The Really Weird Secret WWE Is ACTUALLY About

As the WWF motor-boated the tiddy that was edgy late '90s pop culture and abandoned the concept of a sporting emulation almost entirely, McMahon was the sanctimonious, wildly entertaining sociopath who presided over the promotion and attempted to shape it to his liking. He was thwarted by Steve Austin in quite incredible comedy set-pieces as the WWF, the company, slowly developed a self-referential heel persona that outwardly acknowledged itself as an evil entity, and not a governing body backdrop.

RAW and SmackDown are "shows," not cards. WWE is not a wrestling promotion; it's a television show about the production of a television show. When analysed reductively, it's a phenomenally weird thing to happen, but it has unfolded in this way for such a long time that an entire wrestling fandom is simply used to its weirdness. Some younger WWE fans don't know what pro wrestling in its original form even is. Meta storytelling is meant to be niche. In no other field of entertainment is a bizarre self-referential mutation of form the flagship brand. It's demented.

In order to chase this household level of popularity in the years since, WWE continued to use the evil boss formula even when it made less than zero sense. Vince McMahon feuded with Roman Reigns, for f*ck's sake. Twice.

21st century WWE is a show that - depicting it as fake, essentially - often comes together on the night of. The maintenance and quality of the show is a key storyline driver.

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