Here's The Deal

Rarely do I give my opinion on fans as I try to remain as positive as I can because this is as we know wrestling fans can be very passionate. But it's that passion that makes me want to discuss this very topic. A vast majority of people will read this and be upset with the things I am about to say but sadly it is something a lot of fans struggle to see. 

For the sake of this blog we are not going to reference the IWC as more or less everyone who has the internet now. Instead we will reference what most call the IWC as the full time fans. 

WWE's market is not aimed primarily at full time fans. There is a select amount of  WWE's promotion that is aimed at full time fans. It's hard to see as someone who views the product as just a fan but when you look at the product like someone who is invested financially in the show then it's a completely understandable situation.

In knowledge that may surprise many people WWE actually became a publicly traded company all the way back in 1999. So when WWE was at, as many fans see it, their peek back in 2001 they were already a company under a PG label for shows like Smackdown. Raw didn't join the PG label until nearly 2006 but it should be noted that many fans believed Smackdown to be the better brand during the brand expansion. If this is to believed as true then the PG rating never effected shows then and certainly shouldn't effect shows now. So the fans who have watched for years on a regular basis who have been blaming the PG rating are completely off the mark.

The full time fans are the ones who WWE has decided will watch the show regardless. They are typically correct in believing this. But the full time fans are ones who continuously believe the product needs to be what they want when realistically it's almost the polar opposite.

In order for growth WWE needs to keep up with the trends that appear through social media and everyday culture. Hence the use of Bo Dallas and the line about Star Wars last week. The use of cultural and social knowledge allows WWE to bring in new fans and new sponsors who may invest in the product. These new fans are the ones seeing the product for the first time and they don't have their vision clouded by nostalgia. 
The use of trending topics allows the creative team to develop stories around current situations so WWE are more likely to get coverage from news sources and this leads to better sponsors. These sponsors provide money to the shareholders. Happy shareholders means a happy company. 

Realistically what it comes down to is that fans need to remember that WWE is a business. A business that wants to succeed. PG was never the problem and still isn't. The issue is the creative team being filtered by one man but that won't change when that man is gone either.
Just try and watch each show with an open mind and treat it like you would any other TV show. There is a start, middle and end. Sometimes stories get dropped. Sometimes characters are cut. Sometimes there are alternative shows to watch. 

Let us know your thoughts by leaving a comment below, by getting in touch on twitter @LevellerLOW of by leaving a comment through our android app https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.levels.main&hl=en 

Character Breakdown - John Cena

In this article I aim to give you a different perspective on current day characters in wrestling. For the first installment in this series I present John Cena. 

For the past 13 years people have referred to John Cena as the wrestling equivalent of Superman but there was something recently that sparked my attention. During "Wrestling isn't wrestling" by Max Landis he makes a reference to John Cena being Superman but he is similar due to having the same annoying traits. I agree. I completely agree but I question. Have we looked at it the wrong way?

What do people dislike about Superman? He has to do what is right. He has to be good. He has to be pure and true to himself. But if these are the things we see in John Cena then maybe John Cena isn't Superman. Because Superman is also unbreakable, an alien who doesn't fit in, he is a team player at times. These are things John Cena is not. So maybe John Cena can't be Superman. But if these dislike-able traits are to be believed then maybe John Cena is the class nerd that we all hated in school.

Think about it. He has to be right. He believes everything he stands for is the correct thing. Just like that kid in school, the one who pandered to teacher to make sure their intelligence was acknowledged, John Cena plays to the audience by showing just how pure of heart he is. He constantly reminds us how he will never do the bad things in life. He is, in the words of R-truth, "a propaganda tool". He is what we are meant to believe we should be and that is exactly why we fight against him.
It's like Cena's character is just the shining example of everything the human spirit is meant to strive to achieve but at the same time humans hate being told what to do because it argues with our rights. 

People are meant to aim to be pure, be good, brush our teeth 3 times a day, eat our vitamins and say our prayers. John Cena does all these things so why do we hate him? The wrestling fans dislike him because they don't like being told how to feel or being told what to do and that is why the majority feel like they have had John Cena shoved down their throat. I would even bet that the majority of people who dislike John Cena disliked their classroom teachers pet. 

