WWE : My Passion

I have decided to include this piece on WWE since it is very close to my heart. Many students just love to waste their time sitting hours in front of their laptops watching sitcoms,movies or cartoons, well I waste my times watching the WWE. If someone asks me ' What is the one thing that you are really good at? ', my answer is the 'WWE'. The electricity that the show generates is amazing. It is needless to say that I have been closely following the show and its superstars. I have watched almost everything from the day this company began in 1980's.

Hulk Hogan

The WWE has had great individuals that have defined particular eras of dominance. The first big wave of dominance came in 1980's with 'Hulkamania', where a superstar named 'Hulk Hogan' created a frenzy that made the crowds go wild in the arenas across United States. The power of Hulkamania seemed to catch with the pulse of the audience and therefore this brilliant brand lives to the day.

But, as they say change is inevitable, the early 1990's saw the rise of one of the most entertaining in-ring performers of all times, 'HBK' The Heart break Kid Shawn Micheals. This charismatic superstar had a following among its female fans that is unparalleled to this date. The original brand was based more on panache than frenzy. If the audience revered Hogan, they loved Micheals. Micheals every entry to the ring made girls crazy. Videos of girls kissing him, crying for him were common in his heyday. At one point of time, he had become a gay icon. The male fans respected him for his in-ring tenacity and will to win.

Shawn Micheals

He suffered more punishment than anyone and still had the guts to deliver the sweet chin music. Nicknamed the 'Show Stopper', he is the first ever grand slam champion. The brand 'HBK' had the charm to keep eyes glued to the television. The knack of making history each time he stepped into the ring meant that finally WWE had got one star that could make sure shot money for them. He was on his way to become the best ever when in 1997, he sustained a back injury that would eventually keep him out of action for three years. The dream of 'main-eventing' Wrestlemania vanished and Mr. Wrestlemania faded into oblivion. Although Micheals did come back, but he could never achieve the same superstardom. Fall of a star gave birth to another star. This star brought with him an attitude that eventually transformed the wrestling business. He gave birth to the 'Attitude era'. His name is Stone Cold Steve Austin. This superstar created a 'devil may care' image for himself. His beer-swelling, finger raising persona defined the path of his wrestling career. He had feuds with many great superstars who were as good as him, but the passion of Stone Cold made him the heartthrob of fans. He backed what he said, and did what he wanted. His feud with Vince McMahon, the chairman of the WWE, actually symbolised his image as one who does not care about the rules, does not care about his boss and still goes on to achieve great things. The idea was to incite the minds of the average rule following,regular working individual, and it worked. People found solace in Austin's style and slowly started to identify with him. He came to the ring with the biggest pops the industry had ever witnessed. During his three years from 1997-1999, Austin had created a brand for himself that still manages to bring goosebumps in the people sitting in the arena.

During the 'Austin Era', another star was trying to make the top brass of the WWE. His name was 'The Rock'.  This superstar made the wrestling business more of an entertainment show than a wrestling show. His phenomenal mic skills combined with his amazing catch phrases meant that the audience got involved into the storyline like never before. His wrestling talent and showmanship catapulted the show to a whole new level. The new superstars loved to have feuds with him as he created a new show 'Smackdown' under the banner of WWE. His 'bromobull' brand created an efficate face. The Rock carried the WWE on his shoulder until the late 2002 when he ventured into Hollywood to become a successful actor. Among his contemporaries, Triple H and Chris Jericho and Booker-T and Goldberg tried to make a name for themselves in the WWE. But, none of them were fortunate enough to have great storylines for themselves. Many considered that after the great one left the WWE for Hollywood, the WWE brand started to decline and story lines started to become redundant. Triple H formed the Evolution and tried hard to maintain the standards set by Rock and Stone Cold. To be fair to him, he did make an impression as the brash champion. The culmination point of the story line took a long time, but when it did, it found a bold and fearless animal called 'Batista'. He was previously a part of Evolution and his break away from the stable made a great story. He worked very hard for the company and worked a great deal in making WWE a global brand. His USP was his tough armour physique and his beastly attitude. He had an almost dream run in the WWE until he quit abruptly for reasons not known.

Just like Batista, Wrestlemania 2005 also made for another star who till today is running the company with various gigs and promoting the company to the best of his abilities. John Cena is clearly a force to be reckoned with as his career has been on a noticeable rise ever since it began. He started his days in the WWE as a eager fighter who was displaying "ruthless aggression." Later on, he started falling down in the rap/hip-hop trends and became a prominent rapper - sporting several sports jerseys such as basketball/football/baseball ones. Once he ascended to main-event, he slowly changed his style towards a simple kid-friendly one, sometimes displaying soldier/marine traits. At WrestleMania 21, John Cena defeated John Bradshaw Layfield to win his first WWE Championship and he has been dominating the WWE ever since. He is now 3-time WWE Champion after going through the likes of Jericho, Edge, Triple H and Shawn Michaels o state his place as the top guy in the company.

John Cena

Cena has proven time and time again that he has the willpower to overcome even the biggest of obstacles (and they don’t get much bigger than Khali). His 12-month title reign came to an abrupt end when he suffered a torn pectoral muscle during a match against Mr Kennedy and was ruled out of action for 7-12 months, however Cena made an unexpected return just 3 months after his injury appearing as the 30th man in the 2008 Royal Rumble and eventually went on to win it. In a short span of time promoted his rapper gig effectively. As a matter of fact, audience used to like it a lot. But, his decline started when WWE went PG. His audience became the 10 year olds and his aura diminished every coming Monday Night. The old fans felt that WWE had gone from bad to worse. The new bright coloured Tshirts and "never give up" phrase do not evoke as much interest. The burden Cena carries on his shoulder is huge. Unfortunately, WWE developmental roster isn't producing the superstar material and WWE is forced to go with Cena. But, after The Rock's return brand Cena has got a new life and if he stays long enough we might see Rock and Cena lock horns at WM 29. Cena is arguably the biggest draw in the WWE today, and whether loved or hated, he will be on top for a very long time.

The Undertaker

Speaking of Wrestlemania, a guy who has fought his heart out is Undertaker. He is defined by the Wrestlemania 19-0 streak. The phenom is one man who has seen almost every phase and weathered every storm. He is a living legend and a future hall of famer. The respect he gets from the fellow wrestlers and the fans is unparalleled in the annals of wrestling history. The dark side of the Undertaker make a great heel material. He had started out as an executioner in his early wrestling days. Later, he returned as the American bad-ass. The champion wrestler's longevity makes for a great case study.
The Deadman will likely be remembered as the innovator behind some of wrestling's most horrifying and gruesome match types such as Hell in a Cell, Casket and Buried Alive matches and with a jaw-dropping 17-0 WrestleMania winning streak - which includes victories over a who's who's list of Sports-Entertainment. Names include Kane, Triple H, Randy Orton, Ric Flair, The Big Show, Diesel and many more. He has undoubtedly earned the nickname "The Phenom" of World Wrestling Entertainment. The Undertaker's career accomplishments include six World Championships, multiple tag titles and even the Hardcore Championship! Despite constant rumors of his retirement, he continues to be a force to be reckoned with - both in and outside of the ring.