Post by thefnpres on Jul 15, 2006 13:52:58 GMT -5
Guest Editorial
By Dave Weringa of Blue Earth, Minn.
PWTorch subscriber (for four weeks!)
Jeff Jarrett thinks he's Hulk Hogan. And, maybe he's right.
If we think back to WCW and what made it what it use to be, the biggest factor was, without a doubt, Hulk Hogan. That is true for AWA when the Hulkster was battling Nick Bockwinkel, and WWF/E, when he battled and conquered every foe. I am not a big fan, nor have I ever been, of Hulk Hogan. I had no problem seeing through the B.S. he offered each and every match. Obviously, he had his true fans, and, rightfully so, probably still does. I will admit that he is the main reason that professional wrestling was what it was in the late-'80s, and is part of the reason it is what it is today. He did, single-handedly, with the character he was, change the face of wrestling.
If you look back to what it was that put WCW "on the map," it was no doubt Hulk Hogan coming aboard. WCW did many things right in building what they had through 1990 or so, but in the mid-to-late-'90s, it was Hogan that made them the other big team. The one thing that stands out is taking the biggest and most well know figure, and putting him on their program.
Let's face it, if I'm going to start a new baseball league, I'm gonna pay Barry Bonds, Andrew Jones, Manny Ramirez, Albert Pujols, Greg Maddox, and every other big name I can find from the biggest organization in existence, every penny I can find, to come to my team. That's what WCW did. And it worked... for a while. Problem is, you can't live off of it forever and they tried to.
If Nolan Ryan was still pitching for the Astros, he might be a bit competitive, but he'd definitely have lost the star power he had at one time, and surely wouldn't strike out as many batters or win as many games. He might, at 55-plus years old, think he could still strike out 300 batters a year, and might think that each and every fan came just to see him. Maybe part of it would be true.
You need those established guys to get the attention of the viewer, and then awe them with what else you have to offer. I mean, let's face it, we all had the remote in hand during the Monday Night Wars and waited for a dull moment on one program to flip to the other. Usually, during Jeff Jarrett's segments. Sorry.
Jeff Jarrett thinks he's "the" guy. Problem is, he's not. TNA thought that Christian was the guy to steal away and make a big splash. It hasn't worked that way. Although entertaining and I enjoy what he's done, Christian hasn't been the guy, either. Furthermore, Jeff Jarrett wouldn't let him be. Rhino wasn't the guy, the Dudley's weren't the ones, the "James Gang" aren't it, the bald Mexican guy with the bandanna has never been it. Goldberg won't be, Steiner, either. It's good to get name recognition, but if you're gonna steal from your competitor, make it worth your time and your dollar. TNA would be so much better off without any of those guys, from what I've seen. I would love to watch an hour of wrestling without Billy Gunn, the Road Dogg, the Dudleys, Konnan, or any of the other mid-card guys that will never be more than that. Including Jeff Jarrett.
At best, Jeff Jarrett was a guy that WCW wanted to be more than a mid carder. That's it. He was entertaining, for what he was, and that's it. He was J-E–double-F J-A-double R-E-double-T, or whatever the heck that was. He was the long-haired blond guy who did a dumb dance with the peace sign on both of his hands. That's all he'll ever be to me, and to millions of fans who saw him. He will never be the next "Hulk Hogan" of "Stone Cold", or "Rock."
I know you don't know until you try, but I think the experiment is over. Jeff Jarrett, if he truly wants TNA to succeed, needs to get out of the way of the next stars, and the guys that will draw. He's not the one. He's used and over used his name recognition, same as he's done with the James Gang and their tired routine, Konnan and his tired routine, the Dudleys and their routine that never was, and all the other left overs.
Come on TNA, Joe IS the man. Daniels IS the man. Styles IS the man. Abyss IS the man. The X division IS the next big thing. Fans WILL like it. Don't be afraid to take a chance. Listen to the fans. The same that WWF did with Stone Cold and Rock and Michaels and Taker and Foley. Listen to the fans. Don't be afraid to read the internet. We are the most compassionate fans in the world. Take a chance on somebody else. You have the attention of the fans, you just can't keep it. Figure out why. Figure out why, when head to head, WWF and WCW would both draw a 5.0 or better, and now with no competition, WWE struggles for a 4.0. There's a reason. There's no interest. Jeff Jarrett won't do it. He never has and he never will.
We won't watch for nostalgia every segment of every show. The show must go on, but it must go on without Jarrett, Steiner, Nash, Dudleys, and Rhino in every episode. I do respect what each and every one of those wrestlers have given to this sport, but if they want to keep on giving, tell them to give to the next generation, and let them carry on.
