Why a Workrate Prioritized Product Cannot Draw

[Deezy]

@RLStern - just wondering. Is there anything you actually like watching?

98 Rock promos probably

 

[Sabretooth]

When most superstars are considered “good” it’s because they can wrestle and work good characters. You always hear “oh this guy is great because he can do it all”. It’s stupid to say that if charismatic wrestlers couldn’t wrestle then it wouldn’t affect the ratings because you would need to go back in time and tell guys like Eddie Guerrero or Kurt angle or ric flair to be shitty wrestlers to test your theory. Part of what made them good is they can talk the talk and walk the walk. Cut great promos but then go out there and put on 30-60 minute matches every damn night. You’re so fucking dead set on shitting on workrate when part of wrestling is actually fucking wrestling.

 

[Deezy]

Unless you worked with someone you wouldn't know if someone could work or not.....work means...."did he hurt me or just looked like it".....when a pro wrestler said "this guy's a good worker" meant he's a safe worker.

We as fans can say someone sucks or not. ...but what we can't but for some fucked up reason...still do is use inside terms that have been bastardized so much it lost all meaning.

Workrate is a smark word.....if you're supposedly in the business and use that....get the fuck back in the audience.

 

[Sabretooth]

Unless you worked with someone you wouldn't know if someone could work or not.....work means...."did he hurt me or just looked like it".....when a pro wrestler said "this guy's a good worker" meant he's a safe worker.

We as fans can say someone sucks or not. ...but what we can't but for some fucked up reason...still do is use inside terms that have been bastardized so much it lost all meaning.

Workrate is a smark word.....if you're supposedly in the business and use that....get the fuck back in the audience.

I see what you mean but I think the argument is does putting on good matches matter or is character work the only thing that matters. I think good matches matter.

 

[CakeWalker]

I mean Japanese wrestling for weeks has little to no storylines - apart from the matches. Pure Wrestling. Is NJPW dead? According to this metric? Laughable

 

[Deezy]

I mean Japanese wrestling for weeks has little to no storylines - apart from the matches. Pure Wrestling. Is NJPW dead? According to this metric? Laughable

Well in fairness to the OP.....they're big in their home country.....not anywhere else comparatively to other promotions.

 

[CakeWalker]

the problem with 'home country' is what products are for example British fans meant to slot into.

 

[Deezy]

The ones speaking their language I suppose

 

[Buffy]

To be fair. Work rate wrestlers can draw but they have to have a character/gimmick and the right booking. Add in storylines that make sense to boot.

 

[Carter]

Just like wrestling and don't think into this to much.

Was the best era for me personally, it was so good just having rocky, stone cold, taker, HBK, Kane on the roster, was so freakin' good

 

[RLStern]

When most superstars are considered “good” it’s because they can wrestle and work good characters. You always hear “oh this guy is great because he can do it all”. It’s stupid to say that if charismatic wrestlers couldn’t wrestle then it wouldn’t affect the ratings because you would need to go back in time and tell guys like Eddie Guerrero or Kurt angle or ric flair to be shitty wrestlers to test your theory. Part of what made them good is they can talk the talk and walk the walk. Cut great promos but then go out there and put on 30-60 minute matches every damn night. You’re so fucking dead set on shitting on workrate when part of wrestling is actually fucking wrestling.

And again 30-60 minutes matches on TV have never drawn and have always turned away viewers.

Flair, Angle and Guerrero didn’t draw from matches, they drew from story and character.

Guerrero wasn’t having 30-60 minute matches at his peak, he was having 5-8 minute tv matches with Chyna at his drawing peak in 2000.

Fans don’t care about match quality, they didn’t ask “gee I wonder how technically good this match will be” they cared about story, character and who will win.

PPVS are sold before a match ever happens based on storyline. No one bought Rock vs Austin because they were interested in workrate, they bought it to see who would win and what would happen.

 

[Kiffy Lube]

For the most part character does draw more than in-ring talent but Flair sellin' tickets wasn't on his character, it's because southern fans wanted to see him go for an hour.

 

[Sabretooth]

And again 30-60 minutes matches on TV have never drawn and have always turned away viewers.

Flair, Angle and Guerrero didn’t draw from matches, they drew from story and character.

Guerrero wasn’t having 30-60 minute matches at his peak, he was having 5-8 minute tv matches with Chyna at his drawing peak in 2000.

Fans don’t care about match quality, they didn’t ask “gee I wonder how technically good this match will be” they cared about story, character and who will win.

PPVS are sold before a match ever happens based on storyline. No one bought Rock vs Austin because they were interested in workrate, they bought it to see who would win and what would happen.

Jesus you really put a spin on history don’t you. Flair, Angle, and Guerrero did draw from matches. Fans did care about their match quality. I can’t even believe you think Eddie was at his drawing peak in 2000. What the hell did you watch? Honestly. He was literally one of the most if not the most over wrestler in the company in 2002-2004. In 2000 he was just a comedy character. How could he be a draw if he wasn’t even placed in a main event position.

 

[RLStern]

Jesus you really put a spin on history don’t you. Flair, Angle, and Guerrero did draw from matches. Fans did care about their match quality. I can’t even believe you think Eddie was at his drawing peak in 2000. What the hell did you watch? Honestly. He was literally one of the most if not the most over wrestler in the company in 2002-2004. In 2000 he was just a comedy character. How could he be a draw if he wasn’t even placed in a main event position.

Eddie Guerrero was getting 6.0 rating segments with Chyna throughout 2000, that’s the most money and exposure he’s ever drawn, with his Latino heat/mamacita shirts in best sellers during the peak of the business.

You may like the rest of his career better, but that’s irrelevant to the fact that he drew more in 2000 as an upper midcarder than as a main eventer in 2004 because card placement is fictional and irrelevant when talking about drawing.

Crash Holly drew more money in the hardcore division in 2000 than any main eventer did in 2004 and that’s a concrete fact.

This is why a niche shouldn’t be appealed to, your tastes don’t represent the overwhelming audience and you have not only zero right to demand they cater to you, but also no sound argument as for why they should in any way care about workrate.

You never listen to a niche in any business, nor do you change the genre of a show to suit your niche.

Professional Wrestling isn’t about the moves, it’s purely about storyline and characters, a soap opera fictional show about wrestlers, if this bothers you then it’s not for you, and you should probably watch MMA, Gymnastics or Amateur wrestling if you want moves and sport.

 

[Hoss]

I'll probably just keep watching wrestling seeing as moves and workrate will always be a facet of it, and there will always be a company somewhere that's offering it as the primary element of its product, and whether those companies do great business or not doesn't really impact mine or most other's viewing pleasure. If this bothers you, then it's not for you.