In my previous article about head shots galore, I covered some of the ways the WWE has worked to help their wrestlers maintain a healthy life after their matches and careers are over. While not every promotion has gone the route of the WWE, it’s a safe bet to say a majority of other promotions want to keep their talent safe. Sure, they may take risks, but they’re mostly calculated to remain as safe as possible while delivering the best performance possible.
To help ensure this, the WWE has reportedly banned five moves for various reasons. Three are for safety, another is because it might remind people of Chris Benoit’s suicide, and another because it resembled John Cena’s Attitude Adjustment. While the last one is questionable, the others are legitimate, if perhaps over-protective.
What’s interesting about these bans is that other moves that maybe considered just as dangerous are used in their place, like the DDT.
The DDT, in particular, is an interesting choice as “safe” considering how it left a former superstar injured, thanks mainly to Vince McMahon and Booker George Scott pushing for it to be done.
I saw this as a kid. In fact, Jake Roberts and Ricky Steamboat were two of my favorites. One thing I’d like to add just as an observation from back then is mats weren’t always present outside the rings at the time. Most likely, it was because most of the action was expected to be in the ring. However, after this, I saw mats regularly covering the concrete floor outside on Saturday Night’s Main Event and Superstars on Saturday morning.
It’s all about perspective
There was a time when these moves, like the DDT, were dominate finishers that left no doubt the competitor was defeated. Whether it was the good ‘ole heart punch, or Shawn Michaels’ Sweet Chin Music, we knew the match was over.
Now, it’s rare to see a pin following either of them or other classic finishers. They’re used more for setups or counters to get them out of trouble, and it’s taken a lot from the narrative matches are supposed to tell.
These added head shots and moves look exciting, but are they really necessary?
At one time, the focus of a match was on wrestling, not a series of high impact strikes like a “superkick party” that tends to break out. It was more believable because they built up to something. They didn’t get superkicked three times, get up and run around the ring like they hadn’t nearly had their brains kicked out.
As fans, we cry for realism in the matches, yet we’re given the most unrealistic series of events that more align with video games than not. To put it in perspective, Al Snow is an awesome trainer and a master of ring psychology as evidenced in this video where he breaks down the holds that aren’t used because they rob the referee of power and undermine the inevitability of the match.
Ring psychology is a lost art as it’s been largely taken away from wrestlers in the WWE as everything is scripted. It’s been like that for a while, but it feels more constricted now. It’s the main reason so many want to go to the Indies or AEW, because their creative freedom will be respected. Along with it comes the ability to better protect themselves.
Professional wrestling is a high energy, high impact entertainment that few industries can match. But knowing each wrestler could have their career or life ruined or ended due to a simple slip of a hold should put more focus on doing moves with less focus on the head or asking everyone to add high-flying moves to their arsenal.
Instead of accepting the “video game character come to life” or a “real superhero” angle, maybe it’s time we pay attention to how the WWE and others have substituted one kind of head trauma for another.
All moves are inherently dangerous and things can go wrong at any time like with Steve Austin or Darren Drozdov. But at some point, a sense of the realism we’ve been crying for will trickle into professional wrestling. Otherwise, what’s the point of tuning into a show when we can have the same, maybe even better match, in a video game?
