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MONDAY'S ASK PWTORCH: Would WWE Title win or ending Taker's streak be bigger deal for Bryan at WM30? Would HBK come out of retirement for Bryan match at WM30? Why not air WM free like Super Bowl? Punk, Music, more

Aug 19, 2013 - 3:53:39 PM
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Welcome to a new website-exclusive PWTorch feature! I am PWTorch founder and editor, Wade Keller. I've been covering pro wrestling since 1987 when I started the Pro Wrestling Torch Newsletter while still in high school. Over 25 years later, PWTorch reaches more wrestling fans every week than any other independent brand. When we launched PWTorch.com in 1999, one of the features I enjoyed doing the most was "Ask PWTorch." I haven't done it recently on the website, but did revive it in recent years in an audio format for PWTorch VIP members on my Keller Hotline. We reintroduced it to the website audience at the start of May 2013.

If you have a question you'd like me to respond to, send your question to askpwtorch@gmail.com. I, along with the Torch staff, will address you questions.

===

PWTorch reader Jeff from Michigan asks: If Daniel Bryan becomes the no. 1 or no. 2 guy in 2 to 3 years, is it possible that WWE would break Shawn Michaels' retirement commitment and do HBK vs Bryan in a stadium in Texas at WrestleMania?

PWTorch East Coast Cast host Travis Bryant answers: Absolutely not. HBK will be three years older and removed from the ring, but mostly because D-bry and Michaels have zero on air connection. The average WWE fan doesn't know HBK's part in training Bryan.

PWTorch editor Wade Keller answers: Okay, if there was going to be one more Shawn Michaels match - and I'd bet against it, but wouldn't totally rule it out either - a match with Daniel Bryan would probably be at the top of the list. We've seen Michaels against everyone else who is on top in WWE that matters. I don't think anyone is losing sleep over never having seen Alberto Del Rio vs. Michaels, for instance. The other wrestler, obviously, would be Dolph Ziggler, although he's lost so much momentum in recent months he's not on as many people's radar right now as a dream opponent for a legend. Regardless of their history, Michaels and Bryan could have a great match, and I think they could build a backstory to give the match meaning. In the ring, Michaels would want to work with someone who could relieve him of the pressure to carry the match, and Bryan is that guy. I don't think Michaels would come out retirement for many people, if anyone, but Bryan is the right size and type of wrestler to get Michaels excited about getting into ring shape and having one more showcase match. I haven't gotten a sense that's an itch he needs to scratch, though.

===

PWTorch reader Andrew from Minneapolis asks: What do you consider the best match of C.M. Punk's ROH Summer of Punk? How many stars did you/would you give for Punk vs. Daniels?

PWTorch columnist Sean Radican answers: After watching the Punk-Daniels one hour match again, I have to say it was no more than three stars. The match dragged and they seemed to be stalling to get close to the hour mark. It was easily the dullest part of the Summer of Punk. Punk's singles matches against Lethal, Strong, and Gibson during that period all held up as I remembered, but the Daniels match was too dull to hold my interest for an hour.

===

PWTorch VIP subscriber (since 1993) Jason Husby asks: I'm a regular in the PWTorch VIP Forum discussion section, available to PWTorch subscribers (cheap plug), and there's a section called "Little Things" - things that may not matter much in a large sense, but can add or subtract value in a wrestling show in subtle ways. So my question is about why WWE or any wrestling promotion would play a heel's theme music after a beat down of a babyface, after a verbal spar with a babyface, or anything along those lines? For example of such a case, on the July 29th Raw, Fandango's music was played after he lost by countout in his match. Maybe I'm stuck on the era of wrestling I grew up watching, but they never played a heel's music except for their entrance, after a win or after an interview in the '80s and '90s. I felt it gave the fans a bit of a disconnect between the fans and heels. Am I wrong in thinking a heel's theme music should be scaled back?

PWTorch columnist Greg Parks answers: At this point, playing a heel's music like that is more of a cue to the audience that the segment is over and they can boo the heel or react to the segment. They probably shouldn't need that cue if they're fully invested, but that's how it comes across to me as the viewer. It's just done to get extra heat on the heel, because playing his music is almost like getting the last word and gloating about it.

PWTorch editor Wade Keller answers: My issue is with a heel's music playing before they make a run-in, although I suppose it's easy enough to assume someone is stationed near the entrance and their job is to play music for whoever walks through the curtain, so to speak, be it scheduled or unscheduled. When The Shield's music plays as they enter through the crowd, that seems to take away from their gimmick more than help in that it makes what they're doing seem more official. What's the point of walking through the crowd if they've notified the sound board operator they're on their way? Still, overall in 2013, the production values of the show take precedence over logic, and while there's a tradeoff, and maybe they go too far sometimes with production over logic, I think most fans have accepted that aspect of TV wrestling and are able to look past it. I think anywhere it's possible to have logic without taking away from the show's look and feel, it should be applied. When there's a tradeoff, they're likely going to side with the production feel of the show over logic.

===

PWTorch reader Jonathan Hook of Peterborough, England asks: Love the site, especially the Ask The Torch Feature. So in keeping with recent years, the WrestleMania buyrate was around 1 million. When you think of it rationally, it's kind of sad that "The Superbowl of Wrestling" ultimately is only witnessed by such a relatively low number of people - significantly fewer than those who would watch the average episode of Raw and Smackdown.