We are lead to believe that this ideology of perfection is everything we should strive for and that we should want to be like that but why would we want something that everyone believes is impossible? Perfection is a personal thing and cannot be determined or forced upon someone. 

Let me ask you this. If John Cena is perfect then why is he always trying to prove that he can beat someone? In much the same way that the classroom nerd must have that acknowledgement that he is smart, John Cena's character must have the acknowledgement of the fans. Yes he says he doesn't mind when fans boo him. If he didn't mind fans booing him then why does he have to be the best? 

Fun fact - believing that you are doing the correct thing doesnt always mean you are doing the correct thing but believing that no matter what you do that you are doing the correct thing isn't always correct. This would also be the trait of a psychopath.

John Cena believes what he does is the correct thing all the time. He believes he does this for the people. He believes he does this for what is good. It's funny how that kind of thing is also what would make a character a heel no? 

Let me know your thoughts at @LevellerLOW on twitter

Why, Roman, Why?

Has there ever been a better time to be a pro wrestling fan than right now? Independent wrestling is at an all time high, New Japan has its own version of the WWE Network, Lucha Underground is tearing up wednesday nights & thats not even including WWE. WrestleMania 31 was one of the best Mania’s in recent memory and in my opinion, a top 3 of all time. NXT is lauded by many as the best weekly wrestling product out there. As you can see, if you’re a fan of pro wrestling there is something out there you’re going to love. It would seemingly be impossible to be an unhappy wrestling fan right? Have you ever been on twitter or listened to a podcast? There is a large section of the audience that will never, ever be happy and they reside in those two places. Armed with notebooks full of fantasy booking ideas for the next decade and a set of internet muscles that would make Brock Lesnar back away, these fans are unfortunately very loud, influential and have set their sights on Roman Reigns.

For those not familiar, Roman Reigns is a 6 foot 3, 265 pounds Samoan deity. To say he is a sight to behold is an understatement. Half Greek god, half super hero. The man has THE look and more importantly the faith of those within WWE. He has the bloodlines, part of the Anoa’i family, and the legitimacy of being a former pro football player. I’m sure the first time WWE brass laid eyes on him they saw dollar signs. He steamrolled through FCW and NXT on his path to the main roster. WWE knew he was going to be their guy and to make sure they surrounded this relatively unknown commodity with two known, young veteran talents; Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins to be known as The Shield. These three would quickly become one of the most dominant factions in company history. The trio destroyed everyone on the roster and even picked up some gold on the way, tag titles for Reigns and Rollins, US Title for Ambrose. They were the hottest act out there and the fans recognized that, slowly the boos turned to cheers in a very organic way. Rollins as the architect and high flier, Ambrose as the lunatic that could rival The Joker and Reigns as the unstoppable juggernaut. It was a perfect formula with the perfect guys. Reigns was ready to breakout after the 2014 Royal Rumble that saw him set a record for most eliminations. You could feel that this guy was going to be a big star and the crowd let it be known that they agreed. Seth Rollins eventually turned on his Shield brothers and voila, three stars were made. Reigns was almost immediately thrown into the WWE World Heavyweight Championship picture, because this is what the fans wanted remember. Bad luck would strike Reigns during the fall when he was forced to miss time due to a hernia and this was the beginning of the end. During the annual Slammy Awards, Roman was voted SuperStar of the year and the hate train was now at full steam. Who knows if the voting was real or not, it didn't matter, the fans had made up their minds. It had to be rigged, there was no way Roman was better than Daniel Bryan or Dolph Ziggler was screamed from parents basements everywhere. Saddled with a few bad promos and a “make Roman look strong” quote from CM Punk on his way to the Royal Rumble only made things worse.

