Bonekeeper E
Yes, I know this is somewhat a majority WWE forum, but I thought I'd bring this up. Most of the wrestlers that come from the indies are given a bit extreme debuts.
Examples:
Paul London's (Ring of Honor and TNA) first WWE match after leaving Ring of Honor was jobbing to Brock Lesntar
Brian Kendrick's (who wrestled in Japan, TNA, RoH and various indy promotions) television debut was streaking by the suggestion of former WWE star, Sean O' Haire.
MVP's (who is a household name in Full Impact Pro, Ring of Honor and IWA Mid South) debut was jobbing to Kane
and then there are the horrible storylines of a winning streak or a seemingly unstoppable heel which includes CM Punk (another former RoH/TNA superstar with a limited moveset), Mr. Kennedy and Marquis Cor Von (or better known as TNA's "Alpha Male" Monty Brown).
All these wrestlers were in the indies and WWE never quite brings up that fact. Nor do most indy wrestlers start off as a face with a decent winning streak, and above everything else, most of their moves are limited.
your thoughts?
Well let's see.
Punk, Kennedy, and Cor Von are being pushed somewhat because they're popular with the fans. Doesn't matter that Punk and Cor Von have limited in-ring abilities (although Punk's talents are a bit more technical oriented to begin with). Most of the time, the writers can recognize when someone is a draw factor, and reward it with story- and match-time. Kennedy, like him or not, is very good at what he does, and gets fans excited.
Kendrick and London are good at this as well, but i think you'll agree that WWE has pretty much always been geared towards bigger, badder, tougher characters. The lighter wrestlers are fun to watch, but they aren't what the common mindset thinks of as the stereotypical wrestler. For that you want Rock and Michaels types...charismatic, showy, in-your-face heroes and villains.
Something else about indy wrestlers. They're character move sets are limited because..........they're not that good. There's a reason why alot of indy talent is in the indy leagues. They're not good enough to make it in the few major promotions. Don't get me wrong, some of them are pretty talented, but it takes time to get noticed, and WWE/TNA/New Japan only have so much room for people on their rosters. Granted, some of the people they have aren't very good either, but it's not just about one person looking good in the ring. You also have to be good enough to not kill your opponent. That's why i disagree with some of the people that are around in the pros. Mark Henry, for one, is a danger to himself and others. He simply doesn't have the control to be where he is. I seen countless matches with him where someone, usually the opponent, barely gets away with a botched move because of Henry's inability to be exact in his movements. Sorry, but fat men shouldn't be in pro wrestling.
One last thing about character debuts. It takes time for fans to get into a new character enough for him to be a face usually. It is much easier to show up out of nowhere and slide into a heel role opposite an established face, or even other heels. The fans accept the character faster and easier, and it makes more sense in a story perspective.
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