4/28/2024 0 Comments Running scripts in tribal wars![]() I suppose there are plausible alternatives - Reigns’ and Rock’s egos could prove too big to sustain their partnership, resulting in an implosion that costs the heels their match and guarantees a fair(er) fight for Night Two. Logic suggests the heels must win to stack the odds as heavily as possible against Rhodes and his destiny. Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins has been set as Night One’s main event. I’m almost more interested in how various matches will be positioned than in their outcomes. In pro wrestling the money lies in the chase. But if you look for long-term, logical plotting in pro wrestling there doesn’t seem to be much reason to disrupt the championship status quo. They’re an easy way to pop a crowd and provide some measure of closure - a satisfying end to the chase, if you will - guaranteed to send the fans home happy because they ‘witnessed history’. To WWE’s former leadership team the need for novelty made them a frequent source for WrestleMania moments. I get that title changes are often a key part of Mania. Traditionally promotions used their TV shows as proto-infomercials to compel fans to their local live shows (or, since the Hulk Hogan era, to big matches airing on pay-per-view). There were likely a few reasons for this shift, including the need to more aggressively promote smaller, more athletic wrestlers in the wake of the 1990s steroid scandal, a desire to show more with less risk of exposure, even as house show business suffered, and the fact that Hart himself was a much better wrestler than a talker, at a time when champions were expected to ‘talk fans into the arena’. He regularly defended his championship on WWF syndicated shows and early RAW episodes. Bret Hart – one of the last champions of the ‘Federation Years’ was an exception. Long-term babyface WWF/WWE champions from Bruno Sammartino through Hulk Hogan rarely appeared, much less defended their championships on free TV. That criticism is rooted in the privilege of being a fan during the Monday Night Wars, when the WWF and WCW were compelled to throw marquee matches and frequent title changes at a fickle audience. ![]() Fans may complain that titles aren’t defended often enough. WWE has done a stellar job of establishing its current group of champions. Weirdly, as good as the storytelling has been, if I were to pick a theme for this year’s WrestleMania and WWE’s title situation it would be “leave well enough alone.” Since Vince McMahon’s alleged departure it seems like WWE is finally growing up. The two-night main event, plus the title matches that make up most of the card, have been set up so well that for the purposes of this column I’ll forego the usual deep dive into wrestling history and think a bit about the robust, multilayered storytelling WWE has used to drum up interest. The build to this year’s WrestleMania has been compelling.
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