I like the current product over the attitude Era.

[Deleted]

I do agree that nostalgia clouds stuff quite a bit. There was some storylines in the Attitude era that were just DUMB as hell. Theres promos where Austin and Rock are singing a duet together, and other than the Rock/HHH feud where Austin was "recovering from his injury" (the DX express and whatnot) they were never on the same page. You look at some of that up now on Youtube and you find some truly "...what the f***..." stuff.

Not to say the current era is much better. And the Attitude era (when the WWF/E wanted to) had some insanely good matches.

[mrjl]

Nov 7, 2009 1:20:00 GMT -5 @skiller said:

Wrestling matches are great and all, and IMO a very important part of the wrestling business.

But if your characters aren't engaging, and you storylines a pedestrian. Why should I care about the wrestling? How am I supposed to get invested?

the fighting. Storylines are just a distraction.

[Slingshot Suplay]

Nov 6, 2009 21:25:30 GMT -5 Trout Stratus said:

I got a question, what do we call this era? Theres the Golden Age and the Attitude Era but no name for this one, or are we just gunna keep calling it the "This" Era?

I'd call it the "Sports Entertainment" Era, because , despite being a company built on professional wrestling, they've tried very hard to separate themselves from professional wrestling, to the point where they call the wrestlers "performers".

[forgottensinpwf]

Nov 7, 2009 10:21:51 GMT -5 Slingshot Suplay said:

Nov 6, 2009 21:25:30 GMT -5 Trout Stratus said:

I got a question, what do we call this era? Theres the Golden Age and the Attitude Era but no name for this one, or are we just gunna keep calling it the "This" Era?

I'd call it the "Sports Entertainment" Era, because , despite being a company built on professional wrestling, they've tried very hard to separate themselves from professional wrestling, to the point where they call the wrestlers "performers".

And this is different than the Attitude era how exactly?

[Deleted]

I miss the early attitude midcard, it was a bit like early 90s WCW midcard booking with lots of matches and feuds playing out in a short period.

Was a lot like current ECW actually.

[chunkylover53]

I really don't think the wrestling was that bad in the Attitude Era. Sure matches were shorter, but I think history revisionist make it seem worse than it is. Alot of people also say that titles were tossed around from left and right, that may be, but at least they were given attention and defending regularly.

Also, you can knock Vince Russo for alot of things, but the one thing he is good at is time sharing. Pretty much every superstar back then on the roster was given a storyline, even if it was a crap one, and as a result, got over. Sure you have an abundance of talent now, but what percent of them is actually over?

Rose colored glasses don't apply to me as I remember it greatly when it happened. I can openly talk about wrestling and not get criticized for it, plus, a majority of my friends with wrestling fans, which made it better.

Yes, there was a ton of crap in the Attitude Era(mostly 1999) and I even did a thread about it, but I rather watch that, then what we have today. This is coming from somebody who use to go on IWC forums and bash the smarks for not liking the product, and now I realize they weren't doing it to be cool. I was a wrestling fan since I can only remember, and I thought I would never stop watching. Wrestlemania 25 disproved that.

[B.A.]

the attitude era seemed more real, more like stuff that's unpredictable. and if you notice, TNA is starting to mimic it but theyre far away from what that era in the wwf used to be.

[Mozenrath]

Nov 7, 2009 12:09:31 GMT -5 @forgottensinpwf said:

Nov 7, 2009 10:21:51 GMT -5 Slingshot Suplay said:

I'd call it the "Sports Entertainment" Era, because , despite being a company built on professional wrestling, they've tried very hard to separate themselves from professional wrestling, to the point where they call the wrestlers "performers".

And this is different than the Attitude era how exactly?

True. They have always been "superstars", so that much hasn't changed.

[spagett]

The worst stuff in this era is definately less offensive than the worst stuff in the Attitude Era. However this era has got absolutely no way near the highest points of the Attitude Era so I would say the Attitude era wins out.

[skiller]

Nov 7, 2009 9:35:36 GMT -5 mrjl said:

Nov 7, 2009 1:20:00 GMT -5 @skiller said:

Wrestling matches are great and all, and IMO a very important part of the wrestling business.

But if your characters aren't engaging, and you storylines a pedestrian. Why should I care about the wrestling? How am I supposed to get invested?

the fighting. Storylines are just a distraction.

