Lazy Tales

I’m a big fan of the WWE and am one of many who is incredibly thrilled to see The Rock back in action.  That being said, I am incredibly let down with the choices the writers have made in order to lay the ground work for The Rock’s triumphant return.  Before you dismiss this as just another article about a fake sport, please hear me out.  The mistakes being made not only apply to the WWE storylines, but to much of the entertainment mediums out there that we all enjoy.  The mistake with the WWE is simply the most current to me, as well as the most relevant, so it will better serve me in my argument.

CM Punk is the current WWE Champion and has been for more than a year.  He is our resident villain and many people, myself included, are ready for him to be silenced and taken out of the spotlight for a little while.  Ryback has been our hero of sorts, a newcomer who is after the title and wishes to silence Punk.  Our hero has been given chance after chance to do so, only to be stopped by suspected accomplices of our villain.  Title shot is presented, Ryback is inches from a victory, and his victory is stolen away from him.  The logic behind it is that Punk is meant to face The Rock, so losing the title to someone else doesn’t exactly support that storyline and must not happen.

I don’t question the decision of the writers to make a feud between The Rock and Punk a priority above all else.  Dwayne Johnson has excelled at everything he does, and the fans are thrilled to have him back at home in the ring.  Punk has also done an excellent job at becoming the man you love to hate, or the man you just hate.  They are the perfect pair for a brutal throwdown.  While I enjoy Ryback, his character is too new and his in-ring and mic skills too unpolished to share the spotlight with The Rock.  His role must remain as a supporting character, at least for now.  The choice to have The Rock and Punk feud over the title is a smart one and I am behind it 100%.

My issue is with the road we have been driven down to get us to where we currently are.  Due to the Twitter bickering between The Rock and CM Punk, combined with the advertising the WWE has done on television and online, it has been made perfectly clear to the fans for months now that we are to expect these two men to go one on one.  What should have been a secret, and easily could have, was thrown out into the open for all to see.  We were indirectly told that there was no way in hell Punk would lose the title to Ryback, then given “tense” matches between the two where the title was on the line.  We were given yet another one on January 7th, with Ryback yet again inches away from a win only to have match interference cost him that win.  Again.

Suspense is a vital part of any good story, especially when you’re dealing with something intense and physical.  Would anyone be excited about a new horror flick if in the first five minutes, you were told who the killer was, who would defeat said killer, who the survivor(s) would be, and what would happen in the final climactic scene?  Even with films such as the Friday the 13th series where we know who the killer is, we still want to be shocked and surprised.  Take that surprise away and you’re left with a tired and stale story that is quite difficult to get excited about.

When you know with full certainty that a story will have a specific outcome, you fail to become excited about anything that hints at a different possibility.  When I immerse myself into a story, I want to go in with an open mind and with few expectations.  The WWE has failed me as it has taken what should be an unpredictable title run and destroyed it.  Due to their expectation that we’ll be too excited about The Rock’s return to care, they let loose with all the details and left nothing to our imaginations.  Just because The Rock can captivate a crowd and still make this title run worth watching does not mean than it’s acceptable to kill the suspense.

In order to have the largest audience and gain the most hype, the teams behind the entertainment are now revealing those would-be secrets far too soon and hoping after the fact that enough appeal still remains so that audiences will show up and pay money to get a full view of the story.  Television promos for next week’s episode will show you the climactic moment of that next hour in order to get you to tune in, despite the fact that it kills the shock value that the episode would have had.  Movie trailers show you the beginning, middle, and ending of their story simply because those clips will attract the most attention.  The focus has shifted off of telling an excellent tale and moved on to what can get the most attention at the quickest rate.

The hype that the WWE has put behind The Rock’s title run was definitely effective in getting attention and packing the stadium in Florida last night.  It was definitely effective in securing great ratings for that episode of Raw and selling merchandise on their website.  It makes sense businesswise, at least on the surface.  But is it worth doing in order to gain a few extra dollars now?  What would have happened if the WWE had kept quiet about the title run, allowing The Rock to make a dramatic surprise entrance on an episode of Raw to challenge Punk as opposed to having everything perfectly choreographed out in the open?  Isn’t it possible that the after effects could bring more benefits than the immediate ones?

The story should never be sacrificed or compromised in order to boost ratings or make a few extra dollars; I don’t care if it’s a best-selling novel or a reality competition television show that is in question.  Storytelling is an art and we are killing it slowly with our promotion techniques.  If we just let a story run its natural course rather than throw bits and pieces out into the open before their time, we can allow the art form to thrive and carry on as it should.  Hype can just as easily be created without giving away key plot points and details of final outcomes.  All it takes is a bit of effort, a small amount of creativity, and an eager audience.

As part of that audience, I can assure all creative teams out there that “eager” is an understatement.  We’re ready to be wowed.  We’re ready to be treated intelligently and being allowed to let our imaginations do the work.  We’re ready to gain back that feeling of shock and awe when the hard work that went into your project is presented properly and the audience is allowed that pure and raw reaction.  We’re ready to show you how much our interest is piqued when you hold back more than you tease us with.  We’re ready for a change and we’re ready now.