How do you keep someone fresh?

[Kaptain KnicKy]

This is something I see a lot, and I myself mention this occasionally about superstars

'He's gone stale, his character. Need to refresh him'

Usually I find that people, not just on here, find someone is 'refreshed' after an absense, either due to storyline or injury. Other ways is a character rehaul, which is overly obvious.

I want to know how you find someone to be refreshed, when you don't use any of the things I just mentioned. People often say Cena's been stale for years, and in reality he has been ... but so have almost every other character on the WWE roster. They can't keep doing things to change them, otherwise they'd become a meer shell of the character, and people may complain it's gotten out of hand.

How do you think, or how would you like to see superstars like HBK, Cena, HHH, UnderTaker get 'refreshed' so they dont go stale?

 

[MikeRaw]

It's hard man. You know why? Because it'll never please anyone. One guy will see a guy as being stale, and another will see him as being great, and then if they change him, another guy will hate that, and while one guy thinks he's stale, others won't. I think what it comes down to is people (myself included) always think we have better ideas than what WWE is doing, and if what we want to happen isn't happening, then we call it stale. That's not what always happens, and I know I don't do it often, but from time to time, we all think that way.
What I'm getting at is, you can't really. Between millions of fans, everyone is going to see a certain wrestler as stale at one point. WWE can't do anything to change that, because at the same time, others will like the guy. The only thing they can keep from getting stale is feuds, and at times, they need to do a better job of that. How? Pretty simple, they just need to be more open.

 

[Headfirst For Hardcore]

Try not pushing a character down the fans' throats. Limited exposure is fine to keep a character fresh. It's hard for some gimmicks, because they're just so plain. Most of the time, characters get stale after feuds where nothing happens, just look at R-Truth vs Shelton from last year.
There's also a difference between stale and stuck. Ken Kennedy, Umaga, and Undertaker are stale. John Cena, HHH, and HBK just need a good feud to get attention.

 

[Kaptain KnicKy]

It's hard man. You know why? Because it'll never please anyone. One guy will see a guy as being stale, and another will see him as being great, and then if they change him, another guy will hate that, and while one guy thinks he's stale, others won't. I think what it comes down to is people (myself included) always think we have better ideas than what WWE is doing, and if what we want to happen isn't happening, then we call it stale. That's not what always happens, and I know I don't do it often, but from time to time, we all think that way.
What I'm getting at is, you can't really. Between millions of fans, everyone is going to see a certain wrestler as stale at one point. WWE can't do anything to change that, because at the same time, others will like the guy. The only thing they can keep from getting stale is feuds, and at times, they need to do a better job of that. How? Pretty simple, they just need to be more open.

Ok I understand what you're saying in that. I have to say, you're making some/most/all wrestling fans look very dumb, with what you're saying. Hell, it might even be true to some extent. That, or we're just picky and don't really know what we want ... or what we're being given.

If someone sees Cena as stale, and someone sees his character as fresh; certainly a change would satisfy the one who thinks he's stale, but would also keep the latter individual happy. That's only in regards to how 'fresh' Cena would be, anyway. Sure enough though, fans would not like the change ... however, that's not what I really want to talk about.

I think I'm getting a whole new level of respect for what WWE do, with so many fans needing to be pleased with their superstars. It's like having sex with millions of girls at once. Can't be easy, lol.

 

[MikeRaw]

Ok I understand what you're saying in that. I have to say, you're making some/most/all wrestling fans look very dumb, with what you're saying. Hell, it might even be true to some extent. That, or we're just picky and don't really know what we want ... or what we're being given.

If someone sees Cena as stale, and someone sees his character as fresh; certainly a change would satisfy the one who thinks he's stale, but would also keep the latter individual happy. That's only in regards to how 'fresh' Cena would be, anyway. Sure enough though, fans would not like the change ... however, that's not what I really want to talk about.

I think I'm getting a whole new level of respect for what WWE do, with so many fans needing to be pleased with their superstars. It's like having sex with millions of girls at once. Can't be easy, lol.

Nah, I'm not making us and other fans look dumb. What's dumb about wanting something? I'm not comndemning peopel for being choosy and picky with WWE, I'm just syaing that's how it is. But my overall point was, I think the main stale problem is with feuds, and storylines, and not necesarily with the wrestlers. But either way, like I said, the best way to solve it is for WWE to tune people out, because even if it seems liek some people hate it, there's others who love it. Ultimately, they have some brilliant minds, and from my expierience, what they choose is usually right. A classic example is that I see others and myself recommending changes, and declairing problems, every once in a while, a couple times a year. And I sometimes think "man, this sucks", when a soryline is going on, and then I'll look back a year or two later, and realise how good the storyline was, and how crap it would be if they took some of the other examples.

 

[Quintastic One]

YOU KEEP THEM FRESH BY SEALING THEM IN AN AIRTIGHT CONTAINER!

 

[Luke Flywalker]

How much (or little) exposure is limited exposure, though? IMO, Shelton Benjamin is limited, by far. People say he has mic-time. He's had two segments I can really remember when he talked. I still dig the Gold Standard thing, most hate it. In fact, most people think the E could do without Shelton. I'd personally prefer to see him in the Main Event, even losing so he gets the experience first, and then getting a run at the title and breaking loose.