Great, so I should just be content with seeing two guys I don't give two craps about fighting, where from my perspective the outcome doesn't mean anything? Are there any other ways I can waste my time?

But with that said, if the matches were really that great, then I could do that. Though honestly, the stuff they usually give us is not on that level.

[TheDieselTrain]

No way is the current stuff anywhere near as good as the Attitude era. Raw was cant miss back then. I havent seen Raw in months during this era. As someone who has watched since the 80's I didnt think that would ever happen.

[Professor Chaos]

I don't.

[Bubble Lead]

Nov 7, 2009 20:49:34 GMT -5 TheDieselTrain said:

No way is the current stuff anywhere near as good as the Attitude era. Raw was cant miss back then. I havent seen Raw in months during this era. As someone who has watched since the 80's I didnt think that would ever happen.

Same, a week didn't go by that I missed RAW or Nitro.

If I did I would be pretty pissed about it.

Now I go months without seeing it, and it never seems like I miss much, if anything.

[MasonK565]

Nov 6, 2009 21:13:09 GMT -5 "Gentleman" AJ Powell said:

Nov 6, 2009 20:33:24 GMT -5 Chiral said:

I started watching in 2003, so I have more of a connection with this era than the Attitude Era.

Ditto. I started watching 2001-ish, so I can appreciate the attitude era, but the area around where I started watching has more of a connection to me.

Me as well. I started in 2004. Watched for a couple of months and then stopped suddenly (dont know why either) and then began watching in 2007 due to the news of Benoits death and haven't stopped since.

But i would have liked to experience Monday night wars or the Attitude era.

[diegorivera]

The actual matches in this era I find to generally be a lot better than the Attitude Era's offerings, though as others have mentioned, the characters then were much better written and more interesting to watch. However, I've never bought the idea that the midcard situation was so much better then compared to now. Steve Blackman and Scott Norton got huge pops because they were riding the wave of popularity the Austins, Golbergs and Rocks created. Stick Kofi or Knox or Miz out there in the same timeframe and they'd likely get the same reactions. And while everyone says the mid card always had something to do then, how much of it was necessary, important or memorable years later?

You can talk about how many Raws or Nitros where can't miss, but how many ultimately were all that memorable? Looking back, I find the average for truly memorable shows then is about the same as now. There was just a lot more hype and hooplah around wrestling then. Also, while Raw has suffered off-and-on, (this year setting a record for consistent mediocrity,) I find that Smackdown as a whole has largely benefited in this era, especially in terms of developing its own identity.

This year has been fairly dismal in terms of quality, but I could say the same thing of 1997 before Montreal and Austin's rise. You've still got Smackdown and ECW and while so much still needs to be fixed, I started watching Raw again after Breaking Point and it hasn't been bad. As long as the company stands, there's always that chance for a miracle that makes Raw better. Overall, I like these eras about the same and feel the quality drop is much lower between this and the Attitude Era in comparison to the 80s/Hogan era and the New Generation.

[manstis1804]

If you weren't watching during the Attitude era, you just don't "get it". Match quality is higher today overall, but it's more predictable and boring. In the end they're predetermined, so you need a hook to get people to really care about a professional wrestling match other than just the match itself. The stories, particularly in the mid card, don't draw me in very much.

[TheDieselTrain]

Nov 8, 2009 1:49:05 GMT -5 manstis1804 said:

If you weren't watching during the Attitude era, you just don't "get it".

If I was new and just saw this commercial I would definately be interested in checking it out.

[A Dubya (El Hombre Muerto)]

Nov 6, 2009 23:38:51 GMT -5 Fade said:

I'm come to realize as a Wrestling Fan, I prefer Characters I can invest in and Storylines that are riveting as opposed to a flat out great wrestling match.

And I love me some good Wrestling, which is why I got into the old ECW for a while, and years later ROH.

But yeah, consider me on the camp that loved the Attitude Era and I'm struggling to stay a fan during this era. Though I can easily see why people would favor this era. I'm just not one of them.

This.

[strykerdarksilence]

I agree. For me this has been WWE's best year since 1992.

[spagett]

Nov 8, 2009 14:15:05 GMT -5 @strykerdarksilence said:

I agree. For me this has been WWE's best year since 1992.

Then you are in the vast minority there.