World Wrestling Entertainment Continues to Drop the Ball

Vince McMahon thought he had the answer to World Wrestling Entertainment's ratings slump. His answer would be to give away money on his program and lots of it. Each week, McMahon promised to give away a million dollars and he did.

The results?

Basically the same ratings he was getting all along. According to pwheadlines.com the 6/23 edition of Raw came in with a 3.4 rating. However if one takes a closer look this was a three hour show and it added the gimmickry that is the annual WWE Draft. The previous edition of McMahon's Millions came in at 3.1 and 3.0 respectively.

The sad news, a decade ago Raw was pulling in a rating in the high 5's and 6's. Just last year the rating around this same time was 3.8 according to the Wrestling Information Archives website. Just what has happened to pro wrestling and WWE?

It's the opinion of this writer that in order for WWE to move forward, it must take a step backwards.

Vince McMahon has always likened his show to Hollywood. The "E" in WWE means Entertainment but should that mean the WWE's television should be treated just like every television? It shouldn't because at the core, it's still pro wrestling no matter what McMahon wants to call it. This means the matches in the ring HAVE to tell their own story. It's a pretty simple formula really, good vs evil. Evil will get the upperhand for a short while but ultimately the good guy will win. Why tinker with what works? Yet McMahon wants to give us fake death angles, pregnant divas, weddings, mystery, etc. It basically adds up to more time being spent on scripted happenings that take place outside of the ring than what is happening IN it. And that's a MAJOR problem.

Part of wrestling's appeal is to give its audience what appears to be an athletic contest. Indeed some of the most ridiculous stories and angles lead to some type of match. That really hasn't changed but the action inside the ring HAS to be there. We can't get 20 minutes of story that leads to a five minute match. It doesn't work. This is why guys like Ricky Steamboat and Ric Flair were given 30, 45, sometimes 60 minutes for a match. Perhaps today's audience having been spoon fed McMahon's formula for the last decade couldn't appreciate a match of such length, but certainly you can make the argument that WWE should concentrate on making better matches instead of trying to be Law and Order.

At the same time, WWE seems to have lost its ability to make new stars. And since Dwayne Johnson went to Hollywood and Steve Austin retired, it has lacked a major crossover star. Like Hogan in the 80's, Austin and Johnson appealed to more than just wrestling fans. They were so cool that it make the average person WANT to tune in to see what was going to happen. In order for wrestling to break out of its doldrums, another star will have to emerge.

As for WWE's competition, Orlando, Florida-based TNA Wrestling...they have even further to go. They would have to go toe to toe with McMahon on Monday night's to get the mainstream recognition they lack. After seeing the demise of Ted Turner's WCW, its a risk they don't seem likely to take anytime soon.

In the meantime, this wrestling fan is waiting patiently for wrestling's next great era. However, it might be later than sooner.