Ultimately if WWE wants to establish itself as an entertainment institution, why not put WrestleMania on network free to air television? Before you call me crazy, yes I understand that WrestleMania represents the single biggest pay day for WWE. However, if being PPV is such a no-brainer, then surely the NFL would make the Super Bowl a PPV event?

Like most international NFL fans, the first match I ever saw was the Super Bowl if only because I was curious to see what all the fuss was about. Since then I've become completely hooked and attended games and purchased merchandise. In sports broadcasting, casual curiosity for "the big event" is the most effective gateway towards creating life long fans and customers.

If WrestleMania was a free-to-air event, would that single showpiece event not generate interest from new fans who will then become paying customers in the long term? Is pricing the majority of fans out of the company's flagship event necessarily a good move?

If you're feeling generous, may I also pose the follow up question. Do you think a major network would screen WrestleMania given the chance and, if so, what rating could it reasonably achieve?

PWTorch senior columnist Bruce Mitchell answers: I think airing WrestleMania on free TV is a wonderful idea. There's only one problem. How will WWE make up the difference between what some network will pay them in rights fees for airing WrestleMania and the one hundred million dollars plus the event generates on pay-per-view. In the immortal words of the manager of First Avenue in Prince's all-time classic movie Purple Rain, "Son, this is a business."

PWTorch editor Wade Keller answers: There are a few key differences between the WWE and the NFL regarding this scenario. WWE is a niche business compared to the NFL. If the NFL could get the same number of people to pay $70 to watch the Super Bowl, they would love that option. WrestleMania, though, is actually a niche product compared to Raw. There are a lot of people who watch Raw and enjoy Raw more than they would enjoy WrestleMania because the product is different. Raw has more talking, more backstage segments, more soap opera storyline elements than a PPV.

A PPV is for the slice of Raw viewers who love the actual wrestling matches. There are enough of them who have made it a tradition to pay for the show that WWE can charge a huge sum for the privilege of seeing it officially at home on TV in HD. I don't think WrestleMania, if it aired live for free on USA or even NBC, would draw a massively larger audience than Raw does on USA every Monday night. Raw is seen by so many more people live than WrestleMania, I think Raw represents close to the max number of viewers who would watch WWE on any given week. That total would not generate close to enough network ad revenue to make up for the loss in PPV revenue.

Fans who miss WrestleMania can still be WWE fans and follow the product closely, so it doesn't really prevent someone from being a fan week to week. Remember, too, that WrestleMania may have had 1 million buys, but there are multiple people gathering to watch each PPV order a lot of the time, and then there are views via DVD later and illegal online views. In total, while not as many people see WrestleMania as a typical Raw, it's not as far off as it seems. And as much as WrestleMania is WWE's Super Bowl, it's not the same thing in that there's an off-season that follows. Anyone who misses WM but watches Raw can catch up on what they missed and get right back into the flow the next night on Raw.

=== VIP EXCLUSIVE ===

VIP member James out of Dallas, Tex. asks: With Daniel Bryan winning clean over John Cena last night. What would you think would be bigger at WrestleMania (and maybe more likely) Daniel winning the WWE Championship or Daniel being the one to end the streak? Thank you for all your hard work.

PWTorch editor Wade Keller answers: This is part of the VIP-exclusive portion of Ask PWTorch. I am now adding a segment exclusively for VIP members to this article as a bonus for VIP members. I will select questions sent by VIP members to my VIP Ask the Editor email box that I usually answer on my VIP Keller Hotline during the week and writing a text answer. To go VIP and get all PWTorch VIP content on our app and our website and our Audio RSS feed, www.PWTorch.com/govip.

===

EDITOR'S NOTE: This marks over 90 straight days of Ask PWTorch being featured as a daily website-exclusive (available on the PWTorch App for VIP members) at www.PWTorch.com. If you have missed any of the previous Ask PWTorch features, you can read them here:

-ASK PWTORCH - FREE WEBSITE.
-CLICKING HERE - ASK PWTORCH - VIP VERSION

********

SPECIAL NOTE We have launched a new FREE PWTorch Email Alert service where you can receive BREAKING NEWS ALERTS on occasion plus daily TOP FIVE STORIES reports. To sign up (you can easily unsubscribe anytime), click here.)

(Send your question for PWTorch editor Wade Keller and the PWTorch staff exclusively to pwtorch@gmail.com for consideration! You can hear expanded conversation on the above topics from Wade Keller by becoming a VIP member and gaining access to the daily Wade Keller Hotline, posted every day for VIP members for over 1,000 days straight. Sign up at www.PWTorch.com/govip)


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PWTorch editor Wade Keller has covered pro wrestling full time since 1987 starting with the Pro Wrestling Torch print newsletter. PWTorch.com launched in 1999 and the PWTorch Apps launched in 2008.

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He hosted the weekly Pro Wrestling Focus radio show on KFAN in the early 1990s and hosted the Ultimate Insiders DVD series distributed in retail stories internationally in the mid-2000s including interviews filmed in Los Angeles with Vince Russo & Ed Ferrara and Matt & Jeff Hardy. He currently hosts the most listened to pro wrestling audio show in the world, (the PWTorch Livecast, top ranked in iTunes)


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