10 Major Flaws With WWE's Current Booking Methods
4. Exhausting Their Stipulations
Gimmick matches used to be a valuable booking tool. When two wrestlers were locked inside Hell In A Cell, it was because they were engaged in the kind of rivalry that couldn't be settled with a simple pinfall. Their mutual hatred had escalated to a level that demanded a stipulation, and the gimmicks' relatively sparing use maintained their special feeling.
This is no longer the case. It feels like every second or third WWE PPV is packaged with a specific stipulation these days, and even the ones that aren't usually feature a couple of gimmick matches. Over-saturation has killed their appeal. They've become the norm, the fans are desensitised to them, and until WWE start exercising restraint again, they'll remain meaningless.
WWE are the kings of taking a good thing and running it into the ground. Hell In A Cell used to feel legitimately dangerous, but when you present the stipulation three times in the same evening (as WWE did with last year's PPV), and film it through a PG lens, the appeal is dead. They still produce decent bouts from time to time, but it's hard to think of a match type that WWE haven't ground to dust over the past few years.