Ask the Editor
Ask the Torch: Paying Dues, Cannon-JBL, RVD's Title Future, Short Title Reigns, Garbage Wrestling
May 15, 2006 - 12:18:00 PM |
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By Wade Keller, Torch editor
PWTorch.com reader D. Wayne Wilson of Frankfort, Ky: Is it wrong to enjoy "garbage wrestling"?
WK: I don't think so. You can enjoy whatever style of wrestling you want. I think there is a reason to pause and rethink praising a style of wrestling that obviously is dangerous beyond a reasonable degree to the participants, be it crazy use of weapons, excessive bleeding (especially on indy shows where participants are probably not tested for diseases), and wild highspot matches where wrestlers are pushing beyond their skill levels in order to try to make a mark or impress people (or just get a thrill). Garbage wrestling, when done well, with an eye on believable long-term selling and telling a story in the ring - rather than just hitting each other indiscriminately with weapons - is a craft. I spent a lot of time talking to one of the indy scene's most well-known "garbage wrestlers," Ian Rotten, after an indy show in Los Angeles last year, and he clearly took pride in his style and was able to explain why his approach was thoroughly thought out and based on telling a story, while many garbage wrestlers didn't get it.
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PWTorch.com reader David Bates asks: I have a question about the Palmer Cannon-JBL confrontation. What are the details behind that? Did Cannon get sick of the juvenile behavior of JBL, Benoit, and Fit Finlay and demand it stop? What's with all this nonsense about "paying dues" and not "entitled until" stuff? You don't even hear things like this happening from the real sports such as football and basketball. Did Cannon finally get fed up with it?
WK: I haven't heard much in the way of details of what actually happened that prompted Cannon to leave the tour, but was told what we originally reported and what you repeated above. I don't consider "paying your dues" nonsense. It does happen in other sports, too - a lot. The key issue, as with many controversial things, is moderation or being reasonable. If JBL rode Cannon nonstop for the entire tour, or threatened to rape him, or insisted he do something illegal or against his morals, that's taking it too far. Wrestlers travel on the road together and become each other's second extended family. There is a tradition dating back decades to making sure newer people on tour are able to be trusted and won't easily break down during the grind of the road once they begin to get a big push and a lot of has been invested in them (i.e. Brock Lesnar). Also, frankly, life on the road can get boring and monotonous for wrestlers, and giving newer guys a hard time is part of the tradition. Most of the time it's harmless, although sometimes trying, and guys who get through it earn acceptance from the locker room and then become the next group to test newcomers. It's not always pretty, but it's part of the business and always has been. All of that said, it management wanted to stamp it out, they could, but there's something about the self-policing locker room with certain leaders who test newcomers that management finds useful in the long-run, so they let it go. I also believe they let it go too far at times, without question, but eliminating it entirely might prove to be difficult and counter-productive to keeping order on the road.
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Sean Riley of Sacramento, Calif: Are the recent WWE title reigns of guys like Benoit, E. Guerrero, Jericho, Mysterio more along the lines of ''Lifetime Achievement Awards.'' These reigns were/are only one-time shots, basically, and the wrestlers themselves are more mid-carders who don't fit the mold of a trad. WWE champ? Do you expect the same thing happen to RVD at One Night Stand (unless he "crosses the line" Shane Douglas-style and declares himself ECW champ, etc.)?
WK: There is a certain aspect of these short, one-time title reigns that resemble "Lifetime Achievement Awards," but I think more so their instances of promoters testing the waters, shaking things up, freshening up the product, and transitioning the belt to someone else in a hopefully unpredictable manner. Eddie Guerrero was more than a transitional champ getting a "Lifetime Achievement Awards," but WWE may not have realized it when they first put the belt on him. It was more a case of "who else have we got?" Rey Mysterio was at first a way to cater to the Hispanic market and try something different for a while. Jericho was someone they felt might be a breakout star, but they determined he wasn't quite at that level of building around. I don't think RVD will win either of the two major titles at ECW One Night Stand, but I do think there will be a controversial finish that leads to a belt being created for him. If he faced JBL for the Smackdown title, I could see a scenario where he'd win the belt and throw it down Shane Douglas style, but I don't think Vince McMahon would approve of that with his Raw title. Also, if not for ECW, I don't think RVD is held in high enough regard by the McMahons to be given a "Lifetime Achievement Award" world title reign.
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Background on Torch editor Wade Keller: Torch editor Wade Keller founded Pro Wrestling Torch in September 1987. He has been interviewed as a wrestling expert by dozens of TV and radio stations across the country; he has also been quoted in dozens of major newspapers and magazines across the world. Media entities that have featured Keller in stories covering wrestling include National Public Radio, Fox News Channel, ESPN Magazine, the New York Post, Entertainment Weekly, the All-News Channel, the Associated Press, and the Washington Post. He also hosted his own weekly two hour wrestling talk show on KFAN sport radio in the '90s. Over the past 17 years Keller has also interviewed, one-on-one, wrestling's top names for in-depth "Torch Talks" and feature articles including powerbrokers such as Vince McMahon, Eric Bischoff, Jerry Jarrett, Bill Watts, Jim Cornette, Jim Crockett, Jim Herd, Paul Heyman, Ed Ferrara, Terry Taylor, Kevin Sullivan, Jim Ross, and Vince Russo; top wrestling stars such as The Rock, Steve Austin, Kevin Nash, Mick Foley, Matt & Jeff Hardy, Rick Steamboat, Jerry Lawler, Bill Goldberg, British Bulldog, Road Warrior Hawk, Jesse Ventura, and Hulk Hogan; and legends such as Lou Thesz, Gordon Solie, Bruno Sammartino, Roy Shires, Terry Funk, and Verne Gagne. He is also host of the nationally distributed Ultimate Insiders DVD series.
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