10 Things You Learn Binge Watching Every WWE Raw From 2008
7. The HD Hype Is Cute To Look Back On
It's called high definition, kids, and it'll rock your world. You'll be able to see WWE action clearer than ever before. Marvel at Vince McMahon's nose hairs, bask in the glory of all that chest hair, and enjoy being able to read fan signs even if they're high up in the bleachers. This is the future. The future is now. WWE is cutting edge.
Isn't it amazing how technology changes? WWE officially went HD starting with the 21 January 2008 episode of Raw, and they hyped it up as some meaningful shift fans should care about. Sure, those watching would be able to see things better than before, but superior camera quality isn’t a substitute for storytelling or killer matches.
Thankfully, the promotion was on the road to Royal Rumble at the time and had other things to shout about, but the whole “WWEHD” thing is pretty funny looking back. It's kinda cute, actually. This writer isn't throwing stones about it either. He was caught up in the 'hi-def' craze during that time period, and fondly remembers showing his disinterested girlfriend how cool games on Xbox 360 looked when he purchased that first HDMI cable.
Things would never be the same.
Honestly, there's always gonna be something charming about these pockets in time when things as simple as crisp visual quality seemed like some game-changing feature that'd immediately make The Great Khali more palatable inside the ring.
WWE even debuted brand new sets for Raw and SmackDown to reflect the HD remaster such weeklies were experiencing. Hyped for the Rumble? Don't bother with that, we've got new cameras!