OUR READERS HAVE SOME SUGGESTIONS FOR THE WWE
  • 08/03/2007 (2:10:16 pm)
  • Georgiann Makropoulos

Let us hear from you. MORE ADDED. thanks..

HOW TO IMPROVE RAW RATINGS
1) Take the belt off Cena on a Raw telecast and have someone else feud over it for awhile. Or, let Cena seem like the underdog for awhile, instead of having him get the belt back at the next PPV.
 
2) Focus more on the IC and Tag Team titles. Have some great feuds/storylines involving these titles so that we aren't treated to a title defense that makes no sense. Also, make the IC title the only way to become #1 contender like it use to be in the old days.
 
3) No more Diva matches. Yes, T&A sells, but these matches serve no true purpose and the majority of time, they mess up moves during the match. Make them managers/valets or something.
 
4) No outrageous storylines. The whole McMahon death angle should never have happened. Base the storylines on things can could really happen in real life, not something you'd see on Dallas or The Sopranos. If people want to see that, they'll watch those shows, not RAW.
 
5) More gimmick matches. Nothing stupid, but things that can further a feud (cage match, Hell In A Cell, lumberjack, Russian chain, etc). These will keep fans interested and tuned in to see what happens.
 
6) No more predictability. Last week, Randy Orton stays at ringside for the Cena/Carlito match. That took the surprise out of it because you knew something would happen.
 
7) Start a couple of factions and start a "war" between them. Have younger stars feud with the older guys (if there are any left) or have 2 groups of younger guys try to prove who is hungrier.
 
8) Which leads me to my next thing involving groups.....WarGames!!!  Every year at Survivor Series, starting with this year, have 2 teams meet in WarGames as a RAW exclusive match. This wouldn't help every week, but around SS time, people will tune in to see what teams would be competing.
 
9) Maybe more fan interaction. Like Taboo Tuesday, they could take a big match once in awhile and let the fans vote through a 800 number and the website as to what the stipulations will be.
 
I think if Vince just keeps the product more reality based and focused more on actual wrestling with storylines that make sense/payoff in the end, he maybe able to turn things around.
 
From:  Adam Smith
 
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Georgie,   How to Improve WWE 
        The first thing that the WWE can do to make the show better is get rid of the nonsense: divas, death angles, guys who have the charisma of a mule becoming champions, etc. They need to get back to WRESTLING. Back in the day, PPV events were special and something to look forward to due to the fact that there were only 3-5 yearly. I haven't ordered a PPV in years due to the fact that the same matches are usually shown on the TV shows. The WWE should also create more CHARACTERS, or at least have the wrestlers TRY to be different from one another. I much rather see a Repo Man or a Doink in a match rather than what is shown currently. Yes, some of the past personalities may have been a little ridiculous, but they were entertaining. Monday Night Bore is the farthest thing from entertaining. Specialty matches such as a cage match or ladder match should be reserved for a PPV. I'll take the blue curtain and spotlight over the ring over a Titan Tron and Diva pillow fights any day.
From:  Mike
 
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SOLUTIONS TO HELP WWE 
Georgie: You asked for ideas.....
#1 Allow the talent that can wrestle......Regal,Flair,Booker,Taylor,Finlay etc work longer matches......re-educate the fan
#2 Bring in new/old faces from Japan....like Kawada....Muta ..... Puerto Rico....scour the Indys.....ROH....TNA
#3 Increase and fund developmental......restart the territory concept.
#4 End the brand split.....
#5 Use your library to run old matches as a regular segment on Raw....
#6 Get back to the basics.....rekindle old angles.........
From:  Kkrrz1
 
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Hi Georgie,
           Great subject and here are my ideas.
 
The talent is thinning out at this time.They have to cut out Smackdown and ECW and incorporate them into the RAW brand.If they want to keep Smackdown,make it a complete WWE show with the full roster.Trim the roster so that the talent is worthy of being in WWE.
 
