WWE Needs To Break THIS Habit Of A Lifetime
Ishii in response, in an absolutely awesome spot, fought back by splashing Moxley through a table. This is something Ishii simply doesn’t do. He only took this out-of-character risk to combat this new threat in a match of relentless, intoxicating build. That match built; Ambrose Vs. Rollins toiled. The irony is that WWE has long claimed to “tell stories”, where other promotions indulge spots with no basis in psychology. Ambrose Vs. Rollins was tonally wrong.
It toiled because the WWE “way” is antiquated—or at least incompatible with the make-up of its modern roster.
It ties into WWE’s attitude towards its audience, which can be looked at cynically, practically, or both. WWE appeals or strives to appeal to the widest audience, the byproduct of which is a simpler, broader form of storytelling. Comprehension is the aim; exhilaration is secondary. WWE’s production team imposes a slower pace on its performers so that the audience is able to register it. This mentality is systemic, intractable. It is the mentality with which WWE came to rule the wrestling world. WWE has sensed a shift in that world, but at present is more interested in cynical counter-programming than elevating its own.
This worked for a dynamic like Triple H Vs. the Undertaker in the early 2010s; both performers, in their psychological primes, were genius in their grasp of working, as distinct from wrestling. It didn’t work for—in fact, it betrayed—a dynamic like AJ Styles Vs. Ricochet at the recent Extreme Rules pay-per-view. That match was worked with the athletic precision and ingenuity one would expect from two elite performers—AJ in particular put Ricochet over as a threat by reinventing his arsenal—but the pacing lost the audience. It was an AJ Styles Vs. Ricochet match in WWE, essentially. It did not reach its potential because it was not allowed to.
If AJ Styles faced Ricochet in NXT, the match would have banged. Ricochet incidentally hasn’t wrestled at the same breakneck pace he set in his thrilling TakeOver: Phoenix match against Johnny Gargano on the main roster—and he isn’t over. The cause and effect cannot be ignored.
CONT'D...(3 of 5)