Did any of you WWE fans "retire" also?
 

I'm just sitting here thinking that I really have no reason to watch WWE anymore. It's been mentioned in another thread that with HBK retiring, it's like the last little piece of my child hood is kind of gone now. I haven't watched an entire Raw in years, I haven't watched an hour of Smackdown in years.

The only reason I watched was because of HBK and with him gone there's nothing for me to latch onto. Yeah, it looks like Bret Hart will be around for a few weeks or a few months so I might fast forward to his segments, but he's never going to wrestle again. Guys like Taker, HHH, Y2J, Big Show are the only guys left for me to watch that I grew up on and had an attachment to, but none of them are really going to glue me to my tv. Y2J can but they haven't consistently booked him well in years. Absolutely nobody from the new class of young guys has done dick all to catch my interest. Cena, Batista, Orton, CM Punk, Rey, and whoever else is being pushed to the moon has failed at hooking me.

I can't see myself going out of my way to watch WWE anymore. The only thing that will would be knowing in advance about a comeback or appearance of a major player. If Stone Cold or The Rock or HBK for example, are advertized as appearing I'll tune in, otherwise I really am done.

Am I alone with this feeling?

I tune into TNA every now and then to see what they're doing differently and if anything there is hooking me, but really, nothing is. I'll watch a Hogan segment, anything from Sting, maybe RVD, but really, nobody has my imagination anymore.

I think it's bye bye folks. :wavesad:

Orton is pretty much the reason why i'm still watching. Him, Jericho, Edge, Morrison....ah, hell, im not retiring.

Im here for YOSHI

Bye

I quit for about 2 years, from 2007 to a little before they started the guest host thing and HBK was a cook at that restaraunt. I followed RAW and PPV results pretty religiously still, just to keep up on things, but I can say I probably didn't watch a show a single time except for maybe a Saturday Night Main Event if they had one of those during that time frame.

I had watched just about every RAW since 1999, so I guess sometimes you need a little breather.

I love everything about wrestling and realize that guys are going to be cycled in and out. I usually have at least five favorites at any one time who keep me watching.

So no, I won't.

If one man leaving the WWE makes you "retire" from the WWE than you you haven't been a wrestling fan for awhile now. There's nothing wrong with that it's just if one man's departure makes you leave you only cared about Shawn Michaels and not wrestling.

I haven't been terribly entertained by anything, not even the PG DX crap. But a good in ring match can catch my interest, but we don't see those very much anymore either.

No I haven't been a big fan in a long time, but with the G rating they seem to have gone too and no more great superstars (aside from the ones I named) there's no substance to the shows.

I barely watch anymore as it is. I only watch PPV's. I'll always probably keep somewhat informed on whats going on, but I'll never have the passion for it I used to.

Pretty much when Eddie died, I stopped watching consistantly, and it just waned from there.

I guess I am going to go ahead and be someone that agrees with Stickman.
I got home last night from class at 10:45 PM and I remembered to tune in to Raw just for HBK. Back in the day, I would frantically run inside and tune in and not say a word until the show was over.
There is some guys that catch my attention..I do like Taker but it does not seem like he will be around for long, I like CM Punk's style and Mysterio is always fun to watch. There is a couple of new guys that have also left an impression on me. However, my problem is not really about the performers..I think there is plenty of talent. It's about the fact that I can't seem to get excited for most feuds and I don't know why. Maybe I am just "growing" out of it or not finding it interesting right now. I have taken a time out from wrestling before so maybe I am just heading in that direction.

When the Rock left I kind of lost a lot of interest in wrestling. I should have kept watching for Kurt and Eddie but was too lazy to tune in to Smackdown. I started watching again after Benoit won the title then stopped for a few years. Started watching again and then stopped. Tried to tune in recently and all of sudden I hear Bret Hart is coming back. Now I'm watching again but I think I'll keep watching even if Bret leaves because the pops for Orton are amazing but I'll stop if WWE fucks that up.

