The current wrestling product is overall boring. The things that amuse me are the rehashes of classic wrestling angles. MVP and Edge remind me of the Rock and Ric Flair respectively and so I find them amusing, plus they have very good matches consistently.
McMahon’s Millions is an interesting concept, although I’m not sure it will attract long term viewers. Long term viewers will be attracted by compelling storylines and some kine of explanation for why this television show is so different than other television shows. Right now, wrestling is a television show. Should a television deal no longer exist, the industry will change drastically. There is no need to explain to sitcom viewers why there is an audience that laughs. Dramas do not need to explain that they are putting on a show for you.
Wrestling is “sports entertainment.” That is a great term for professional wrestling. It has elements of sports with what appears to be a competitive contest, but has predetermined results. What sports movie or TV show doesn’t have predetermined results? The thing that separates wrestling from all the other shows is the audience. The audience in wrestling is part of the show. They are acknowledged by the performers and they are very important to making a show good or great.
Perhaps the WWE could pull some kind advertising campaign explaining that the audience makes the show, kind of like the NBA sometimes calls the spectators “The 6th Man.” Maybe they could pull some kind of synergy with a show like “Friday Night Lights” (although that may have been canceled). Start putting an audience at a show like “Friday Night Lights.” It’s a predetermined sports entertainment show. Maybe WWE could push the idea that the audience is a character — audience participation that actually matters. The only show where you are encouraged to voice your opinion live as the show happens.
Wrestling is a unique show in some respects. However, it really is not that different than a lot of television shows. All the industry has to do is explain to the general public that professional wrestling is a TV show where you will get action, drama, suspense and where you the audience get to impact the course of events. Maybe some kind of “You have the power” campaign. It’s a rough idea, but I’m sure someone at WWE or TNA (probably WWE since the TNA brain trust is used to create incredibly convoluted match stipulations that can even turn off a wrestling fan — ahem, “King of the Mountain”) can figure this out.
