An episode of Smackdown from 2002. Specifically a tag match: Edge and the Big Valbowski vs. Kurt Angle and Lance Storm. I just kept thinking, where is this today? If this match were done in the past year or two I get that so much less would've been done. Perhaps it's just that I'm used to the tag matches as of late as opposed to back in 2002, but this match seemed so...unformulaic? I just didn't feel like the momentum was a continual predictable back and forth and then someone takes over, hits a finisher and the match is over. Hell, Edge wasn't even knocked off the apron when Valbowski got pinned.
Perhaps I just don't watch enough (new or old) but the match just seemed so individual to the guys and I don't remember seeing much of this today. I could be wrong. Anyone know what I mean?
An episode of Smackdown from 2002. Specifically a tag match: Edge and the Big Valbowski vs. Kurt Angle and Lance Storm. I just kept thinking, where is this today? If this match were done in the past year or two I get that so much less would've been done. Perhaps it's just that I'm used to the tag matches as of late as opposed to back in 2002, but this match seemed so...unformulaic? I just didn't feel like the momentum was a continual predictable back and forth and then someone takes over, hits a finisher and the match is over. Hell, Edge wasn't even knocked off the apron when Valbowski got pinned.
Perhaps I just don't watch enough (new or old) but the match just seemed so individual to the guys and I don't remember seeing much of this today. I could be wrong. Anyone know what I mean?
I'm not sure if this actually confused you or you just wanted to post that, but to put it into perspective: Watch Legacy (Dibiase and Rhodes) vs. Cryme Tyme, etc. You can almost boil the matches down to a similar structure everytime. Face goes on the offensive. Heel turns the tides. Numerous tags between heel partners and relatively simple double team moves, while face struggles to get the tag to his partner. Michael Cole praises the teamwork. Face finally tags out and his partner comes in with a burst of energy, knocking the heel's partner out of the ring and then hitting a succession of moves, etc. Then the finish depending on who they're pushing at the moment.
Perhaps this is narrow minded, but I swear it feels so predictable.
i havent seen the match u mentioned from 02 smackdown to compare, but it seems only you understand your self on the OP, how ever on your second one, i do see where you are getting at, and well, yes, thats what happens, and happens like 90 % of the time . Congratulations ?
The '02 match wasn't even that great. I suppose I'm just lamenting the fact that the storytelling within tag matches isn't what it used to be in my opinion.
That's because the effort they put into the tag division (as a whole) is at a minimum. I'm sure if they were really using the tag team division properly then they would start working more on match psychology.
Though right now, all they do is throw two teams together and hope for the best. When they start using tag teams correctly, the overall match quality will surely improve.
I see where you're coming from now, and it's a great point.
You also have to realize that tag team wrestling today is only paid attention to on a rather unreliable basis. Sometimes, it's a huge deal and it really feels special. Other times, it's Santino and Kozlov vs. The Uso's.
And the sad thing about that statement is, The Uso's could represent what tag team wrestling is supposed to be all about. But WWE is having other ideas.
That is very true. I feel like there are quite a few teams that have come about that could've meant something to a tag division. The Hart Dynasty, Legacy, Cryme Tyme, The Usos, A combination of Nexus guys, Straight Edge Society, etc. They could've had a tag division right there, but they give them so little opportunity to showcase any real talent or individuality in matches that we never really get the chance to care for these teams. Then something like Jeri-Show or DX happens and these teams that haven't really been that over with the general crowd get squashed and subsequently end up being jobbers for the next failed tag team experiment. I mean I wasn't the biggest fan of a team like the Dudleys or La Resistance when they were around, but at least they had some sort of build or notoriety with the crowd and I'd gladly take the way they were booked than the way some of the teams today have been wasted.
I see what your saying and I think WWE does this way too much. Not just in tag matches but in singles matches as well with the clothesline get up immediately repeated. I just wished WWE would figure it out and change it up a little bit and come up with some new formulas or let the wrestlers do something to surprise us because we think we're going to see the same damn match we always get. You know use that to their advantage and not piss us off in the process. Actually make us happy with the wrestling match.