Now not only could he not wrestle but he couldn't talk either was the preach. A large portion of live audiences had started booing Reigns, we’ll get to the potential reasons in a bit, but nonetheless he won the Royal Rumble and was on his way to the main event at WrestleMania. Fans booed him out of the building, even sharing the ring with The Rock didn't help, his moment was hijacked by a hostile Philly crowd. The company had hitched their wagon to Reigns, there was no turning back. Sure, they tried to appease those fans and had a nonsensical match at FastLane against Daniel Bryan. At FastLane, Roman hung with one of the best wrestlers on the planet, he should've been a made man. “Roman was carried by Bryan” was heard throughout social media. The build up to WrestleMania was less than stellar, but it didn't matter, he was main eventing the biggest show of the year against Brock Lesnar and nobody could take that away from him. Leading up to Mania, Roman was everywhere, he was the face of WWE. He was all over tv, looking and carrying himself like a Hollywood star. On Sunday, March 29th Roman Reigns gave Brock Lesnar the fight of his life in front of 70,000 plus booing fans. Within seconds of the bell ringing Brock was bleeding, this was more than a match, it was a fight for respect. 5 years into his wrestling career, he was in the main event of WrestleMania….wow. Eventhough he didn't walk out of Mania as champ, his former Shield brother Seth Rollins did, he could hold his head high. He showed to everyone that he is in Lesnar’s league, a claim very few can make. He took Brock’s best and asked for more, you’d think that would be enough to change peoples minds. That wasn't the case, the night after Mania the boos were louder and more fierce than ever.

How did this happen? How did the guy WE chose to cheer and accept as the next big thing, become a face that was jeered more than Cena? Many will tell you “he isn’t ready.” A broad, general statement that says something and nothing simultaneously. Forget the fact that all his peers rush to his defense and assure us that he is indeed the present and future of the business. Also, forget the fact that he has been main eventing tv and ppv, in some capacity, since his call up to the main roster. WE know better, remember. “He isn’t ready” is a completely subjective term that only those within WWE know the true meaning of. Many fans will also tell you “its too much too soon.” Yet again, WE the all knowing Internet Wrestling Community have all the answers. How can we determine what is too much for this guy to handle? This isn’t the territory days where young guys had to pay their dues. Don’t remember hearing a lot of people complaining when Brock Lesnar was given the keys to the kingdom within months of his debut. No, he isn't an “Indy darling” either and that is one of the underlying reasons for the hate. So what if he wasn't worked a bingo hall with 8 people in the crowd. While guys like Cesaro were wrestling around the world, Roman was a college and then professional athlete. This guy wasn't a model, actor or some guy off the street, he was a legitimate athlete. Does he have family connections in the business, of course but hes the one that has put in the work to get himself into this position. For many fans, this is looked at as him getting handed a spot and push because of who he knows.It would be naive of me to ignore who his family is. I’m sure that got his foot in the door but he still put in the work to get himself where he is today. If fans are going to hold the family connection over his head, they have to do the same for The Rock, Dustin Rhodes, Randy Orton, Randy Savage and The Funks.

“He can’t wrestle and has a limited move set.” Is Roman a technical wizard in the ring like Ricky Steamboat? Of course not, but he’s no Giant Gonzalez either. The man has been wrestling for 5 years, I’ll say that one more time, five years. He’s 29 years old and only been at this for 5 years, he’s only going to improve. It’s scary to think how good he’ll be in another 5 years but fans can’t even see 5 minutes from now. Pro wrestling, especially WWE, isnt about how many moves you can do, it’s knowing what to do and when. I consider Jerry Lawler to be one of the greatest wrestlers of all time, he put on plenty of great matches using only punches, headlocks, a piledriver and facial expressions. Look back at the WrestleMania main event, look at how he responds to the beating that Brock is dishing out. The man is getting it handed to him and what does he do, he smiles and asks for more. That is brilliant storytelling that means more than any moonsault or hurricanrana could. Who they want today is not necessarily who they’ll want tomorrow. How can WWE long term book when their audience has ADD? The days of booking 6 months in advance are gone, they can’t even book 6 weeks from now. WWE is unlike any other form of entertainment, as you already know. What truly makes pro wrestling great is the ability to change stories on the fly depending on crowd reaction. How many television shows can do that? That flexibility is both a blessing and a curse though. They can’t always push the star the fans want, it isn't feasible story or money wise. Sure they listen to us, but only to a point. At the end of the day it is a business and the goal of any business is to make money.

