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WWE Pushing People Based on Aesthetics

7K views 71 replies 46 participants last post by  TheFackingCrow 
#1 ·
For decades, Vince McMahon (as well as Kevin Dunn) have been pushing WWE Superstars based on looks over talent which is why people like John Cena, Randy Orton, Roman Reigns, Big Show, Kane, Braun Strowman, Kelly Kelly, Brie & Nikki Bella, Stacy Keibler, Torrie Wilson and Eva Marie, among others are being pushed over more talented wrestlers such as Daniel Bryan, Cesaro, Neville, Sasha Banks, Mickie James and Cody Rhodes, among others.

IYO, do you think that Hulk Hogan and Sable (Dunn was said to be a huge fan of hers, according to Jim Cornette) were partly responsible for the aesthetic look in the WWE?
 
#2 ·
Wrestling industry has always been looks based, Vince didn't invent that; he might have changed what the standards were but not that there were standards. Sable getting hugely over despite having no discernible talent definitely led to the diva era but I don't know that Hogan's look was that influential. Lots of guys were roided out of control in Hogan's era but since guys have largely been getting smaller and more talented in every subsequent era.
 
#28 · (Edited)
That's not true by any means. For decades wrestling was about in ring talent and legitimacy more than looks, a lot of the guys pre-80's weren't that big. Superstar Billy Graham was a guy at the time that was considered the exception and not the rule. He was one of the first "body builder" type guys and during a time where guys held the belt for forever, he didn't hold onto it that long and Backlund ended up taking the title off him. The Hogan steroid era was what kicked off the idea that its all about looks and looks alone, which coincides with Vince Jr taking over the WWF at the time. However, there are plenty of draws that didn't have nearly half the physique that the guys in the WWF had at the time like Ric Flair, Dusty Rhodes , Harley Race and so on. Even guys who had great looks didn't sniff a title like Steamboat(in the WWF) , Rick Rude ,

Sable got over huge because guys wanted to sleep with her, I don't see how her getting over had anything to do with the conversation at hand here. She wrestled long after she got over and she only did that because she was getting paid a lot of money to do nothing.

Looks matter, as much as most of the IWC deny it and wish it weren't so most people don't give a shit about two vanilla looking dorks trading wrist looks. People a drawn to "stars".
Oh stop it. You're trying to take "shots" at the "IWC darlings" but are making an ass out of yourself. There's no one way to get over or to be loved by the fans. There's no formula, there's no guidebook on how to be successful and this has been proven for decades. Dusty Rhodes was one of the most popular guys ever in wrestling and he looked awful. Austin himself will tell you he didn't have the best physique but he is one of the most popular wrestlers ever and his look was hardly the main reason for it either.

You can look up and down throughout the years and you'll see a large variety of guys who got over and were draws that looked completely different from the last guy. To suggest that fans don't want to see "indy darlings" because you think there's only one way to be a "star", is absurd and incredibly ignorant. Using your logic, Braun Strowman should never relinquish the title because of his look, but hardly anyone gives a damn about the guy. These "great look" guys are a dime and dozen who have failed like Lex Luger, Diesel , Ahmed Johnson and so on Hell, even Buff Bagwell was going to be the top guy for the rebooted WCW. People like all types of wrestlers , regardless of shape the notion that you have to look a certain way, be a certain height has proven to be wrong for decades but guys like you who have only bothered to watch WWF think that the only type of wrestler who matteres is the hulking brutes , its simply false.
 
#68 ·
And Rhodes clearly has a fantastic look. The issues with his booking were far more personal then his face or body.
I'm still confused about Cody's carreer. He had the heritage, the looks, the mic and in-ring skills.
Never understood what the issue was..
 
#4 ·
For decades, Vince McMahon (as well as Kevin Dunn) have been pushing WWE Superstars based on looks over talent which is why people like John Cena, Randy Orton, Roman Reigns, Big Show, Kane, Braun Strowman, Kelly Kelly, Brie & Nikki Bella, Stacy Keibler, Torrie Wilson and Eva Marie, among others are being pushed over more talented wrestlers such as Daniel Bryan, Cesaro, Neville, Sasha Banks, Mickie James and Cody Rhodes, among others.

IYO, do you think that Hulk Hogan and Sable (Dunn was said to be a huge fan of hers, according to Jim Cornette) were partly responsible for the aesthetic look in the WWE?

:jericho2
 
#5 · (Edited)
I don't think Hogan is responsible for that because that would imply he didn't have talent. Hogan was very talented, in the sense that he could do so little and make it mean so much.

Sable, on the other hand, you can say is completely responsible because her entire existence and hiring in WWF was based on her look. And her success changed the way WWF presented women's wrestling (or women, in general) for the better part of 20 years. And while we had moments where actual talent in the women's division belonged to women who also had the right look, their look was always more important. We saw titles change hands in evening gown contests. We had Johnny Ace scouting women talent out of swimsuit magazines. None of that existed before Sable. Once she arrived, what you did no longer mattered. What mattered was how you looked while doing it, not from a mechanical standpoint but from a cosmetic standpoint.


Also, SMH @ Big Show, Cena, Orton & Kane not being talented. The fuck is your idea of talent?
 
