WWE: A year in perspective

This week’s episode of Monday Night RAW was number 1052nd, which means it has been exactly a year since the 1000th episode of RAW, when RAW went from two hours to three.

So after exactly a year, has the increase in the time slot helped RAW and the WWE? On hindsight, it looked as if it would be a good idea, which would benefit the talent as well as help the show in maintaining a certain pace, without rushing too much.

So after a year, has it been a success? Or did the cons outweigh the pros? In this article, I take a look at the good and the bad coming out of RAW being extended for one more hour.

Pros:

Talents get more TV time:

Tyson Kidd

There are over 150 talents signed with the WWE, and two hours gave very less time for most of them to be seen on TV, or to get any air time.

Since the three hour RAW started, there have been more characters on RAW, as factions like The Shield and Wyatt Family have been introduced. Other than that, you have guys such as CM Punk and Paul Heyman getting decent amount of time to show their potential to the fullest, and create magic on – screen.

For any sort of entertainment, chemistry is important, and WWE has benefited from shifting to three hours as the characters get more time to play out the feud.

Exposure for mid card talent:

Instead of Antonio Cesaro appearing once in three weeks, you have him making appearances on RAW every week, which not only helps his character, but gives him an opportunity to display his skills to the WWE Universe and the fans worldwide on a constant basis.

People like Christian and Dean Ambrose get more opportunities of proving themselves, and with the extended hour, the in-ring segments and promos have also gotten better in the WWE.

Improvement of Divas division:

Not so long ago, the divas division in the WWE was pathetic. You had 30 second matches between two models who couldn’t throw a believable punch, and the fans wanted the division to either get better or to be entirely removed.

With the third hour, the divas get more time to showcase their talent, and the results speak volumes. The AJ-Kaitlyn feud has been the best divas feud in years, and they get about 10 minutes to showcase their in-ring skills on a constant basis, which can only be good for the division and for business in general.

More quality matches every week:

RVD vs Jericho

This is probably the best thing to come out of the three hour time slot. Every week, we get to witness at least one good to great TV match, which is what professional wrestling is all about.

Whether it is Y2J vs RVD or Daniel Bryan vs Antonio Cesaro in recent weeks, the talents get more time to involve in-ring psychology and storytelling in their matches, which makes the bout all the more entertaining. With the superstars now getting more air time to give their 100% in the match, it will only result in solid TV matches.

Cons:

Quality of the product

Coming to the bad side of things, the product suffers when a lot of time is available, which brings in the “fillers” on the show. You have bad skits, horrible in-ring segments and some forgettable acting, which is quite common.

Wearing out the fans

Three hours of the same things happening have a downside too, that it can be monotonous.

Unlike other sports, RAW doesn’t have a half time break, and anything that goes beyond a certain point is overkill. A year ago, RAW was bearable, as you have to spend the same amount of time for a movie, but with the additional hour, it takes extra time and effort from the fans, and wears them out quickly.

With the fluctuations and the gradual decrease of ratings on an hourly basis, it has become quite evident that the fans cannot sit through three hours of TV on Mondays.

Too much recapping and commercials

The biggest problem while watching RAW is the constant recapping and commercials. With WWE needed to fill the time one way or the other, you have constant recaps from the previous week’s show, as well as recapping of events which happened an hour ago.

This can put off a casual fan, and is also one of the biggest reasons for turning the fans away from the product.

In conclusion, it has had its fair share of pros and cons, but with guys like Daniel Bryan benefitting from it, I won’t be complaining about it.