The Katz Files – Arnie Katz
Bragging Rights: Preview & Predictions!
The Kingfish Arnie Katz has plenty to say about WWE’s 10/25 pay per view.
Maybe WWE shouldn’t brag.
This is a very weak show built around a gimmick that didn’t generate any fan excitement. One, of many, reasons is that WWE couldn’t promote it very well since they didn’t know the rules. It started out as an imitation of WCW’s WarGames, but it seems like WWE has decided instead to imitate WCW’s habit presenting pay per view matches that had not been thoroughly thought out and tested.
The basic concept of Bragging Rights is deeply flawed. It means little to the fans and actually hurts WWE’s business.
The fundamental problem is that the RAW and Smackdown rosters have exchanged and shared talent so often that there is no sense of true rivalry. Fans know that WWE shuffles the rosters periodically and reassigns talent whenever it feels like it, so there’s no separation.
Another problem with the premise is that there is no logical connection between one of the teams winning the match and deciding which show is better. A win in the match simply doesn’t relate to which show is better, because it doesn’t actually evaluate the two shows.
The Bragging Rights gimmick hurts WWE’s business, because it creates an artificial separation between fans who like RAW and those who prefer Smackdown. The hype for the pay per view makes it sound like you can’t be a fan of both shows – and isn’t that what WWE wants? They wantmore audience overlap, not less. Hearing fans in the arena on the19/19 RAW boo Smackdown should’ve triggered one of those celebrated Vince McMahon backstage rants.
Normally, I do a very elaborate preview. I give the kayfabe back-story of each match, a detailed prediction of the outcome and a predicted grade for the latch.
That approach works with Bragging Rights. Frankly, Bragging Rights probably doesn’t deserves that much attention. Most of the matches have little or no motivation and the outcome doesn’t matter much, either.
Bragging Rights isn’t totally devoid of interest. It will see the end of the Cena-Orton and, perhaps, the Undertaker-Punk feuds and, more importantly, will start a number of story lines that will evolve and develop through the fall and winter.
That’s it for today. I’ll be back on Monday with another installment of the Internet’s fastest-rising daily wrestling column. I’ll have the recap and analysis of Bragging Rights and you’ll be able to laugh at my predictions.
— Arnie Katz
Executive Editor
[email protected]
(10/2409)