Historical Evolution of WWE vs. Recent Historical Trends

[The Condor]

The WWE network has opened my eyes to something that has never caught my attention until now: the slowed or ceased evolution of the WWE product for nearly a decade...

1987-88: The WWF is populated by big guys and hosses. The matches are larger than life featuring essentially flesh and blood cartoon characters in brawls and sloppy "work." Hulkamania is at it's peak and carrying the WWF but the young fans are growing up and weary and change comes in dribs and drabs with Ultimate Warrior, Sid Justice and Ric Flair over the course of the next several years.

1992-93: A new era is clearly underway... Hulkamania is for all intents and purposes finished. Hart, Luger, Perfect, Yoko, Michaels, Jannetty, Diesel, Undertaker and Ramon are all pegged as the future as the last vestiges of Rock n' Rasslin are swept away for this new era. It is perfectly encapsulated at KOTR '93 which is main evented by Bret Hart and Yokozuna defeats Hulk Hogan for the title and the last time Hogan is seen in a WWF ring for nearly a decade. "Workrate" is given higher priority, but to the detriment of character development and the grandiose size of the previous era. This era is seemingly defined by the "career gimmicks," brightly colored wrestlers, and the lack of capitalizing on the Undertaker.

1997-98: Almost 5 years to the date that Hulkamania ended we see Mankind fly 20+ feet off the Hell in a Cell in the image that defines the Attitude era. Workrate takes a backseat to characters and angles... an era with Sable's handprint bikini... Austin's beer swilling... the Godfather and his Ho's... TAFKA Goldust... the 3 faces of Foley... The Nation vs. DX... the hardcore division... Val Venis porn movies... coarser language, violence and sexual content... The entire landscape had changed as had the traditional roles of faces and heels. Even little details like a contemporary use of music from the dated mid-90's fare to using edier material like Marilyn Manson, System of a Down and Disturbed. For a few years the WWF was the hottest ticket in all of entertainment and all because they evolved with the times rather than sticking with New Gen attitudes and characters like Ahmed Johnson, Hunter Hearst Helmsley, the Godwins, Rocky Maivia, and Mabel.

2001-2005: I watched most of this era but dropped out in mid-late 2003, basically the main event death valley overseen by HHH. I can even pinpoint the loss of my fandom as Badd Blood 2003--- just brutal. People call this the Ruthless Aggression era with more emphasis on WRESTLING due tot he talents of Benoit, RVD, Guerrero, Angle, Lesnar, HHH when motivated, Team Angle, Jericho, HBK, Edge and Christian as well as the up and coming talents like Orton, Batista and Cena. Times were changing and it was visible as Austin, Rock, the Dudleys, and others faded into the background.

Which brings me to the last 8 or so years, Does the product seem as stanant to you? Everything from the announcing, the set design, the stock characters and storyline seem like they could have been dropped in at anytime in the last decade. Is it by design, by comfort and lack of competition? Do you feel like the "Reality Era," is just a talking point or throw away line or a very real step in WWE's evolution? Am I making sense or completely off base and just bitching because I fell into this wealth of wrestling nostalgia?