When you Wish Upon a Frog (Book II of the Jim Henson at Disney saga)
- Thread starter Geekhis Khan
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Wow. Someone better guest post this for Geekhis, since this is incredible potential here!
Expanding on it, given that WWF is gonna implode should this be the case, the 90's could see a rise in several separate wrestling promotions (albeit more with a lot of regulations) across the nation, each tailored for a different region. Hell, like @CountDVB suggested, maybe mexican wrestling could expand into the US, perhaps Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre or Lucha Libre AAA World Wide.
Japanese Wrestling might also find an expansion in the US if the WWF collapses.
So basically a return to pre-WWE wrestling in terms of organization?
Maybe they could make an actual League out of it? Like the different regional franchises coming together for big events.
Basically the WWF/E but with a leading council instead of one big Boss McMahon
That too.
Basically.
I don't know, may switching between depending on the year?
Gosh, I hope so. I know very little about the Mexican wrestling scene but from what I've heard those guys take their position as role-models seriously. Even guys who play Sinistras/Heels are firm in what's beneath them.
And yes, I fully endorse the formation of a proper 'league' system for wrestling, particularly if it takes a cue from the European football model where the top couple of wrestlers from the Minor/Regional League are elevated to the Major League each season, replacing the bottom-performing wrestlers from the Majors.
Are you referring to the corruption prone FIFA model or some other football model?
You are aware that Professional Wrestling is as much entertainment as an athletic performance and any "performance record" wrestlers would have is more scripted than actual competition? AFAIK generally speaking winners and losers are predetermined before the match depending on if you're a face or heel and what tier you belong to, i.e. headliner, mid tier, or jobber. The higher the tier the more likely you are to win and faces are more likely to beat a heel unless the heel is a headliner and the face is mid tier or lower. Mind you this is coming from someone who hasn't seen wrestling in a while so other more informed individuals may know better.
Oh, certainly.
By 'performance record' I meant both the win/loss rate (largely scripted), but also the popularity of the wrestler with the public. Because the two are related, since popular wrestlers are going to win more, the wrestlers people like advance in the league while less popular wrestlers still get to compete in the ring even if they drop to a lower league bracket. It's only the genuinely unpopular wrestlers who leave the league entirely because they can't make it even at the Minor Leagues.
I think it also allows some wrestlers to voluntarily drop to a lower bracket if they feel the need to reduce their hours in the ring, or need a break from the media coverage, or just discover they really like the smaller venues. You can also have 'honest fights' where the result is unscripted and either chosen by the wrestlers between themselves or adlibbed in the ring (I understand there's a lot of talk in the ring between wrestlers to make the moves work). Naturally this would only work in the early parts of a season when the results of individual matches don't mean much so the wrestlers have the freedom to take an upset loss if they think it'd play to the crowd better.
This is all pie-in-the-sky thinking here but if the whole WWE system collapses you never know what might end up taking its place.
By 'performance record' I meant both the win/loss rate (largely scripted), but also the popularity of the wrestler with the public. Because the two are related, since popular wrestlers are going to win more, the wrestlers people like advance in the league while less popular wrestlers still get to compete in the ring even if they drop to a lower league bracket. It's only the genuinely unpopular wrestlers who leave the league entirely because they can't make it even at the Minor Leagues.
I think it also allows some wrestlers to voluntarily drop to a lower bracket if they feel the need to reduce their hours in the ring, or need a break from the media coverage, or just discover they really like the smaller venues. You can also have 'honest fights' where the result is unscripted and either chosen by the wrestlers between themselves or adlibbed in the ring (I understand there's a lot of talk in the ring between wrestlers to make the moves work). Naturally this would only work in the early parts of a season when the results of individual matches don't mean much so the wrestlers have the freedom to take an upset loss if they think it'd play to the crowd better.
This is all pie-in-the-sky thinking here but if the whole WWE system collapses you never know what might end up taking its place.
The dudes need their soap operas too.
On ideas that may not work out for Disney...
Bad ideas of Disney was being in a thing that would be very hot.
That doesn't surprise me at all - he's such an avid biker that he based the whole Biker Taker persona on his own hobby, back in the day, and bikers aren't usually known for their progressive views.
The likes of Eddie Guerrero and Rey Mysterio would surely stay in Mexico, with likely stints in Japan as well (as Eddie did IRL, but I can see him become a lucharesu pioneer as well, in the smaller, indie side of the Japanese industry); however, lucha libre and puroresu have their dark side as well, namely the cliquish behaviour of Mexican wrestling families, and the rampant hazing of trainees in Japan - there'll be shock waves from the implosion of the US industry over there, too.