Bring back some integrity and trust of the fans. People are very turned off at what happened in Fayetteville,GA. I am one of them. Toughen up the Wellness Policy so that not as many fall through the cracks. I personally do not want to see Hercules all the time. I WANT TO SEE LEGITIMATE  WRESTLERS!!
 
Cut out the BS matches featuring divas swinging pillows and midgets winning the cruiserweight title.What a slap in the face of all the cruisers that they do have.If you are going to have women,train them as wrestlers instead of models.
 
Bring out the best of their youth and utilize them correctly.You have so much young talent in Carlito, Mr. Kennedy, Cade and Murdock, Benjamin,and Orton. Intersperse them with the legends and start feuds that go some where like in the old days.
 
For God Sakes,let Cena lose the title to someone coming up.Now is the time to have Orton win the belt and start some good feuds with HHH after Summerslam. These could be classics!!I think Kennedy could be the next Ric Flair if they work with him.
 
Take them off of Monday night because football season is coming and the ratings drop naturally anyway.Move them to Tuesday night where the competition isn't as strong right now.Let them get some mommentum and after football season,change them back to Mondays.
 
Its time that Vince steps down and let the younger McMahon's take over because they may have a true sense of what the people want to watch now. Vince and Hogan brought wrestling back, Vince has dropped the ball. If the kids do not have it by now, it isn't going to last long anyway!!  Vince is in his 60's and it is time he spends time being Grandfather.
 
I am just throwing some ideas out there. I have been a wrestling fan since I was seven years old. This means I have been watching for 39 years. I miss Bruno, Pedro. Strongbow, Tanaka and Fuji but I know that wrestling has evolved with the times. WWE could take some of their history and learn from it. Only time will tell what will happen next.
 
From:     Mark Meister of Debary,FL.
 
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hey georgie....

First off for raw is one very important aspect UNPREDICTABILITY I know every thing that is going to happen and I know when a squash is coming when a low man on the totem pole is going to lose they tell you the winner basicly before it begins by pairing unbelieveable combos that are not equal except monday with carlito winning but that is an exception.
 
second too many wins by dq and cheating go classic have a standup match and  some handshakes wouldnt hurt integrate the brands in a diffeent way it may not be possible because wrestlers are now used to less work than being on 3 shows but make ecw hardcore again have the interesting take a chance with ecw matches  with a faster pace.

third on smackdown have the cruserweight division have faster paced high impact matches withless grappling and more innovative moves and most importantly let them loose what i mean by that and im not sure anyone remembers but a few years ago they told talent to slow the pace down its cruiserweight key word "cruiser" which in essence is to cruise.

raw should have a multiple level system with the proving grounds being the ic title making the ic in effect the unofficial key to the wwe title that doesnt mean small guys dont get it but they get it less give it to a talent that can carry it the right way and take the world title and give it to someone who can hold it correctly wink wink khali and someone besides batista.

move randy orton to smackdown he has had on point matches for months which were exciting to say the least and would do well with the talent already there who he mixes better with in my opinion that last match with edge on raw was grrrreeeattt!!!

get a storylinewriter who has worked in the business and a talent agent who knows what hes doing lance storm comes to mind let storlines build too often they have a match too soon and the repetitive nature every ppv khali vs cena for example kills what is otherwise fine stop scripting lines people like burke can talk with the best of em and everyone else can tough it out.
 
most importantly let it mean something again too often the good matches are ruined by run ins and endless angles that involve trickery , why?? let the match play out and end take the characters like kane and boogeyman and make the backstage a part of the show again a video of boogeyman playing before a match talking directly to his opponet before there match is better than seeing him comeout and scare them after match make him go after tem for a reason like he wants there heart for his collection or something. imagain a scary video with him in a tiki hut speaking to the given opponent for example well use matt striker as he strokes a shrunken head he laments as to how much he admires the heart matt has ( obviously a joke ) and how much he wants it for his own then the next week you can have him come out and scare him etc etc till the ppv match.
 
lastly the one thing that should be done is the reinvention of the way raw plays out how many times can we see a playback to reiterate the past raw try starting raw off with a match and level it that means small matches first... big ones later and switch it up i dont wanna hear cenas entrance music twice and see him twice and see him do the same thing twice give him way less mic time he cant talk he sounds rediculouse and give that time to someone who deserves it like mr kennedy.
 
