Shining a Spotlight 9.10.09: Target ROH

Posted by Michael Weyer on 09.10.2009

My own thoughts on the departures of two of ROH's biggest stars and how the company can go on after this despite the fact it's on WWE's radar.

　

　
The big topic for the IWC this week has been the situation with Nigel McGuiness and Bryan Danielson both leaving ROH for WWE. I'm not the first to discuss it in a column this week but I felt like putting out my own feelings. Not just on them leaving and how it effects ROH but how ROH itself now finds itself being pushed further to the bigger leagues of wrestling…and how it may change the company for good.
　



Nigel and the Dragon

The big surprise to many is the fact that both men are choosing to go to WWE. Danielson has been made offers by the company, as well as TNA, before but has always resisted. It looked like both he and McGuiness had the same mentality a lot of TNA guys do, that it's better to be the big fish in the small pond. So for both guys to decide at the same time to make such a major change to their careers is a huge surprise although it really shouldn't be.

The point of wrestling is to make money. It's why they get into this in the first place and why they continue through injury and hardship and all of that. Yes, Danielson is obviously a guy who loves what he does but he also wants to leave a real legacy for fans and the fact is that sticking only with a smaller promotion isn't the way to do it. With McGuiness, the man may be recognizing that his past injuries may soon catch up with him and may want to make more of a mark (and cash) as he can before it's too late.

Both men will face challenges in WWE for sure. The biggest is that they need to adjust their styles for a different company that puts a bit more emphasis on presentation than ring style. I highly suspect that seeing how CM Punk has managed to succeed as a main-eventer in WWE was a key part in the decisions of both men to make the jump. Punk has also had to adjust his style but his charisma has enabled him at last to break through and get runs with the title belt and engage in some pretty good matches as well. Both men will no doubt want to follow in those footsteps and have a good shot at doing so.

They bring their own unique styles and touches. McGuiness will probably emphasize being a power wrestler with his strength and size, a brawler type but with the technical touches to enhance his fights. Danielson, of course, is phenomenal in the ring and even slowed down, he'll be amazing to WWE fans. The idea of these two in Money in the Bank is already exciting and of course, the inevitable Danielson/Punk matchup is worth a few thousand PPV buys. Better is that both men are good on the mic as well and can hold the attention of fans that way, especially McGuiness. I think WWE will be smart as they are with Punk, recognizing these are two huge stars with ROH and don't need the extra trappings to get them over. However it works out, WWE has nabbed two major talents and that naturally has rocked ROH and its fans to the core.
　



The ROH Effect
　
Needless to say, the departure of both men has blown away a lot of ROH fans. The reactions range from "will miss them but ok" to "ROH IS DOOOOOOMED!!!!" More than a few guys have compared this to the Radicals leaving WCW in 2000 but I'm not sure if that's really a fair assessment since the structure of ROH is much different than WCW or even ECW ever was.

The thing with the Radicals was that WCW was refusing to let fresh talent get main event spots. I know it's been beaten into the ground by various DVDs and books but the fact remains that a key reason behind the company's fall from the top was that (with the exception of Goldberg), virtually none of the incredible talent they had under contract were getting any push as they kept relying on Hall, Nash, Savage, Hogan etc all the time. One would think the departure of those four would be a wakeup call but it was too little, too late for the company. ECW had much the same problem with keeping talent but that was more due to lack of payment.

ROH, on the other hand, has built itself on its ability to create some new talent. Let's not forget, they've faced this challenge before when Samoa Joe and then Punk both left and have managed to handle it well by elevating McGuiness big time and continuing to grab good indy talent. The TV show has helped them out in spreading their name around and should help them get more guys. That puts them a notch above TNA which (as both I and others have mentioned) doesn't seem interested in creating new talent. When they're not grabbing ex-WWE guys for main event pushes, they're relying on the same guys who've been around since TNA started. ROH, however, seems ready for something like this and I'm confident they can survive the defection of two stars on its own.

I've written before that the key difference between TNA and ROH is in how they see themselves. From the very start, TNA was meant to be the second big promotion, the alternative to WWE. They have done well there with a big cable deal, monthly PPVs, DVDs in mainstream stores and more. Of course, some of the people in charge are truly deluded to think they're on the same level as WWE but that's an entirely different argument. ROH, on the other hand, has recognized their place as a smaller promotion not able to compete on the same level as WWE and doesn't try. They haven't tried spreading themselves out but cater to the same fan base that's kept them going so long and done so well. They may have learned lessons from ECW in that regard.

It's been mentioned before but one of the main reasons ECW fell apart was that Paul Heyman just wasn't the businessman the company needed to keep it going. He was good but far better at the creative stuff than the money and, more importantly, working with others. His battles with TNN are legendary as Heyman couldn't grasp the fact that what appealed to a narrow part of the fan base wouldn't on a national level and refused to change ECW or allow others to consul him. ROH, for the most part, has been able to handle those changes with their own TV deal and making allowances for how a TV show differs from a regular card. They also have been able to sustain themselves well with arena shows and tours so PPVs aren't the lifeblood of the company like it was with ECW and TNA.


