I sit here before the computer trying my best to discover an entry point into this particular RAW REVIEW. I cannot come up with anything - other than being honest with you.
Monday Night Raw has become background noise for me.
That is both a reflection of the quality of the show of late and a reflection of my viewing habits.
Even when I focus on what I’m watching I can almost feel my consciousness flickering in and out of the show; the three hours blend together in an infinitely recycling loop of deja vu on top of deja vu, each scripted promo or strained attempt at self-referential humor occasionally inspiring a cringe. The show openly mocks itself and the show openly mocks the WWE's past. As a result, I can't help but feel mocked. Because I want to like RAW and I want to like the WWE's past.
Read More(Writer’s Note: I will not be offering my impressions of this entire episode. I will instead focus on a specific issue related to the WWE World Heavyweight Championship-story and Seth Rollins. If you would like to know the full results of the show CLICK HERE. I hope members of the WWE will remain open minded as they read the thoughts of this concerned, loyal viewer)
The fact that pro-wrestling is a never-ending narrative can sometimes weigh on the viewer - especially if you write about the medium. Repetition is inevitable in any kind of storytelling, but when RAW is as highly structured and formulaic as it is due to the WWE’s adherence to a more corporate, less organic creative-model, the company’s rigid storytelling patterns and reductionist characterization becomes all to clear.
Read MoreThe purpose of The Work of Wrestling is, first and foremost, to prove the artistic merit of professional wrestling by dissecting the narratives and the subtleties of the craft. Pro-wrestling isn’t a legitimate sport. It’s a form of theater. As such, it naturally demands more than top ten lists, rumors, dirt, predictions, impressions, and click-bait.
Read MoreA vicious little game is often played by the WWE and the WWE fans.
The WWE excuses dissatisfying episodes of Monday Night Raw or cliffhanger conclusions as “slow-burns”, chastising the fans for not having the patience to wait for the payoff while the fans, so dissatisfied with so many different aspects of the flagship product, wield their hatred like an oversized, flaming long-sword, attacking anything and everything without regard for the real enemies of progress and good television. The result is that the WWE often makes the slow-burn argument or the "it's three hours of television" argument at the expense of addressing valid criticisms, and the fans go on slashing with their IWC Twitter-sword of hate at the expense of addressing valid criticisms.
Read MoreI just want the WWE to understand their audience.
That's one of my goals with The Work of Wrestling. I want the WWE, Vince McMahon, and whoever else makes the decisions with the company to understand what the WWE-viewer who lives in the year 2015 actually wants from the company.
It’s hard not to feel dejected sometimes when watching a Monday Night Raw like last night’s Monday Night Raw. It’s hard to accept that the WWE’s flagship show is, more often than not, simply not made for someone like me.
Read More