The crowd wanted shawn to win so badly at wrestlemania you could feel it and they were dissapointed there favorites are continually tossed under the rug and thats why the ratings drop make cena turn heel have him come out with a bodyguard batista actually fits in a weird way make batista a man for hire he does the machine gun thing anyway cena hires him and then have him turn on cena then have him destroy cena a little diesel hbk i know but hell a proven storyline is better than some dumb one right ???.....  hardy vs umaga ????

make smackdown the proving grounds raw the main stage and ecw the independents what more can i say.

The wwe is an entity it wont listen to us i guess trying and failing is better than not and failing but still its failing its lofty that the wwe would ever institute one of these changes
 
a couple more things ppvs arent special anymore make the most highly anticipated rivalries show up there and make the stipulations unique a cage match where the goal is not to get out but grab the title from the outside and  climb back over  if only done once it  is still exciting because it is new and unknown

that all us fans really want the unknown

we want an unpredictable match
-3 way cage  jeff hardy vs rey mysterio vs santino marella

we want one that is purely ubsurd
- boogeyman and snitzky well call them the nightmare vs the highlanders

we want it extreme
cm punk vs sandman -barb wire match

we want a classic
london and kendrick vs hass and benjamin tlc

we want the ladies
melina vs victoria 2 out of 3 pinfalls special ref val venis

we want 3rd generation
randy orton vs carlito ( give one the ic ) make it a ladder match

we want ghetto
booker T  (reinvented as "the ghetto king"....... can you diggeth it suckah ) and super crazy
 (reinvented as "super crazy cool"...... vaminos esse) vs cryme tyme - tornado tag match

we want the show
hhh vs john cena

and last but not least we want for the world title ....
lashley runs the gauntlet ( jobber jobber etc you know the deal until the last opponent ) hbk's glorious return
 
ok so maybe not the greatest ppv ever but certainly better than the great american bash no ???

The point being classic is better than what we are getting and so is new better than stale  its up to the wwe to do something and quik before they lose all the casual fans they really want entertainment laughs intense fights and backstage antics the hardcore will never stop watching they miss it here or there but the andres hogans harts rocks austins flairs blassies and many many more have cemented there love and forever made them fans !! casual fan they will leave you in a second if you miss one beat and the wwe is learning that now.
 
While benoit and the national media attention have dampened spirits and made us all question the wwes policys it does not break a company benoit did what he did as a man and wrestled as a performer if i had a son thats how i would explain it he lived two seperate lives one in the dark place he was in and one in the spotlight in the ring. While that doesnt truly get to the point or the core while it never can erase the tarnish one thing can core values not only by the wwe but by the performers as well life is hard but most of us dont take drugs steroids or pain killers to deal with it they may have many more stresses and demands but so do many other jobs baseball is in the midst of a steroid proble no one has died and attendance is up by large percentages because of one reason whatever happens the game stays the same a ball is a ball and a bat is a bat and a good match is a good match nothing can tarnish it.
 
God Bless... Jim in CT
 
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My ideas to better WWE
 
# 1. Get rid of ECW its a waste and it takes away talent from the main show.
 basically take who ever is good and get rid of the rest. put them in raw or smack down.
1 hr show of nothing it not the old ecw and never will be boring !!!
 