Jeff Jarrett is no Hulk Hogan. Maybe no one is or will ever be. But, at some point, Hulk Hogan can't carry wrestling anymore. We've reached that point many years ago, and wrestling did fine. New stars rose and kept the fire burning in us, the fans. It needs to happen again, and again, and again.
People like Jarrett and Steiner and Sting and all the rest, need to move out of the way and build up the next generation, for us, the fans. They need to stop being selfish, and worry about what it was that brought them to wrestling in the first place. Entertaining US, the fans. Don't be afraid to put over the new guy, the new fan favorite, the guy that makes us cheer. It was you at one time. What if you were in the situation and were never put over? Jeff, what if you were Samoa Joe and you couldn't get over, because of some old guy that wouldn't get out of the way?
Hey, Jeff Jarrett, remember the "New Blood"? Remember "New Blood Rising"? Look back at the things you said back then. Maybe you could do the same for the young wrestlers now. I think they might feel like you did back then. The old guy that wouldn't get out of the way. The stale old guy that refused to get out of the limelight, even though their day has come and gone. The old wrestler that refused to put younger talent over for the good of the business. That's you Jeff. Get out of the way.
Remember how you felt. That's how they are feeling. You're not Hulk Hogan. If you were, well, I guess it wouldn't be any different. Neither one of you will ever do what is good for the business. You're both too damn selfish. In fact...
You are like Hulk Hogan. Congrats Jeff Jarrett, you've become everything that you once hated. The old guy who wouldn't get out of the way for the good of the business. You are like Hulk Hogan. The old guy that will NEVER put over the younger guy, no matter what it does for the business. You think that you will be the man until you're 70 years old. You think you're different than all the ones before you, different than any other wrestler there has ever been.
You're not. You're the old guy that just won't get out of the way for the better of the younger wrestlers. The ones who will carry the company to the next generation. Congratulations Jeff, you are just like Hulk Hogan. Hope you like having all the young talent hate YOU, too. Just like you hated Hulk, and all his buddies that refused to get out of your way. The torch has been passed on, Jeff, now you're the old guy. Accept it.
There's still time, though. Maybe YOU can do what the others before you didn't. Move over and let the youth shine and carry on the business. I'm sure you will... Just like Hulk and all his buddies did. Yeah, right.
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Very interesting
By Dave Weringa of Blue Earth, Minn.
PWTorch subscriber (for four weeks!)
Jeff Jarrett thinks he's Hulk Hogan. And, maybe he's right.
If we think back to WCW and what made it what it use to be, the biggest factor was, without a doubt, Hulk Hogan. That is true for AWA when the Hulkster was battling Nick Bockwinkel, and WWF/E, when he battled and conquered every foe. I am not a big fan, nor have I ever been, of Hulk Hogan. I had no problem seeing through the B.S. he offered each and every match. Obviously, he had his true fans, and, rightfully so, probably still does. I will admit that he is the main reason that professional wrestling was what it was in the late-'80s, and is part of the reason it is what it is today. He did, single-handedly, with the character he was, change the face of wrestling.
If you look back to what it was that put WCW "on the map," it was no doubt Hulk Hogan coming aboard. WCW did many things right in building what they had through 1990 or so, but in the mid-to-late-'90s, it was Hogan that made them the other big team. The one thing that stands out is taking the biggest and most well know figure, and putting him on their program.
Let's face it, if I'm going to start a new baseball league, I'm gonna pay Barry Bonds, Andrew Jones, Manny Ramirez, Albert Pujols, Greg Maddox, and every other big name I can find from the biggest organization in existence, every penny I can find, to come to my team. That's what WCW did. And it worked... for a while. Problem is, you can't live off of it forever and they tried to.
If Nolan Ryan was still pitching for the Astros, he might be a bit competitive, but he'd definitely have lost the star power he had at one time, and surely wouldn't strike out as many batters or win as many games. He might, at 55-plus years old, think he could still strike out 300 batters a year, and might think that each and every fan came just to see him. Maybe part of it would be true.
You need those established guys to get the attention of the viewer, and then awe them with what else you have to offer. I mean, let's face it, we all had the remote in hand during the Monday Night Wars and waited for a dull moment on one program to flip to the other. Usually, during Jeff Jarrett's segments. Sorry.
