Guys I think it might be time to move on… for all of us who got to witness the height that was the attitude era, who grew up watching as a fan during the rise of the late eighties and then saw the Monday Night Wars evolve into one of the greatest eras in wrestling history, it might be time to move on.
As a still casual wrestling fan, I don’t have nearly the enthusiasm about the product I once did and few do. The energy and excitement that surrounded the Attitude Era, whether you were solely a WWE fan or viewed WCW and ECW, is tough to regain. During the late eighties it was easy. If you grew up as a kid you were hooked by the sheer excitement and action itself. You didn’t know whether it was fake or real and you didn’t care. It was simple, it was good versus evil in a battle of competition with a few interviews to tell you exactly what each guy was about. It was pure and simple and you watched for a reason the action and drama. And it just happen to take place during an era that produced the greatest WrestleMania of all time, WrestleMania 3. And if you didn’t grow up watching that era just ask someone who did, they’ll tell you.
The mid ninties had a period probably described as a lull. The ratings had gone down, older talent moved to WCW and lets face it our generation was growing up and the concepts that worked and hooked us as kids weren’t as effective as they once were. So change was inevitable. Credit it to ECW, WWF/WWE whoever you will, the Attitude Era reshaped wrestling into what it has become today, well the good part anyways. All that beer swilling, middle finger giving, kendo stick hitting, hot diva watching, kick your boss in the gut action, rejuvenated an entire wrestling community and ushered in a new one to see an unprecedented rise in wrestling lore.
We got to see some of the most compelling tv shows and biggest stars of all time. We saw the Rock evolve from a streamer wearing doofus (keeping it clean…PG rating) into one of the most entertaining wrestlers of all time. We witnessed the being that was the RingMaster, come from absolutely nothing more than a bad haircut and a gold belt, into one of the most revolutionary characters in wrestling history. The Rock and Stone Cold basically captured a generation of fans. Their rivalry was the foreground for the entire Attitude Era. It’s difficult not to go into detail about all the great aspects of this era but a few of the focal points were we got to see the character of the Undertaker evolve, the formation of some of the greatest stables in wrestling history, including the Ministry of Darkness, The Corperation and of course Degeneration X. We witnessed new and exciting concepts like the Hell in a Cell match and the amazing Tables Ladders and Chairs match.
Along with this we got to see some of the most talented stars in the business come into their own. Not only did we see some of the most exciting and action packed television each and every week among the top stars, but we saw a card full of talented performers make the show high quality from top to bottom, the best entertainment it could be. We saw the rise of men like Edge and Christian, Matt and Jeff Hardy. We were able to see guys such as (like it or not) Chris Benoit. We were fortunate enough to watch the late Eddie Guerrero, Chris Jericho and Kurt Angle make names for themselves. This was a time where WCW was still putting on entertaining TV with the names of the past, the WWE was devloping the stars of the future and putting on some of the best wrestling we have seen in the past decade. A main event tier featuring the likes of The Undertaker, Stone Cold, The Rock, DX and Kurt Angle, with an undercard of The Hardys, Edge, Christian, Benoit, Guerrero and Mysterio and it’s easy to see why that time in wrestling was so great.
The Attitude Era had it’s time and eventually flickered out. The shock value and extreme matches gradually lost their luster and the major stars like Rock and Austin left for one reason or another and over time the ratings and the quality of the show suffered. New stars were brought in and the while the product remained good overall, the magic that was created in the late ninties and early 00 was slowly fading. You would see instances of creative trying to bring back a star or gimmick to recapture past glory but it wasn’t quite the same. With the uncertain future it’s really a mystery what will become. There have been a lot of hits and misses along the way but we all got to witness history time and time again. Whether this next break lasts a week or a year, I will always be a wrestling fan on one level or another. I love the product, the creativity, the energy, chemistry, drama, action and everything about the industry that makes it great, but for now, maybe it’s to move on….