I've compared his silence to Benoit. He's not as aggressive in any sense as Benoit was, but you could book him to be hardcore once in a while to see if he can really go more out on the line. The guy goes life and limb in MITB to put on a show. I think he could do some shit like Benoit vs. Sullivan NHB. It's not difficult to blast someone with a chair.

I just think you need to mix it up sometimes. Don't give the same main eventers the main event EVERY week.

 

[Headfirst For Hardcore]

How much (or little) exposure is limited exposure, though? IMO, Shelton Benjamin is limited, by far. People say he has mic-time. He's had two segments I can really remember when he talked. I still dig the Gold Standard thing, most hate it. In fact, most people think the E could do without Shelton. I'd personally prefer to see him in the Main Event, even losing so he gets the experience first, and then getting a run at the title and breaking loose.

I've compared his silence to Benoit. He's not as aggressive in any sense as Benoit was, but you could book him to be hardcore once in a while to see if he can really go more out on the line. The guy goes life and limb in MITB to put on a show. I think he could do some shit like Benoit vs. Sullivan NHB. It's not difficult to blast someone with a chair.

I just think you need to mix it up sometimes. Don't give the same main eventers the main event EVERY week.

by limited exposure, I'm thinking it's not shoving a character in the fans' faces. Have the fans gradually start to like/hate a character instead of trying to push someone when the fans don't care at all.

with Shelton, his silence isn't good at all. If they want to market him like an aggressive guy, try having him actually be tough and ruthless instead of doing athletic, crowd popping moves. The announcers could help build him up as a character on TV.

 

[LKP]

I was going to say keep people fresh by turning them heel and face now and again. But in Vince and Shane McMahon fashion it works. I mean if cena turned heel would be fresh then? In a way he will yeah, but people wont like it and want him to go back the way he was. I suppose you would have to really freshen up someone by looks, moves, music etc etc. That is my view on it although i think hhh is very very stale at the moment.

 

[C4]

- Sudden twists (Championship runs/ losses, assaults, storyline changes etc.)
- Change in gimmick.
- Change in character. (Heel/ Face)
- Change in attire.
- Change in persona.

Imagine John Cena turning heel and forming a stable with Randy Orton, DiBiase and Cody, like the nWo in the early 90's. It worked with Hogan, why won't it work with John Cena? Changing Shawn Michaels' look, dressing him in a suit, have him grow a beard etc.

 

[Next Big Thing]

I think MikeRaw makes a very valid point here, by saying that one person will find someone stale, while another won’t. You will never be able to please everyone, so the best thing to do is stick with what pleases the majority of fans.

How often do we see people saying that Cena is stale? Yet when he returned from injury, the ratings shot up. At the same time you have people complaining about him being stale, you have reports coming out that he sold the third most merchandise in single year, only behind Hogan and Austin. Same goes for Batista. You go on the internet and there are people saying he’s got no character and give him names like Boretista, yet he got one of the biggest pops of the year when he returned. There are many more examples I could give, but I think you get the point. WWE has to do what is best for business, so they do what pleases the majority of fans.

What the internet fan needs to realize is that you aren’t as important as you think. I see people all the time getting frustrated and going on a long rant because the WWE isn’t doing what they want to see happen with a storyline or a certain wrestler. In this long rant we often see the person saying that Vince is too old and doesn’t know what he is doing anymore, and that the writers are stupid. This is all ridiculous stuff to say. They aren’t stupid because they don’t book their product to directly please you. They book their product to please as many fans as possible, so that they can make as much money as possible.

 

[kyle_wwe]

You put them in a Glad Freezer Fresh bag, silly goose.

 

[noumenon]

I think "stale" is simply just a term for us...the internet fans and smarks. To most people who casually watch wrestling and don't go beyond sitting on their couch watching it and chatting with their buds the next day... no one really becomes stale. When you sit here and analyze the business and every single fart any wrestler makes, if they do the same thing twice it gives us nothing to talk about. If you've got a guy like Cena...who's marketed towards the casual wrestling fans and younger children who don't look at the business other than a cool show thats on once a week where guys beat each other up...then of course he'll never get stale...HE DOES WHAT THEY WANT TO SEE. For us, people who analyze EVERYTHING and scrutinize a business that no matter how much we talk about it could never understand the inner workings of shit becomes boring and repetitive.
For casual fans of the business keeping someone "fresh" could be something as simple as new ring attire or changing their entrance music. They love the characters they watch on TV and don't question why they are that way.
We want continuous motion and change in the business. Radical rises and falls in the cards and a constant circulation of titles and characters. When in reality when you run a company, if you find something that sells to masses... why not keep pushing it???
That would be like McDonalds discontinuing Happy Meals. Sure, many people have grown beyond it and find it disgusting but there are still hoards of kids and a new generation that love them.
So in essence what I'm sayin...........freshness is a Happy Meal.......WHAT!?!?

 

[Moonlight Drive]

I can't believe those banned people stole my joke.

 

[Montana]

To keep something fresh....put it in a ziplock bag. Duh. (ah, damn you Kyle)

* Heel/Face Turns
* New opponents
* Change in attitude
* Singles/Tag Team
* Role reversals (chasing the belt / Hot fued)
* add manager / alley
* Time off ( they don't need to be on tv wrestling every week for years)
* Not being in the same storyline