Jeff Jarrett thinks he's "the" guy. Problem is, he's not. TNA thought that Christian was the guy to steal away and make a big splash. It hasn't worked that way. Although entertaining and I enjoy what he's done, Christian hasn't been the guy, either. Furthermore, Jeff Jarrett wouldn't let him be. Rhino wasn't the guy, the Dudley's weren't the ones, the "James Gang" aren't it, the bald Mexican guy with the bandanna has never been it. Goldberg won't be, Steiner, either. It's good to get name recognition, but if you're gonna steal from your competitor, make it worth your time and your dollar. TNA would be so much better off without any of those guys, from what I've seen. I would love to watch an hour of wrestling without Billy Gunn, the Road Dogg, the Dudleys, Konnan, or any of the other mid-card guys that will never be more than that. Including Jeff Jarrett.
At best, Jeff Jarrett was a guy that WCW wanted to be more than a mid carder. That's it. He was entertaining, for what he was, and that's it. He was J-E–double-F J-A-double R-E-double-T, or whatever the heck that was. He was the long-haired blond guy who did a dumb dance with the peace sign on both of his hands. That's all he'll ever be to me, and to millions of fans who saw him. He will never be the next "Hulk Hogan" of "Stone Cold", or "Rock."
I know you don't know until you try, but I think the experiment is over. Jeff Jarrett, if he truly wants TNA to succeed, needs to get out of the way of the next stars, and the guys that will draw. He's not the one. He's used and over used his name recognition, same as he's done with the James Gang and their tired routine, Konnan and his tired routine, the Dudleys and their routine that never was, and all the other left overs.
Come on TNA, Joe IS the man. Daniels IS the man. Styles IS the man. Abyss IS the man. The X division IS the next big thing. Fans WILL like it. Don't be afraid to take a chance. Listen to the fans. The same that WWF did with Stone Cold and Rock and Michaels and Taker and Foley. Listen to the fans. Don't be afraid to read the internet. We are the most compassionate fans in the world. Take a chance on somebody else. You have the attention of the fans, you just can't keep it. Figure out why. Figure out why, when head to head, WWF and WCW would both draw a 5.0 or better, and now with no competition, WWE struggles for a 4.0. There's a reason. There's no interest. Jeff Jarrett won't do it. He never has and he never will.
We won't watch for nostalgia every segment of every show. The show must go on, but it must go on without Jarrett, Steiner, Nash, Dudleys, and Rhino in every episode. I do respect what each and every one of those wrestlers have given to this sport, but if they want to keep on giving, tell them to give to the next generation, and let them carry on.
Jeff Jarrett is no Hulk Hogan. Maybe no one is or will ever be. But, at some point, Hulk Hogan can't carry wrestling anymore. We've reached that point many years ago, and wrestling did fine. New stars rose and kept the fire burning in us, the fans. It needs to happen again, and again, and again.
People like Jarrett and Steiner and Sting and all the rest, need to move out of the way and build up the next generation, for us, the fans. They need to stop being selfish, and worry about what it was that brought them to wrestling in the first place. Entertaining US, the fans. Don't be afraid to put over the new guy, the new fan favorite, the guy that makes us cheer. It was you at one time. What if you were in the situation and were never put over? Jeff, what if you were Samoa Joe and you couldn't get over, because of some old guy that wouldn't get out of the way?
Hey, Jeff Jarrett, remember the "New Blood"? Remember "New Blood Rising"? Look back at the things you said back then. Maybe you could do the same for the young wrestlers now. I think they might feel like you did back then. The old guy that wouldn't get out of the way. The stale old guy that refused to get out of the limelight, even though their day has come and gone. The old wrestler that refused to put younger talent over for the good of the business. That's you Jeff. Get out of the way.
Remember how you felt. That's how they are feeling. You're not Hulk Hogan. If you were, well, I guess it wouldn't be any different. Neither one of you will ever do what is good for the business. You're both too damn selfish. In fact...
You are like Hulk Hogan. Congrats Jeff Jarrett, you've become everything that you once hated. The old guy who wouldn't get out of the way for the good of the business. You are like Hulk Hogan. The old guy that will NEVER put over the younger guy, no matter what it does for the business. You think that you will be the man until you're 70 years old. You think you're different than all the ones before you, different than any other wrestler there has ever been.
You're not. You're the old guy that just won't get out of the way for the better of the younger wrestlers. The ones who will carry the company to the next generation. Congratulations Jeff, you are just like Hulk Hogan. Hope you like having all the young talent hate YOU, too. Just like you hated Hulk, and all his buddies that refused to get out of your way. The torch has been passed on, Jeff, now you're the old guy. Accept it.
There's still time, though. Maybe YOU can do what the others before you didn't. Move over and let the youth shine and carry on the business. I'm sure you will... Just like Hulk and all his buddies did. Yeah, right.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Very interesting