“He isn’t Daniel Bryan”. Now this one is at least a smarter look at why fans would boo him. Daniel Bryan is the most “over babyface” since The Attitude Era. His meteoric rise was the definition of an organic push, the fans were so loud and vocal WWE couldn't ignore them. Unfortunately, years of abusing his body in the ring caught up to him. After missing 6 months of action, Bryan was ready to come back at the Royal Rumble. Now then, in a perfect world Bryan would’ve won the Rumble and reclaimed his spot as top babyface. This isn’t a perfect world. They put all this time, effort and long term plans in place for Bryan but all for naught. Injuries come with the territory and obviously Bryan never intended on all of them catching up to him. WWE has to weigh the risk/reward factor when it comes to Bryan. Yes, he is incredibly popular and should be at the top of the card but at the same time you can’t risk getting snakebit again. If Bryan had not missed any time or came back a bit sooner, we may not be having this conversation. “He needs to get rid of the contacts.” This is an actual quote from someone on twitter, no kidding. Roman wears colored contacts, this is a very calculated decision. For fans to go to these lengths to justify their hatred is ridiculous. Envy and jealousy have to play a part in this, i would be a fool if I didn't recognize that. I guarantee you I can go on twitter right now and within 8 seconds find either a picture or a comment regarding how attractive Roman is. It’s not opinion, it's fact. He is one handsome man, get over it! If that is your reason for hating and booing the man, you need more help than I can provide.

We live in a very jaded world, thats just the way society is. The days of anything being universally loved are long gone, especially in pro wrestling, and that’s fine. I’m glad everybody doesn’t agree on everything but just be open minded and form your own opinion. I may come off as a Roman Reigns fans but I’m not. Truth be told, I haven’t had a favorite WWE SuperStar in years. I’m simply a fan of pro wrestling. Where did it all go wrong? What changed in the fans minds? I’ve laid out a few ideas and its probably a combination of all of them for some fans. Can he be fixed? Yes and no. A majority of fans will say to turn him heel, which is the absolute wrong answer. It sends the message thats the fans own the product and that cannot happen. Stay the course, just like John Cena before him. Accept that he is essentially the new Cena, in terms of a mixed reaction. For the Reigns fans out there, don’t take the boos and comments personally. Anger only breeds anger, thats what the block button is for. Whether you like it or you don’t, Roman Reigns is the future of WWE. Believe that.

What do you think? Is Reigns the future? Let us know at either @y2stump or @LevellerLOW on twitter or leave a comment below.

Superstar In The Mirror

Currently Dean Ambrose is seems to be in a very unusual place on the roster. He isn't at the top, he isn't at the bottom. Fans love to cheer him and they love to see him get crazy but the WWE doesnt seem to know what to do with him. This is what leads me to see him in a different light to many. people often reference him as a copy of Bryan Pillman or as a mix of Tommy Dreamer and Mick Foley but I see him following the same career path as one CM Punk. 

At the beginning of his WWE career CM Punk remained in OVW for far too long and the same can be seen in Ambrose's run in NXT. No one wanted him on the main roster, no one believed he had drawing power and no one believed he could be a household name. With CM Punk he was lucky to have been brought up by Paul Heyman but this is where Ambrose differs. He was brought up as a product of NXT as part of The Shield who, as it may well be known, was meant to have been part of a CM Punk plan. So the man who is almost CM Punk in career stand point is brought up by CM Punk? Seem too good to be true right? Well let me provide you with another point.

When CM Punk started on the main roster he was cheered and then swiftly booed as he came up through ECW taking on the ECW original stars. This went on for about a year. Now look in the mirror. Dean Ambrose came up and was cheered for interrupting a Cena match and then was swiftly booed as he began attacking the stars on the main roster.
And now he has became a babyface in a dead area much like CM Punk did when he tagged with Kofi and ended up in Survivor Series matches with DX. 

Dean Ambrose currently has two options. Sink or swim. Much like CM Punk did. So I offer the following option. 

TURN HIM HEEL

It's not hard. Ambrose has stated in several interviews that he prefers being a heel. CM Punk preferred being a heel. DO YOU SEE WHAT IM GETTING AT? CM Punk was at his best when he was heel. Look back at the tapes and you will see Punk at his best when he fought Jeff Hardy or when he brought up the Straight Edge Society with Luke Gallows. The WWE lacks strong heels. I realise they have heel characters but they only have two dislike heels in Stephanie McMahon and Seth Rollins. Why not give the fans a new breed of heel. One who can work up through the midcard and then up to the main roster? I suggest giving Dean Ambrose MITB this year. Let him work on being the sleazy heel who hates his fans. Let him show how good a heel he can be. take example from John Moxley. 

So what do you think? Let us know at @levellerLOW on twitter or leave a comment below.