As for what would happen in North America, wrestling would be nothing but hardcore federations (in the early 1990s, ECW was still a few years away, and the likes of the aforementioned Mick Foley hadn't become mainstream yet) and throwback promotions (the remains of the old NWA, that were by then far from the mainstream), with the Mexican and Japanese companies trying to expand into Canada and the US, but not very successfully, as wrestling's reputation would be in ruins.
Women's wrestling might experience somewhat of a renaissance though, since the old boys' club would've been nuked to oblivion, and the general public would be far more likely to place their trust in a bunch of women trying to rebuild what the Fabulous Moolah destroyed, than in a bunch of men trying to rebuild what Vince McMahon established.
For the same reason, joshi promotions from Japan would probably find it easier to expand in North America, especially if they try to capitalize on the popularity of Japanese pop culture overseas - again, the general public would be more inclined to like women dressed like J-Pop idols pulling off acrobatic lucha stunts and hard-hitting puro moves, than their male equivalents.
Recall that ABC hosted Wonderful World of Disney at one point and the Ewaaks and Droids cartoons. NBC has done several MGM/Hyperion produced shows to the point that the Hyperion Channel on basic cable is called "NBC's dumping ground" for all the struggling shows moved there.
Yep, they're seriously wealthy at least in hypothetical terms, though a major stock drop would eat a lot of that away. They were millionaires before the Disney deal. Still, between dividends and other investments the Hensons have plenty of liquid and solid assets as well. Recall that Heather used her share to found a small studio.
You have Belafonte doing the music, so yes, it will be seriously African-based. And as a fan of Malian Blues I'm totally down with Malian music being the core of it. Since there's that distant link to the American Blues it would feel both exotic and familiar to western audiences at the same time.
I'm sure he's seen it. They drove from NY to LA a few times iOTL, and you go right by it.
Not this Sir Robin. He'll face the Peril, even if it means almost certain temptation.
(image source Jim Henson - the Muppet Master on Tumbler)
As platy said, yes, someone do a guest post for this. I could see an emboldened 60 Minutes running an expose. McMahon will certainly try to sweep it all under the rug. Turner will try to purge the WCW. I was going with turner buying the ACW in 1990 like Unknown suggested a while back. I can see this open the doors for Luca Libre earlier, assuming they don't have a host of issues too. I'm curious about how this would change the industry in general. Please PM me for an article.
Recall that ABC hosted Wonderful World of Disney at one point and the Ewaaks and Droids cartoons. NBC has done several MGM/Hyperion produced shows to the point that the Hyperion Channel on basic cable is called "NBC's dumping ground" for all the struggling shows moved there.
Yep, they're seriously wealthy at least in hypothetical terms, though a major stock drop would eat a lot of that away. They were millionaires before the Disney deal. Still, between dividends and other investments the Hensons have plenty of liquid and solid assets as well. Recall that Heather used her share to found a small studio.
You have Belafonte doing the music, so yes, it will be seriously African-based. And as a fan of Malian Blues I'm totally down with Malian music being the core of it. Since there's that distant link to the American Blues it would feel both exotic and familiar to western audiences at the same time.
I'm sure he's seen it. They drove from NY to LA a few times iOTL, and you go right by it.
Not this Sir Robin. He'll face the Peril, even if it means almost certain temptation.
(image source Jim Henson - the Muppet Master on Tumbler)
As platy said, yes, someone do a guest post for this. I could see an emboldened 60 Minutes running an expose. McMahon will certainly try to sweep it all under the rug. Turner will try to purge the WCW. I was going with turner buying the ACW in 1990 like Unknown suggested a while back. I can see this open the doors for Luca Libre earlier, assuming they don't have a host of issues too. I'm curious about how this would change the industry in general. Please PM me for an article.
I wonder how would wrestling in Canada be influenced, AFAIK the Hart family was batshit insane as far as training methods went, but I never heard of any kind of McMahon-esque scummy behaviour coming from them. And maybe, Jesse Ventura could have his last laugh over Vince, and establish his own unionized promotion - being based in Minnesota, he's basically next door to western Canada anyway.
I see. Thank you!
Speaking of Hyperion's NBC ties, is The Hyperion Channel going to be the a way to give The Golden Palace more than one season? Not saying I expect that at this rate, but I'm also not not saying that.
Speaking of the Harts.
Wrestling imploding also means that Owen won't die right? Or at least his death will probably be butterflied since it was a random accident and those are the first to go.
BTW it might sound morbid, but I wouldn't mind someone dying before their time and seeing how that changes those around them. Like the only person I remember dying instead of surviving is MJ dying at 27.
It's possible. IOTL, CBS was ready to renew The Golden Palace for a second seasonal until literally the last minute. Even so, I can't imagine it lasting much longer than another two or three seasons, considering Estelle Getty's declining health.
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