this year, the spotlight is off.