　

Internal and External Trials
　
However, ignoring any possible damage to ROH is naive. Indeed, the first thought I had upon hearing of these two leaving was to wonder if things behind the scenes at the company are worse than people think. The recession has hit the indies harder than WWE or TNA as folks are being more careful with their money than throwing it on a wrestling show. There's still concerns of how the content of ROH has shifted a bit since Gabe Sapolsky left. It hasn't fallen apart with Russo-like antics to be sure but there are worries it may not be as good building up things as it was under Gabe. Indeed, the quality of the last several ROH shows has been meeting mixed reactions and since this company lives off the fan's opinions, this could be rough for the company in the future.

But more troubling is that fact that by snatching up two of ROH's major stars, with one of their biggest past ones in the main event, WWE is sending a message: They know ROH is out there and they're watching them closely. Before this, the company has been too under the radar and, frankly, small-time for WWE to bother acknowledging. But now, WWE recognizes how this company is growing and no doubt are out to grab as much as they can.

Vince McMahon has always had this problem with competition. On the one hand, the man has openly acknowledged he's at his best when dealing with it, that he was happiest taking the fight to WCW and misses that sense of battle and drive. On the other hand, Vince continues to be obsessed with making WWE the only game in town and will do most anything in order to make that happen. Up until now, he's been willing to let ROH slide but this shows he's willing to do some poaching and we all know how devastating those can be.

That leads to a key thing, which is how ROH can respond to the raids. The major reason the AWA fell apart was Verne Gagne's refusal to acknowledge that guys didn't consider his company the elite organization it once was but were just using it as a stepping stone to WWF (or WCW in rare cases) and thus didn't hold guys to contracts. ECW responded to WCW swiping Benoit, Malenko and Guerrero by introducing the hot luchadore action and building up Dreamer and Raven. ROH needs to continue to build guys up as there's still a lot of indy talent out there who are overlooked by both WWE and TNA and ROH can use that to continue to thrive.

It may be smart for ROH to do what Heyman did back in ‘96 and try and forge a working relationship with WWE. Not be their farm league by any means but do get some cash and co-promotion. Indeed, it's arguable that without the support WWF gave them, ECW might not have survived the Mass Transit incident and certainly wouldn't have gotten the first "Barely Legal" PPV. The reason that deal fell through was Heyman's temperament but the ROH guys may have cooler heads and smart enough to work this deal to their advantage. The fact is, the majority of mainstream fans still have little to no idea what ROH is about and they can use the publicity and attention to get more people hooked onto them. That was key before but it's downright vital now.




The Fan Reaction

It's no secret that ROH can be a polarizing topic for wrestling fans in the IWC. For every person who raves on it, you get someone else saying they're overrated and doomed to fail. The departure of McGuiness and Danielson has just fed the fire of that debate and I'm sure this column may start a mini-flame war between guys (at least try to keep it somewhat civil). The fan reaction has always been a big part of ROH's development but those same fans who champion the company have to be careful they don't go too far.

I've written before of how ECW fans tend to lionize the company a bit much, acting like it did nothing wrong and was always superior to the big two. The truth is that ECW was always home to some of the same insanity as the big two and the matches, quite frankly, often relied too much on the easy blood and violence. There's also the fact that Heyman was a genius at managing to make these somewhat poor wrestlers look like a million bucks in the ring. ROH fans tend to do the same a bit, treating the company as perfection and ignoring how (especially lately), they can be home to some poor angles and bad skits like Delirious' training segments. The passion of the fans is good but as ECW showed, can also be a bit fickle.

As for the anti-ROH brigade, acting like the company is on its last legs is a bit of a leap. I've been down on TNA for a couple of years but they still manage to continue despite their creative difficulties. ROH may not have the same resources but they've been able to keep top-notch action with a loyal fan base and I think folks who declare it's "over" just because they lose two guys aren't the ROH loyalists they say they are. Hell, the majority of ECW fans were still there right up until the last show and kept the memory alive for years afterward. More than anything, keeping the fans happy with great stars and action can be the true key to ROH overcoming this loss and continuing.



Summation

There is a lot to worry about with Danielson and McGuiness leaving, from their futures in WWE to whether this means ROH is in trouble behind the scenes. But the company has managed to buck the odds and carve out its niche in the wrestling landscape over the last seven years and it doesn't look like it'll be hit too hard by this. They still have the potential to develop new stars and keep to their loyal fans who keep things going. There is the worry of how WWE might start doing more poaching but then, that's the risk the company took when they started to grow. For those who think the end is nigh, that's a bit too early yet. It's a tough challenge but then, that's what ROH is all about, getting into the fight and this is one fight many a wrestling fan will want to watch.


For this week, the spotlight is off.