It’s exhausting to be a WWE fan right now. After ushering in what felt like a new golden era as Cody Rhodes finished his story and became champion at WrestleMania 40, the promotion has floundered without a consistent creative vision. It’s failed to build big new stars as it increasingly relies on nostalgic draws while failing to deliver worthwhile long-term storytelling. Don’t even get me started on John Cena’s failed heel turn or the constant use of generative AI despite being a billion-dollar company. I am so very tired.
As we approach this year’s WrestleMania, currently three weeks and change away, the match card is in tatters and the hype is lukewarm. Holding the huge event in Vegas for the second year running with an inherently weaker product means fewer people are buying tickets as well, hopefully putting WWE in a position where it needs to respond to vocal criticism and strive to deliver something better. But will it, when the money is still rolling in? This is where its current advertising strategy and unforgivable breaks come into play.
Why Do WWE Raw and Smackdown Have So Many Ad Breaks?
During an average match on Raw or Smackdown, you are likely going to experience at least three ad breaks where the screen suddenly fades to black, and you’re brought back to the action with absolutely zero idea what has transpired in the past couple of minutes. This wouldn’t be as big a deal if most matches on its weekly programming weren’t less than ten minutes in total, but it adds up and makes keeping up with all things WWE a pretty frustrating experience.
I love wrestling. I adore how distinct larger-than-life characters and hugely talented athletes take part in choreographed spectacles of violence where melodrama is enhanced at each and every turn. It’s delightful, and precisely what drew me to the medium as a child so many years ago. I’m still a massive dork in adulthood, so here I am cheering on characters putting their bodies on the line for my entertainment.
But my tastes have also matured as I invested myself in new promotions like New Japan Pro Wrestling, Stardom, RevPro, and AEW. WWE, at least in its current incarnation, feels bizarrely embarrassed to be a wrestling company. In its usual two and a half hour shows, you would be lucky to see a full 40 minutes of the stuff in-between all the overlong promos, ad breaks, and other things being sold to you.
I’m not trying to start a clichéd tribalistic argument about WWE and AEW here. I’m just bummed out that one of these companies is pushing boundaries and the other is happy with its own mediocrity.
With the sheer amount of wrestling talent that WWE has on its roster — some of the best in the world call it home right now — it breaks my heart that its weekly television offerings are continually neutered and its current slate of pay-per-views are limited to just four matches. House shows aren’t really a common thing anymore, so the wrestling in its namesake has continued to feel like an afterthought. Triple H has said in recent years that WWE is in the business of telling stories, but the thing is, those aren’t any good either.
Is There A Chance Of WWE Learning From Its Mistakes?
Instead, I’d argue WWE is in the money-making business. All companies are, but few are so brazen. Since being acquired by TKO, WWE has become a soulless product in which the ringmat is covered in corporate logos (a recent one promoting the US Air Force following the outbreak of the Iran War was particularly grim), wrestlers sport logos on their gear, and every single interaction you can have with the huge company is geared towards making more cash.
It has come under frequent fire for its awful ticket prices, which are pricing out blue-collar fans in favour of those with far greater income, which has typically meant leaving its roots behind and globetrotting to places not known for being wrestling hubs, but for attracting wealthy tourists. What made WWE what it is in the first place is being phased out, and its identity is suffering for it at every turn.
Don’t even get me started with how the company is cosying up to the Trump Administration, with Chief Content Officer Triple H appearing at the White House on several occasions and wrestlers like El Grande Americano walking a fine line between cutesy Luchador parody and malicious racism. There’s also the tag-team pairing of Rhea Ripley and Iyo Sky who are very heavily hinted to be more than friends, so much so that their tag team partnership has generated a significant amount of fanfiction, but I doubt WWE is willing to platform a queer relationship when it has already stamped out every other facet of diversity it once stood for.
It says a lot that the most entertaining part of WWE programming in recent weeks is Danhausen — a strange devil man who hasn’t wrestled for a single second and spends his time walking around backstage putting curses on people. His latest victim? IshowSpeed.
As you can probably tell from all of my venting, the aggressive ad breaks currently spread across WWE programming are systemic of so many wider issues. This is a company that has lost sight of the art of wrestling and the wonderful stories it is capable of telling in favour of maximum profits in the form of expensive merchandise, tickets, and continuously lucrative sponsorships.
I’m worried they won’t bother listening to widespread criticism or try to change when it’s making record profits and know people will show up no matter what. I want to be excited about WrestleMania next month and I want to see incredible stars like Finn Balor and Gunther wrestle banger after banger, but I’m not sure WWE does.
WWE Raw
- Release Date
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January 11, 1993
- Network
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USA Network, Spike, The New TNN
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Chris Mordetzky
Chris Masters
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Maria Kanellis-Bennett
Maria
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