Yeah WWE always seems to bring in tag teams and then disband them and release the wrestlers apart of them. When you look through out the last several years at how many tag teams there were not even including the makeshift tag teams. You had Deuce and Domino, Dudebusters more recently, Hart Dynasty more recently, Carlito and Primo, Miz and Morrison, Cryme Tyme, and on and on and on. Also FCW's tag division was or still is very good. There's the two luchador guys that tag together now Hunico and Epico. WWE was planning on making Darren Young a tag team with Percy Watson with the tag team gimmick they had in FCW but it seems like that won't happen now that WWE has thrown the Uso's by the way side and disbanded the Hart Dynasty.
It really looks like all three of the Uso's will be released within the next 6 months. One thing is if WWE puts you in a tag team right from the get go chances are your not going to go very far. There's only been one exception and that's been Miz and Morrison who were both singles wrestlers before that and Miz had to earn his way back when the group split up. Rhodes and DiBiase still are more well off than most teams but they still haven't broken out yet. The Dashing thing works well and is entertaining and all but Rhodes is replaceable but he'll hang onto his job. If Ted DiBiase Sr. ever does something again to get on Vince McMahons bad side though his sons job can easily be in jeopardy. Just because he is the Million Dollar Mans kid and is made out to be this wealthy good looking ex lackey of Orton doesn't mean his job is 100 percent secure. This isn't Triple H we're talking about here.
It really looks like all three of the Uso's will be released within the next 6 months. One thing is if WWE puts you in a tag team right from the get go chances are your not going to go very far. There's only been one exception and that's been Miz and Morrison who were both singles wrestlers before that and Miz had to earn his way back when the group split up. Rhodes and DiBiase still are more well off than most teams but they still haven't broken out yet. The Dashing thing works well and is entertaining and all but Rhodes is replaceable but he'll hang onto his job. If Ted DiBiase Sr. ever does something again to get on Vince McMahons bad side though his sons job can easily be in jeopardy. Just because he is the Million Dollar Mans kid and is made out to be this wealthy good looking ex lackey of Orton doesn't mean his job is 100 percent secure. This isn't Triple H we're talking about here.
When I trained to wrestle I got taught the basic match formula:
Face gets shine
Heel cuts off and beatdown
Face comeback and beatdown (repeated)
Face comeback and shine
Finish.
Standrad stuff really - but it all depends on how the actual match is.
You can hardly tell this on Raw (apart from this past Monday ) with their 3 minute matches where at least one person never gets tag in *cough* Gail Kim *cough*
I agree, the forumla to nowadays tag team matches suck, actually the whole tag team division sucks. I remember back in 2002 when I think they first introduced the new Tag Team titles, the final of the tournament to crown the new Champions was Kurt Angle and Chris Benoit vs. Edge and Rey Mysterio. If you compare that to Santino Marella and Vladimir Koslov vs. The Uso's which is the height of the Tag Team Division today you can see the massive difference in talent and how relevant the division is now, to as it was back then.
I understand how you are feeling. I just watched the 1.3.2000 episode of RAW and was shocked to see how different the tag scene was back then. It felt like almost half the show was devoted to tag matches and feuds (the other half was almost completely McMahon-Helmsley). Now we get the obligatory tag match per episode. It's so stale. If it was so good not that long ago why would the wwe be ignoring it so bad?
The matches themselves are the least of WWE tag teaming's problems... just take a look at the division, it's basically non-existent. We have two real teams and the rest are just thrown together. Kozlino are the champions. Shitty comedic relief instead of real tag teams
I laughed out loud at the Big Show knockout punch. Totally wasn't expecting it. At first I was like "Wait....Cryme Tyme in a match that didn't end with them getting squashed...? Oh."
And I guess maybe this is my lack of knowledge about the process, but what the hell caused tag matches to become so bland? Aside from the lack of credible teams obviously. Are the younger talents just being taught to stick to the easy narrative of a predictable tag match and rely more on booking to bring them credibility? It just seems like too much emphasis is put on match result. (Although that also might have to do with the fact that half of the matches on the card don't seem to serve an angle or feud) God only knows the last time I saw a lucky roll up pin win a match.
In relation to what the OP was saying, maybe the fact that Big Valboswki and Lance Storm were in the match, was what brought it down. If it had two other main eventers in it, it might have been exciting. But more to the point, the match dosen't seem that important so I doubt WWE would go all out on some random tag match.
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