NEW RULES
Writing Began: January 29th, 2010
iReason for this Writing:i
With WWE operating three brands, I wanted to think of a way to differentiate the three brands that went beyond one being red, one being blue, and one lacking any top-level talent. It's long been suggested that "Raw" focus on "sports-entertainment", "Smackdown" focus on "wrestling", and "ECW" be booked as the crazy, blood-filled, adult-oriented show it was when under different leadership. The problem with this thinking is that it's, well, too simplistic and idealistic - should "Smackdown" not have any storylines? Should "ECW" wrestlers risk and incur more injuries while alienating a large segment of WWE's demographic?
I think I came-up with a pretty good "middle ground" approach.
With WWE operating three brands, I wanted to think of a way to differentiate the three brands that went beyond one being red, one being blue, and one lacking any top-level talent. It's long been suggested that "Raw" focus on "sports-entertainment", "Smackdown" focus on "wrestling", and "ECW" be booked as the crazy, blood-filled, adult-oriented show it was when under different leadership. The problem with this thinking is that it's, well, too simplistic and idealistic - should "Smackdown" not have any storylines? Should "ECW" wrestlers risk and incur more injuries while alienating a large segment of WWE's demographic?
I think I came-up with a pretty good "middle ground" approach.
The Idea
What if title matches were conducted in a slightly different way for all three brands?
"Raw" could stick with the current style, meaning that there's a lot of "bending" of the rules and "sports entertainment" influence: ref-bumps, lots of outside interference, brawls outside the ring that last longer than the 10-second "count out" rule, no problem with tossing people into stairs or through the announce table, etc.
"Smackdown" would become much stricter, almost more "legit" and sensible like an actual sport: titles could change hands on DQs and count-outs, refs would be much stricter in their rules (like actually disqualifying someone if they apply a choke for five seconds), no ref-bumps or outside interference, and it'd be illegal to ram someone into the post/steps/table. Actually, the whole show would be more tightly regulated, making the officials seem more legit, and less incredibly stupid.
"ECW" would conduct title matches under much more lenient rules - not so much a "Hardcore" or "Extreme Rules" match, where every match would be a garbagy, weapons-filled brawl, but matches would only end on a pin or submission. There would be no DQs or count-outs, and things like choking, eye-gouging, low-blows would be legal, and the ref wouldn't even bother disciplining someone for utilizing the steps/tables. However, the refs would still encourage 1-on-1 competition, so while the competitors would be free to do whatever they wanted to each other, anyone that interferes would be sent to the back (similar to Diesel during the Shawn/Razor "WM10" match). This set of rules would be the most "primal", basically saying that the only way to be champion is to truly fight tooth-and-nail to retain.
I think a simple change like that could really go a long way in providing more creative, heat-filled endings. For instance, imagine how much heat a heel on "Smackdown" could get if he had a manager that distracted the ref while the heel threw the face into the steps. On the flip-side, imagine how much of a warrior a face on "ECW" would be after they've been beaten from pillar to post, only to summon the strength and courage to come back and win.
"Raw" could stick with the current style, meaning that there's a lot of "bending" of the rules and "sports entertainment" influence: ref-bumps, lots of outside interference, brawls outside the ring that last longer than the 10-second "count out" rule, no problem with tossing people into stairs or through the announce table, etc.
"Smackdown" would become much stricter, almost more "legit" and sensible like an actual sport: titles could change hands on DQs and count-outs, refs would be much stricter in their rules (like actually disqualifying someone if they apply a choke for five seconds), no ref-bumps or outside interference, and it'd be illegal to ram someone into the post/steps/table. Actually, the whole show would be more tightly regulated, making the officials seem more legit, and less incredibly stupid.
"ECW" would conduct title matches under much more lenient rules - not so much a "Hardcore" or "Extreme Rules" match, where every match would be a garbagy, weapons-filled brawl, but matches would only end on a pin or submission. There would be no DQs or count-outs, and things like choking, eye-gouging, low-blows would be legal, and the ref wouldn't even bother disciplining someone for utilizing the steps/tables. However, the refs would still encourage 1-on-1 competition, so while the competitors would be free to do whatever they wanted to each other, anyone that interferes would be sent to the back (similar to Diesel during the Shawn/Razor "WM10" match). This set of rules would be the most "primal", basically saying that the only way to be champion is to truly fight tooth-and-nail to retain.
I think a simple change like that could really go a long way in providing more creative, heat-filled endings. For instance, imagine how much heat a heel on "Smackdown" could get if he had a manager that distracted the ref while the heel threw the face into the steps. On the flip-side, imagine how much of a warrior a face on "ECW" would be after they've been beaten from pillar to post, only to summon the strength and courage to come back and win.
