I disagree that its “basically always been the same” in a number of different ways.
But the biggest difference is the availability of the product. There has been Tivo and DVR for 10 years but the heavy use of WWE on Twitter and YouTube is new. You can watch the entire show in highlights format at any time of day and know instantaneously if something good and/or bad happened that’s must see or if the show was mostly skipable.
That’s a good point. Definitely has changed the way we consume.
I was more thinking of the quality/style of the product, which I don’t think has drastically changed in years.
Maybe things would have been very different if we had podcasts, YouTube, Twitter, etc. 15 years ago.
WWE doesn’t interest me anymore except when I listen to podcasts about it. Even if I lived in the U.S., I don’t think I’d watch it on TV. I just watch the YouTube highlights of anything I hear that’s recommended (which has been rare recently).
I would skip most weeks of Raw during the mostly wretched guest host era (depending on the host) and a lot of Smackdown a few years ago, after the first brand split just ended out of nowhere, so it was just a taped continuation of what was happening on Raw with some extra, worse stuff. I still kept up with the shows through written reports on sites though. The inclusion of more people I liked, like Punk and Bryan, got me watching on a more regular basis.
I used to use a VCR to record Raw…
I don’t watch and haven’t for about a year. When I was watching I only did so for about 3months and didn’t watch one episode of Raw or Smackdown. I think they are awful; Sami Zayns section this week was the ultimate example of this.
Jon and wai save me sooooooooo much time, I’m indebted to them forever
I tend to watch but I usually start streaming it after it has started or I watch it the morning after. I can’t possibly spend all that time. Usually I take about half an hour to watch each show. I watch talking segments and finishes. Ever since I got into NJPW, I have difficulty watching WWE matches, especially TV matches on Raw and SD. There are a few exceptions but most matches are either boring or rematches of matches we have seen 3-4 times during the month.
The last time I watched an episode of Raw live was October 4, 2010. I only remember this because Johnny Knoxville was the guest GM. Jackass movies are a guilty pleasure of my wife and I and we watched it to see what Knoxville would be doing. Prior to that night, the last Raw I recall watching was Bret Hart’s return a year or so earlier.
Post Wrestling’s recap shows are a god-send. I like to keep abreast on what’s happening on the shows but I am spared having to watch the hours of innocuous dreck to see the few and far between worthwhile moments. If something John and Wai recap sounds interesting I’ll see if it’s on WWE.com or their YouTube channel. Otherwise, I don’t care.
Unless there is a really radical change with the way WWE presents their shows I doubt I will ever watch one live again. I signed up for NJPW World in January and have never looked back. For my tastes, that’s the style of wrestling presentation I want to see.
I stopped watching Smackdown shortly after Raw went to 3 hours. I watched it if there was a good match or segment while keeping up with the results through Review A Smackdown and live reports. Since the roster is loaded with talent now i got back into it.
I DVR Raw so i can fast forward though the commercials.
it is on in the background while I do other stuff. there are times I listed to John and Wai and wonder how I missed an entire segment, because I have no clue what they are talking about.
I grew up watching WWF Superstars of Wrestling, the WCCW Saturday morning shows, and the NWA when I would visit my grandmother in Virginia. I had a friend send me VHS tapes of WWF shows when I was deployed in Saudi for Desert Storm. My wife would record both Raw and Nitro for me while I was at work. I stopped watching about 2003. My mom got me a copy of WWE 13 for Christmas because she thought I still watched. I didn’t know who a lot of the “current” wrestlers were, so I started watching again. I dug CM Punk’s character and got back into it.
Last night was the first night I didn’t watch any of it. I’ve been slowly weaning away from it, because I don’t care about 90% of what they show me and I don’t enjoy watching it. The last Raw that I attended was a chore to get through. I turned over to USA last night to see what was going on and there was a ShopZone commercial running. I changed the channel and didn’t go back. It’s gotten to the point that a bullet point recap is enough to satisfy my wrestling curiosity.
WWE has main shows? I just turn on EarTube (that my new all encompassing podcast network) and listen to the Post fellas talk about it. The few minutes I’ve watched either show in the last umpteen years I usually found myself saying ‘uh, I was watching that match. We’re going to commercial right in the middle of it?’. Wake me up when Hunter takes over (if he’s able to wrestle control from the curmudgeons).
I’m already winding down my weekly watching of Raw and Smackdown. With the PPVs going to four hours and my desire to follow other promotions, I’ll get by watching the pre-match videos.
I’m done with Raw. Didn’t watch a single minute of it this week, not even YouTube clips. Listening to Review-A-Raw it seems like it was the right week to stop watching. The show has been terrible since WrestleMania.
Still have a decent amount of interest in SmackDown, nothing on there that I actually hate.
I haven’t watched an episode of Raw since Johnny Knoxville was a guest host (October of 2010 according to Wikipedia) and my wife and I only watched that one because Jackass is a guilty pleasure for us. Before that night it had been years since I’d watched an episode of Raw. Even back then I found it unwatchable. John & Wai’s podcasts are how I keep up to date.
So you base your opinion on other people’s opinions.
Ewww
No. I am interested in hearing about what goes on and I find John and Wai’s recaps a better use of my time since I can listen to them while doing other things.
gave up on RAW several months back. For SD it was when DB came back, was thrown into a feud with Big Cass. Haven’t watched since. First break since 2011. With how great NJPW has been, no reason to go back.
Now that the Pritchard show is on hiatus, even cancelled the network for the first time. Glad they got their money, seems like more and more people are jumping off the train even without opposition those nights.
I’ve pretty much stopped already. Might catch a few minutes sometimes but just don’t care at all. I’m at the point where I don’t even want to listen to John and wai review them anymore cuz it’s so bad
I just stopped they brought back Hogan, I’m tired of Braun and Brock, Extreme Rules sucks.