PWP’s Zack Heydorn gives five things that we should be thankful for this year in WWE.
Thanksgiving is here!
This day isn’t just about food or family. It’s also about being thankful for the wonderful things we all have in our lives; WWE and pro wrestling included. If the Native Americans and pilgrims can get along for a feast, the IWC and WWE should be able to also, right?
It’s been a tumultuous week in wrestling. With the painful, nonsensical, and mind-numbing bickering of some lately on social media, now is the greatest time of all to highlight the top 5 things we should be thankful for in the WWE. Please put the torches and pitchforks away before reading.
Just enjoy and have a Happy Thanksgiving!
Seth Rollins
The work that this man has done in 2015 and throughout the better part of 2014 as well is beyond astonishing. There are constant complaints about the WWE not creating new mega-stars, but what about Seth? Is he not the true face of the company? Sure, the guy isn’t a babyface in storylines, but he is the focal point of virtually all WWE programming be it Monday Night Raw, Smackdown, or PPV’s.
In addition, he’s been in main event programs with the likes of John Cena, Randy Orton, Sting, and Brock Lesnar. Roll that all together and we get a huge star folks. His recent knee injury is unfortunate, but ultimately it will make him the biggest star the WWE has seen in a long time. Rollins has just scratched the surface of his greatness and the future is incredibly bright for him as he leads the WWE into the future.
WWE Network
Take a minute, log on to the WWE Network, and just page through all the amazing content available. It’s a truly remarkable experience simply because of the fact that there is so much. Old content, new content, serious stuff, humorous stuff, news, podcasts, pay-per-views… everything.
You name it, the network has it in some form or another. The WWE Network is one the of the most unique ways to do business in media today and 99.9% of the time, the WWE has been flawless with it. It will keep getting better too. Each week more and more programming comes out to entice buyers to subscribe. This isn’t random programming, but true can’t miss stuff. The fact that it’s all just $9.99 is icing on the cake.
NXT
What a year for NXT thus far. Let’s take a trip down memory lane. A sold out Takeover show in Brooklyn at the Barclays center in front of 16,000 strong. The ascent of Finn Balor as the NXT Champion and face of the brand. Two classic women’s championship matches between Bayley and Sasha Banks that truly changed the face of women’s wrestling forever. Touring across the country and across the pond to finish out the year.
Whoa.
Even two years ago, nobody could have predicted ALL of that. What happened is something to behold. NXT is a must watch weekly program that undoubtedly draws fans to the WWE Network. How are we all not MORE thankful for this product? We need to be.
The New Day
Talk about turning lemons into lemonade. If Seth Rollins and Brock Lesnar weren’t around, I think there is an argument to be made for “superstars” of the year for these guys. Xavier Woods, Kofi Kingston, and Big E took the garbage they were given and have run with it far across the goal line.
Now we’re hearing all about unicorns and trombone noises each and every Monday night. These three are entertaining but also are taken very seriously by the fan base because of the way they are booked. Credit Vince and the writing team for that. Does this gimmick have a glass ceiling? Sure it does.
That said, not everything is meant to main event WrestleMania. These guys are tag champs who are over with the audience and they understand their role on the show. You can’t ask for much more than that.
WWE Universe
There is no other fan base out there like us. Let’s be proud of that. On a regular basis we cheer our favorite superstars, boo the worst villains, and get to dictate programming to a multi-million dollar company on a regular basis.
Who else can say that? Our debates do get heated, but at the crux of them all is the fact that we love this business so much. We’re passionate. Let’s never apologize for that and keep doing what we do best.