Not going to lie, I retired in 1998, and now I will once again retire in 2010. HBK seriously is the only reason I started watching wrestling again after he left in 1998. I will still watch it from time to time, but will never sit through a whole entire show I'm sure.

My interest has waned over the years, but there's enough good stuff to watch that Michaels leaving doesn't kill it for me. Wrestlemania really should have demonstrated what's still good with WWE.

Sort of lost interest in RAW for a few years around the 2003-2006 time frame although that is when I started to get interested in watching "24" and began to watch RAW only when a good match or segment was on. Smackdown has been a once in a while show ever since they moved to Fridays or kept changing the channel they were on (I think now its on the 800s due to MyNetworkTV).

Probably won't ever "retire" since there is always new wrestlers to be fans of and the good ones tend to last for years (ex. Jericho, Edge, HBK, etc).

watch on youtube the next day it only takes bout 15 minutes when you cut out all the crap.wwe needs a new kurt angle or benoit to bring back the actual quality of there "wrestling".my god if i see hhh do the same 5 moves and a few punches and kicks i think ill craic.great look and great on the mic but the dude only has 2 star matches 90 % the time.

I don't think I'll probably ever "retire" but I've been working on a very "limited schedule" ever since guys like Rock and Austin left. Part of it may be the fact that I'm getting older and growing out of it to a degree.

I still follow the news and results on the internet pretty regularly, but I don't necessarily turn in week after week and haven't watched a whole Raw or Smackdown in years. I really like what guys like Edge, Jericho, CM Punk and Orton have been doing in recent years but there hasn't been anything that's made me have to tune in like I used to.

The storylines, wrestling and characters are just not as good as they used to be, especially since the whole "G" rating thing got started. Guys like Austin, Bret, HBK, Rock, Taker, HHH, Jericho and Angle had the best characters, the best storylines and were the best in the ring and it just hasn't been the same since.

Even the mid and lower card action/guys back then were awesome, the Hardy's, Edge/Christian, Dudleys, Shamrock, Owen, Hardcore Holly, Al Snow, Kane, Jeff Jarret, APA, etc. They either had great characters or storylines, were damn good workers or their matches just had great high flying or hardcore action to make up for it.

Man...this is a depressing thread for those who want the business to be reinvigorated. Hey I'm like xero, I like all things about the business. No, the shows on either end of the spectrum have not been spectacular, but I will wait for the day something big happens. I will say one of the main reasons I watch right now is simply because there are two companies in competetion....sort of.

i missed pretty much all of 2003 - mid 2007, it was nice

Catch you on the flipside

I've been semi-retired for a while now, I only bothered to stream any of WM for the main events. The current style isn't doing it for me, and honestly I work until 9 anyways so it's hard to even catch the shows. I'll continue to track the programming as long as HHH, Taker, Kane, Edge, Jericho, and Christian are still around, but unless something changes I'm not going to be an excited weekly viewer for quite some time.

What about your boy Punk Tedious?

As sad as it is to see Shawn go, I'm sure there will still be sunny days ahead in the WWE.

My interest in WWF really started to diminish around the acquisition of WCW in 2001. I mean, there was no more competition to really push the WWF to strive for excellence. It got even worse once the WWF went public and got involved with Wall St. At that point, McMahon and company no longer catered to the fans anymore. I keep hearing today what I heard during the attitude years; that it's all about what the fans wants, and today, that's a lie. Vince has stock holders and a board of directors to answer to now so the fans opinions have long since been obsolete. Stock holders and director boards call ALL the shots in ever single business out there from entertainment to restaurants. When they say, "Jump", Vince asks, "How high?" Vince can now join his own "Kiss My Ass Club" because that's exactly what he has to do now every morning when his feet hit the floor.

In my humble opinion, no matter how talented the superstars are, they will always be forced to hold back their talent, whether it's on the mic or in the ring, because WWE and America in general have become so politically correct. God forbid someone out there gets offended at the word, "ass" being said on TV.