# 2. have one championship belt like they had when they first broke up the into brands
 meaning one champion fight on both show Raw and Smack down
 not every week though kind of like Hogan it was a treat to see him on TV because he mostly
did big shows only. This way if he wrestles on Raw lets say. He could meet anyone in the looker
room the little guys can get a chance and its never the same people. I hate watching
one show with 3 number one contenders always you know who's going to win.
Do this with the IC and Tag belts team any one up any night either show.
This way there is no way to know what's going to happen next. Plus know
there is more variety of matches towards the belt.
Example: say Cena the champ well on raw he could meet Randy or
it could be the week he's on Smack down defending against Jimmy Jang Wang
LOL hey but at least its interesting and not the same ole same ole.
 
# 3. better story lines on the edge of your seat stuff bring surprise wrestlers, even if for one week to face champion. say Marty Jennety back one night to face IC champ.
 
# 4 get more characters.
 
# 5 I agree divas must not wrestle unless they find talented ones.
 
# 6 more McMahon's on TV, its nothing without them.
 
# 7 we need managers with stables.
 
#  8 more scene back stage like the old days
 
Thanks CTM 
 
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Georgiann,

I read the thought on what the WWE feel would help and I hope I am not to late to give my opinion on the subject.

1.  I would not have 3 different "brands" as WWE calls it.  The WWE needs to have all wrestlers work the same shows.  They could still do the multi house shows.  There is enough talent to put out there and have the house show schedule that they have now.  If someone is not on TV full time it still gives them a chance to get work in.

2. One World Champion and one World Tag Team Champion.  Having all those titles is a waste of time.  Make the titles mean something again.  I like keeping the I.C. and United States Titles.  With those belts you can get rid of the Cruiserweight Title.  The I.C. belt could be the title that the crusierweight fight for.  I think the U.S. Title could be the belt as the next step for the world championship. 

3. Hollywood writers.....You need wrestling minds putting things together.  I hate knowing that someone who just wrote the reason why Ross and Rachel are fight on this weeks Friends is writing  for the greatest sport in the world. I feel a interview should come from the heart and not scripted out for them.  Fans are not stupid they know what comes from the heart and what is fake.  Look back at history some of the best talkers spoke from the heart.  When Ole Anderson turned heel on Thunderbolt Patterson you believed that Ole was going to destory Patterson.  When Dusty talked about being a son of a plummer you believed.  Vince needs to have wrestling people write for him.  He has all these great road agents (Anderson, Steamboat, Windham, etc) who could book.  How about a booking team of Vince, Dusty Rhodes, Barry Windham and either Triple H or Shawn Michaels.  The Hollywood writers really bothers me!!!

4. The young talent down in OVW and the new FCW need to keep the same gimmick when they get called up.  You have young talent doing one gimmick and they get called up and their gimmick totally changes.  The talent just isn't there anymore.  The are fewer diamonds in the rough.  Plus the writers get tired of the young talent if they cant get over.  One website a few months ago compared the writers and young talent to a kid with a new toy.  Once the writers grow tired of the new toy they just throw the young talent in the toy box and forget about them.

4a. No talent Divas....These women are beautiful but thats it.  The ladies who can wrestle are buried on TV.  I understand sex sells and I love to look at a beautiful lady but when the fans are quiet or going out and buying a nacho and beer during a "Divas" match that has to tell the powers that be something.  There are alot of great looking and good female wrestlers on the indies.  The Diva search is a total joke!!!!!!

5.  Vince needs to use old gimmick matches.  I would love to see War Games or Bunkhouse Matches.  I always read if Vince didn't create it he doesn't want to use it.  Vince sometimes everybody needs to put their ego in check.  Nobody will not think less of you.  War Games would be great if you had the right wrestlers in it.

6. Everybody looks the same.  You have jacked up wrestlers with bodybuilder looks.  There is to much show and not enough go with these wrestlers.  To use a Ric Flair quote he used on Lex Lugar million dollar body and 10 cent talent.   I often ask myself and some of my friends would guys like Dick Murdoch, Blackjack Mulligan, Dick The Bruiser make it today in wrestling.

