Why Kayfabe seems Taboo Nowadays?
- Thread starter The Intergalactic Koala
- Start date
Dreamzeedream
Banned
Honestly, I think its because the company has no idea how to build anybody properly anymore.
Think fast: who was the last face that the company made into a superstar? Not a heel who got popular with the fans, but someone who was a face that got built into a main eventer as a face.
The answer you more than likely came up with was John Cena, right? He was turned face at Survivor Series 2003, and got his first big push to the main event during 2004 up to WrestleMania 21 in 2005. I honestly can't think of anyone they've successfully done that with since Cena, which is a terrible omen for their future ability to build stars (this is, by the way, the main reason why Cena's really the only guy who moves the needle when it comes to ratings and house shows: because they didn't fukking kneecap him for no good reason while they were pushing him).
What WWE's writers know how to do is build heat, and that's it. Period. Every single angle that makes TV seems tailor made to get heat, but never to actually build someone. And one of the easiest ways to build heat, especially with a smark crowd, is the worked shoot. This isn't to say that the worked shoot is a bad tool, per se (CM Punk used it fantastically, and if you listen to his promos, took great care to either NOT break kayfabe during his shoots, or to organically build a kayfabe framework around the shoot material), but it's very easy to use it as a crutch, especially when you're a. desperately trying to build heat and b. are dealing with a crowd that's smart to 20+ years of the same tricks. Bryan Alvarez and Lance Storm (I know, I know...) actually had a really good convo about WWE creative and heat on Storm's podcast about a month back that you should listen to, if you haven't already (start it at 30:45): PodcastOne: Bryan Alvarez talks WWE Creative and Cyrus Live from New Japan G1 in Long Beach and much more!!
Building someone up, on the other hand, actually requires that you make the crowd believe in whoever you're trying to build, which requires some thin veneer of kayfabe at the very least. That is what allows you to craft storylines and obstacles for your guy or girl to bump up against and overcome. If you can't craft a story because you don't use the tools of kayfabe, then what tools do you have left? Heat, worked shoots, and insider knowledge, that's what.
And the worst part about this is, it's not as if no one wants to engage in well-written storylines and kayfabe (see the best of NXT, the best of NJPW, and Lucha Underground for recent examples), you just have to actually work at it and plan well. But WWE always wants to take shortcuts and brute force everything, so here we are.
TBH probably Jeff Hardy
Saysumthinfunnymike
VOTE!!!
It's the REALITY ERA
Funny that you watch NXT and it's run exactly like an old school territory.
Funny that you watch NXT and it's run exactly like an old school territory.
The stupidest part about all of this is you still have Bray Wyatt trying to be some supernatural jobbing force. Make up your mind and be consistent across the board.
Agreed. NXT is basically NWA power hour for the new generation in the best possible way.It's the REALITY ERA
Funny that you watch NXT and it's run exactly like an old school territory.
Arrogance.
King Novak of Melbourne, the First of His Name
Two breh
Quack still paying the boys $25 a show and keeping all their gimmicks as in house IP?
Cheech&Chong
rip chinx
the thing that gets me is they put it in the shoot, so the obviously hear and know what the fans want but they do absolutely nothing about it. They acknowledge our gripes but dont care.
The Business BEEN exposed for the past 15 years champ.. Look at the DVDs of documenatries of many wrestlers. Look at the WrestleMania 19 documentary which exposed the behind the scenes scenarios with Jesse narrating.
You have wrestlers having podcasts and inviting cats to come OUT of character, You have guys whom are supposed to been dark outcasts taking pictures at Disney land and you even have the COO himself telling you that Kayfabe is dead on Stone Cold's podcasts.
These part shoot/work promos have always been apart of the business. Going back to Bret and Shawn even though they still kept it within story. If anything the main problems are what I stated above
You have wrestlers having podcasts and inviting cats to come OUT of character, You have guys whom are supposed to been dark outcasts taking pictures at Disney land and you even have the COO himself telling you that Kayfabe is dead on Stone Cold's podcasts.
These part shoot/work promos have always been apart of the business. Going back to Bret and Shawn even though they still kept it within story. If anything the main problems are what I stated above
I think kayfabe is a lot like food ingredients. Most of us love sugar and salt, but too much on any dish and it becomes disgusting. It's all in the dose.
One of my favourites parts about wrestling as a medium *is* that ability to subtly break the fourth wall. Key is subtle, and it has to still fit within the parameters of the fictional product.
I thought they did a really good job with it at times in 1997 with Bret and Shawn. Even Bret and Stone Cold. Bret used to rag on the direction of the smut TV stuff, and pick on Shawn. It was a shoot in the sense that he really felt it, but it fit the kayfabe storyline of the Shawn Michaels character. He wasn't shooting about how Shawn was in the back taking a bunch of pills.
Edge ripping into Billy Gunn definitely had shoot elements. Talking about how he won't "Billy Gunn" his king of the ring win. Billy Gunn the character didn't do jack shyt, but that's also because Billy Gunn the guy couldn't really get over. It's the delicate balance of blending both. It's just easy to abuse it and go too far.
One of my favourites parts about wrestling as a medium *is* that ability to subtly break the fourth wall. Key is subtle, and it has to still fit within the parameters of the fictional product.
I thought they did a really good job with it at times in 1997 with Bret and Shawn. Even Bret and Stone Cold. Bret used to rag on the direction of the smut TV stuff, and pick on Shawn. It was a shoot in the sense that he really felt it, but it fit the kayfabe storyline of the Shawn Michaels character. He wasn't shooting about how Shawn was in the back taking a bunch of pills.
Edge ripping into Billy Gunn definitely had shoot elements. Talking about how he won't "Billy Gunn" his king of the ring win. Billy Gunn the character didn't do jack shyt, but that's also because Billy Gunn the guy couldn't really get over. It's the delicate balance of blending both. It's just easy to abuse it and go too far.