The hay days are long gone, never to return and you can thank the love of the almighty dollar for that. And it's a real shame for those of us who have been dedicated fans for over 10 years because at one point in time, WWF was the funniest and most entertaining television around.

Once Undertaker retires, I really don't know how I could possibly tune in and expect to be entertained by WWE programming again.

I actually enjoy Straightedge Jesus Punk. Not drooling to see him or anything, but I no longer want to retch when he comes out. His Rumble moments were golden.

The loss of one individual performer will never keep me from watching the product. We as fans are trained that this is a revolving door business....Why on earth would fans "retire" because HBK isn't gonna be on every week?

Makes no sense.



But when the Undertaker is gone I'm outa here. :-P lollz.

I think some guys in here have pointed out the lack of creative story lines and the same generic matches and wrestlers are so bland that's its difficult to attach yourself to the product.

Too many new people in WWE not to watch. I wanna see where this MITB goes, and what happens with Drew McIntyre and Dolph Ziggler.

Once a fan always a fan. Understand I realize some people just move on from being a wrestling fan. I feel that the people who really only watch wrestling for one or two guys and then giving up on it, due to the fact their favs aren't around anymore is just kind of stupid. I mean you don't quit watching your favorite sports team, just because your favorite player is retired. You keep supporting the future even if it's not bright. I mean...*points at Raider Fans* And given enough time Someone new will step up and fill that empty sport left.

Yes right now it's hard to see what the future holds, but this isn't the first time. I can still recall sitting in front of the TV back in the early 90's, wondering why I should even watch WWF when everyone I knew was on WCW. But I still watched and got a crush on some guy called Billy Gunn. Watched Luna and some weirdos dance around. This guy Call THE EDGE showed up. This guy called Stone Cold beat down Jack the snack Roberts.

I guess what I'm getting at is. Unless you're really having a true fall out with wrestling, to say you're retiring as a fan because "this guy or that guy" isn't here shows you really weren't much of a fan anyway.

As a kid, I remember watching bits and pieces of wrestling growing up, but I recall I first started regularly watching wrestling in 1990 after Summerslam. I retired in 2003. I have not been into wrestling regularly since. I'm like the older wrestlers because I'll occasionally come back and watch it from time to time. I also enjoy watching DVD's about older wrestlers, as well as reading older wrestlers books.

Well i watched regularly ever since I can remember, as early as 3 or 4. At 6, my dad took me to my first match at the Manatee Civic center in Palmetto, Florida in 1987 shortly after Wrestlemania 3 where I saw Brutus Beefcake wrestle Dino Bravo. Since that night, I have been hooked with it. I will always watch, no matter what. its in my blood.

Yes.

Both Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels wrestled for the last time, Jack Swagger already cashed in Money In The Bank, Jeff Hardy is in TNA, Jim Ross still hasn’t returned to TV, and Vince McMahon never will again appear on TV.

I did it

Because of The Rock.

Undertaker is the only wrestler left really in WWE from when I first started watching. Some guys like Hogan and Flair are in TNA...but I dunno if I want to sit through TNA much

He did it. For The Rock.

yeah all the big dogs are fuckin old now, and the rest are too injured like bret and austin to wresle anymore.. and the rock thinks he to good for wrestling, which i understand, cause it is a pretty fucked up job, all that traveling and the beatings they take everyday... but however shitty wrestling is right now, i will always watch and always get my daily news from TPWfuckinW everyday.

Put her down on her knees where she belongs!

I honestly haven't watched a full episode of Raw Smackdown or anything in ages, I follow on the internet watch clips now and then but that's it, I think the only thing that keeps me following is that it gives me an excuse to lurk on this forum :-\

I retired back at the end of 1999
because WWE went down hill after that

You retired from wrestling in 1999, but you're still posting on a wrestling forum in 2010?

Are you one of those guys who retires, but comes into the office every day with coffee and donuts and shoots the shit for an hour or so?