10 Reasons Why People Who Hate WWE Hate WWE
2. The Future Is Bleak, And The Present Is Grim, But...
Why bother making a personal investment in a performer?
As much as I think Roman Reigns is fantastic, he's clearly the entire focal point of the company's immediate and long-term future, wider fan sentiment be damned. Virtually every other full-time performer, with the exception of Randy Orton - a man who has occupied a top slot for 13 years - is not immune to inconsistent booking. Kevin Owens may be the exception, but the rule proves the pessimists right.
Shinsuke Nakamura is dead in the water. Try travelling back in time to April 2016, predicting that, and not making a neckbeard fool of yourself. WWE almost had to turn Sami Zayn heel because he was buried from whence he came. Try travelling back in time to April 2016, predicting that, and not making a neckbeard fool of yourself. Neville, like so many before him, was set to drop off a cliff after exiting the title picture in a company unable to craft compelling stories outside of it. At least he knew, and was not content with his lot.
An entire generation of fans has been conditioned to fear the worst. The six year-old Hulk Hogan fan in me despairs at the all-pervasive lack of hope. That strikes another thought: heels absolutely dominate feuds. The lengthy, reassuring babyface title reign is now prehistoric. Wrestling, as I've written, operates best as an emulation of sport in which our guys get to win. But they don't win anymore. There must be a correlation with the largely silent TV crowds on any given flagship broadcast.
NXT isn't as buzz-worthy as it was between 2014-15, despite the TakeOver specials maintaining the superb, company-best form in the two years since. Has the largely abysmal treatment of main roster promotions robbed NXT of its positivism and, consequently, its viewership?