These are just a few of my opinions.  I want to wrestling business to change for the better.  This is the greatest sport in the world.  So much history and tradition and it need to stay strong

Shawn A. Belsterling

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I Got 2 words for ya FIRE BATISTA. He's the Worst Wrestler In The History Of Wrestling. Why Vince Keeps Giving Him a Push is BEYOND me.
 
From:  Rich 
 
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Weighing in because the product is garbage. Lets start!
1. Who are they targeting? kids, long time fans, "The Attitude Fans." they need to make up there minds.
2. I'm sick of the same spots/ moves over and over. ex. Kane has been using
that horrible  looking top rope Clothesline for 10 yrs. Even taker stopped
the move we call "old school" for some time. Hence why we call it Old
School. Kane how about a leg drop shoulder block or God for Bid a spear from
the top. Every top star does the same spots even at the PPV's, except Mania.
where they will add or dust off a move for the night.
3. Lets get rid of the cruiserweight title, because lets face it there
really is no division and lets incorporate a new TV. title like WCW had that
can be defended on either show. 1st champ should be CM Punk so they can test
him in a broader market vs. Noble or Taylor (if you must Chavo.)
4. Renew the prestige and importance of IC belt.
5. Good Story Lines, they don't need to push the envelope just tell a story.
Booker / Lawler was starting to unfold well even though I hat the King
Gimmick and I hate Lawler, but they were setting that up well and had the
time to develop it before Summer slam, but they kill it on Raw last week.
They can talk unscripted and didn't need to square off at all until the PPV.
there was even room to bring Queen Shamell and maybe a new/old/current Diva
not to wrestle just to propel the story line ( I would of liked to have seen
Sunny make a short return as Lawler answer to Queen Sharmel.
6. Put the woman matches on ECW and Smackdown, not on RAW.
7. Managers not interpreters.
8. The Backstage interview needs to be more than the question how do you
feel about.... or what are your thoughts on... I want the broadcast
journalists back and get rid of the scrawny geek and the dumb woman
interviewers. You need someone strong and not Pathetic. For ex. like Goldie
Locks was in early TNA.
9. Can we move JBL to Raw instead of Lawler. We need a rest he is not funny
and adds no new dimension to the in ring action.
10. Teddy Long has overstayed his welcome. NO NO NO Vicky. This is where you
put Jerry Lawler fans support him and some know he use to book it looks a
lot more legit than Holla Holla Holla.
11. Booker T. and Monty Brown should be the Ghetto Kings. not Super
Crazy.(Good fan Idea though)
12. Flair and Hardy need title runs. The pop they receives is 80's like.
They can't hurt your buy rate more than Batista/ Khali.
13. Less Vince is better. You got all you can with the boss employee
storyline.
14. I want Cena vs Sid. Bring Sid in like they did in old ECW with a manager
(maybe Matt Striker) and the stretcher. After that program Sid vs Orton
Legend Killer.

Just a start there is a lot that needs to be changed
 From:              MKS.
 
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Hey Georgie. I think it's a great idea to get suggestions from the fans and see what they think and hopefully WWE takes notice of our suggestions. Here are mine:
 
1) Cut down on the "House Shows". They have them almost everyday and I think that's what is tiring the wrestlers more than anything.
 
2) Also, cut down on the Pay-Per-Views once or twice a month. Instead, make it once every other month.
 
3) Stop putting the talent in dangerous matches. Save the specialty matches for the Big Four PPVs.
 
4) Try and push some of the mid-carders such as Shelton Benjamin and Kenny Dykstra.
 
5) Have Cena drop the title in the next few months to some one else.
 
6) Having three brands seems to be too much work so it would be a better idea to merge SmackDown and ECW, seeing as how they already share the same Live Event dates and venues.
From:  Brien Lyons
 
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Here are some suggestions, let us hear from you.  What changes would you like to see??
 
I want Shawn Michaels back.  I miss him like crazy.. 
 
Your responses have been great, please keep them coming.  The WWE is watching and listening....... 
 
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