#16 ·
For decades, Vince McMahon (as well as Kevin Dunn) have been pushing WWE Superstars based on looks over talent which is why people like John Cena, Randy Orton, Roman Reigns, Big Show, Kane, Braun Strowman, Kelly Kelly, Brie & Nikki Bella, Stacy Keibler, Torrie Wilson and Eva Marie, among others are being pushed over more talented wrestlers such as Daniel Bryan, Cesaro, Neville, Sasha Banks, Mickie James and Cody Rhodes, among others.

IYO, do you think that Hulk Hogan and Sable (Dunn was said to be a huge fan of hers, according to Jim Cornette) were partly responsible for the aesthetic look in the WWE?
 
#17 ·
Because you can't sell skill on a poster, cup, shirt, toy. Looking like a bad ass, looking like a relatable face, looking like the girl next door, and looking like the head cheerleader are easy to convey to people unfamiliar with the program.

With a singular picture how do you sell that Daniel Bryan worked his entire life to follow his dream of wrestling. With a singular picture how do you sell that Cesaro is one of the most crisp workers ever? You can't. But what you can sell is Cesaro is some fairly handsome spy. What you can sell is Alexa looks like a good fuck or Bayley looks like a stereotypical nice girl. Aesthetics sell they always will sell. Aesthetics sell to hardcore fans too. Would KO be so beloved if he didn't have an unconventional body. Would hardcore fans accept Sami as a white meat babyface if he looked like Reigns or Rusev? Looks matter in fiction the same way they do in real life.
 
#20 ·
Because the aesthetics of a superstar matters. It's not that hard to figure out. It's about marketability. They want people who are gonna stick out like a sore thumb in a crowd of non-wrestling fans. It's why Daniel Bryan grew out a giant ass beard. It's why Seth Rollins dyed his hair blonde. And if you don't have that look that stands out, you better charisma and a presence to the moon, otherwise you're going absolutely nowhere in the WWE. (*cough*CodyRhodes*cough*)
 
#22 ·
In ring ability has never been the number one priority for wrestling. I don't see why this is shocking anybody in 2016.

In the long run you can be great in a ring and never draw a dime and you can suck, but look good or have other qualities that aren't technical skill and draw ridiculous amounts of money

In ring skill is like fourth on the list of most important things in wrestling.

Charisma
Look
Mic Skill
Whether the Promoter/booker likes you
In ring ability

that's pretty much the hierarchy. If the booker/promoter likes you can be moved up in the list, but suffice it to say if you have the other three then most promoters/bookers will like you.
 
#24 · (Edited)
The common perception for looks is that a wrestler with a great look, has a marketable look and gives off a larger than life vibe about them. Guys like Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage, and Ultimate Warrior were guys who had very marketable looks and were larger than life to fans. They were like superheros, and since they became big stars in wrestling, the formula works. Same goes for the women too. Sable was pretty talentless in all departments, but she was very beautiful to many wrestling fans, and used to wear those sexy catsuits too. She had sex appeal so she had a marketable look, and became a big star during the Attitude Era.

Personally, i'm not against pushing wrestlers with great looks but it all depends really. I could get behind a guy more easily if they were talented.
 
#27 ·
To be fair, as someone else said, even guys that one would say are not pushed or considered by WWE higher ups have "the look". Cesaro may not look like women's wet dream, but he sure as hell look like a pro-wrestler; Balor may be small, but he is definitely in perfect shape and probably IS one of the women's wet dream of the roster. Even Owens has "the look", who happens to appeal to those people who like to see variety and unconventional wrestlers on the top card.

The real issue is how WWE uses those wrestlers and looks, AKA "you're big and cute, you must be our poster boy", even if that implies a big, "savage" looking Samoan covered in tattoos and wearing black swat gear trying to fill the role of the guy who made Fruity Pebbles adverts.
 
#30 ·
First: Kevin Dunn doesn't push people. He may have some influence, but that's just speculation. He is responsible for the stale editing we see on WWE shows.
Second: Looks and aesthetich aren't the same. Big Show has a look and isn't aesthetic.
Third: Wrestlers with better looks usually connect better with the audience. If they're good in the ring they're good to go. If they're not, they'll feud with a better in ring wrestler to hide their flaws. Look is part of the package and can't be masked, bad ring skills can both be masked and improved.
 
#31 ·
Cena was pushed for his looks and not his talent. :mj4

Dude is legitimately one of the most talented all-rounders to ever lace up a pair of wrestling boots. His debut gimmick was one of the hottest things in wrestling and his mic work has always been top notch. I can't take your post seriously after reading that.
 
#33 ·
It is true that the WWE leaned on looks and charisma in the previous era, but they have become a little more smark-friendly these days. Women's revolution. AJ Styles and Kevin Owens having lengthy title runs. Cruiserweights. It isn't perfect, but they have made some changes.
 
#36 ·
Daniel Bryan headlined and won the WWE World Title at Wrestlemania. Sasha Banks is, somewhat annoyingly, being pushed to the moon at the moment. Cesaro has the "traditional" look of a star, and to say that Cody Rhodes isn't a good looking guy is just factually incorrect.
 
#37 ·
I think appearance does matter to the casual market.

Someone like Kevin Owens, who any educated wrestling fan would respect heavily for his talent and mic skills, is just seen as "your fat uncle on the couch" to a casual viewer.

A great example of this is the ratings, if you take a look at the ratings when Reigns was champion, they were alot higher than now, with Owens as a champion, atleast until Goldberg came back. :p
 
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