Hierarchy of Professional Wrestling

**Vastardikai** · 02-12-2018, 11:56 PM

There is a Hierarchy of Professional Wrestling, and the match is on the bottom of it.

The Hierarchy goes like this:

Promotion: This is where wrestlers, with their Gimmicks, have Angles, complete with Promos, that lead to Matches. It's where everything comes together, and as such is the top of the Hierarchy
Gimmick: By Gimmick, I mean a Wrestler with a personality that makes you want to root for or makes you want to see lose. These are the folks who you put in the Angles, where the Cut the Promos and Have the Matches.
Angle: This is a story based around 2 Gimmicks that have a gripe over something. Be it a Title, a Woman, Pride, whatever.
Promo: This explains why the two people are fighting, hypes up the person, whatever. I put it above the Match because if you don't know who Jackoff McKickpad and Wanker McFlipmeister are, you have no idea why they are fighting and why you should care.
Match: While you can have this without any of the above, if it exists in a vacuum, it could be the best match anyone has ever seen, but it doesn't matter.

I get the vibe that most of Indy-dom, be it by necessity or by being marks, have it more like...

Promotions
Matches
Promos
Angles
Gimmicks

Thoughts? Comments? Complaints? Laughing at me for be a Nerd?

**Destor** · 02-13-2018, 12:22 AM

Depends on the audience and the booker.

**Tom Guycott** · 02-13-2018, 12:55 AM

And sometimes the talent, one way or another.

For example, it can be argued in the case of Hulk Hogan at the height of Hulkamania, the Gimmick was bigger than the promotion. Not arguing if he was the cause or whatnot, just saying his pop-culture crossover appeal became the vehicle to help grow the WWF to become national, not the other way around, so there, Gimmick would be 1.

Meanwhile, you have something like Zayn v. Nakamura on Shinsuke's NXT in-ring debut. There was very little build, no angle whatsoever, a single 10 second canned promo for Shinsuke's reveal, and very little* gimmick on either side. The match was able to speak for itself, and it didn't need anything else thrown in. It was allowed to be its own thing and happen under its own merits.

*Nakamura did his thing he was already doing, and Zayn's whole schtick was that he "went around the world looking for competition". There were no attainable stakes or championships or getting a woman for 30 days or anything else attached to this match.

**Mr. Nerfect** · 02-13-2018, 06:07 PM

Not sure I'm completely with you on this. Thanks for promoting thoughtful discussion though.

My biggest problem with the indies is that kayfabe, psychology and card structure are rarely present. No one is trying to convince you there's a purpose behind what they're doing, and every match is the same, and consequently there is no flow to a show. I heard really good things about an EVOLVE show. It may have been 47 or something. The main event was Chris Hero vs. Zack Sabre, Jr. or something. I'm not entirely sure, because I didn't make it in that far. I paid money to order it, and the first three matches were all almost exactly the same. SoCal Val managed a bunch of guys who basically kicked out of everything and I kept asking myself "How am I meant to care about this?". I ended up switching it off and never went back. That's equivalent to me walking out.

I don't think matches necessarily need to be low. They are the canvas with which you paint your story. It's just that without kayfabe and psychology, and without working your gimmick, there's just no meat on the bones. There's no story to tell. It's like everybody is working a story where each page begins with "And then Johnny Peters did this move...".

I think the indies need to have bookers/promoters who take the reigns a bit and make sure that everybody is contributing to an entire show, and now just their own segment. It's kind of weird, because all the talent act like wrestling is a socialist compound now -- making sure everybody gets their shit and everybody wins a belt -- but ironically it's the most selfish the business has ever been. No one accepts that their place might be on the bottom making top guys look like top guys so everyone can make money.

02-12-2018, 11:56 PM	#1
Vastardikai Taller than Adam Cole Posts: 10,873	Hierarchy of Professional Wrestling There is a Hierarchy of Professional Wrestling, and the match is on the bottom of it. The Hierarchy goes like this: Promotion: This is where wrestlers, with their Gimmicks, have Angles, complete with Promos, that lead to Matches. It's where everything comes together, and as such is the top of the Hierarchy Gimmick: By Gimmick, I mean a Wrestler with a personality that makes you want to root for or makes you want to see lose. These are the folks who you put in the Angles, where the Cut the Promos and Have the Matches. Angle: This is a story based around 2 Gimmicks that have a gripe over something. Be it a Title, a Woman, Pride, whatever. Promo: This explains why the two people are fighting, hypes up the person, whatever. I put it above the Match because if you don't know who Jackoff McKickpad and Wanker McFlipmeister are, you have no idea why they are fighting and why you should care. Match: While you can have this without any of the above, if it exists in a vacuum, it could be the best match anyone has ever seen, but it doesn't matter. I get the vibe that most of Indy-dom, be it by necessity or by being marks, have it more like... Promotions Matches Promos Angles Gimmicks Thoughts? Comments? Complaints? Laughing at me for be a Nerd? = "KARA-TAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!" Question Mark.

02-13-2018, 12:22 AM	#2
Destor I am the cheese Posts: 51,009	Depends on the audience and the booker.

02-13-2018, 12:55 AM	#3
Tom Guycott I W C DEEZ NUTZ! Posts: 10,136	And sometimes the talent, one way or another. For example, it can be argued in the case of Hulk Hogan at the height of Hulkamania, the Gimmick was bigger than the promotion. Not arguing if he was the cause or whatnot, just saying his pop-culture crossover appeal became the vehicle to help grow the WWF to become national, not the other way around, so there, Gimmick would be 1. Meanwhile, you have something like Zayn v. Nakamura on Shinsuke's NXT in-ring debut. There was very little build, no angle whatsoever, a single 10 second canned promo for Shinsuke's reveal, and very little* gimmick on either side. The match was able to speak for itself, and it didn't need anything else thrown in. It was allowed to be its own thing and happen under its own merits. *Nakamura did his thing he was already doing, and Zayn's whole schtick was that he "went around the world looking for competition". There were no attainable stakes or championships or getting a woman for 30 days or anything else attached to this match.

02-13-2018, 06:07 PM	#4
Mr. Nerfect Posts: 60,919	Not sure I'm completely with you on this. Thanks for promoting thoughtful discussion though. My biggest problem with the indies is that kayfabe, psychology and card structure are rarely present. No one is trying to convince you there's a purpose behind what they're doing, and every match is the same, and consequently there is no flow to a show. I heard really good things about an EVOLVE show. It may have been 47 or something. The main event was Chris Hero vs. Zack Sabre, Jr. or something. I'm not entirely sure, because I didn't make it in that far. I paid money to order it, and the first three matches were all almost exactly the same. SoCal Val managed a bunch of guys who basically kicked out of everything and I kept asking myself "How am I meant to care about this?". I ended up switching it off and never went back. That's equivalent to me walking out. I don't think matches necessarily need to be low. They are the canvas with which you paint your story. It's just that without kayfabe and psychology, and without working your gimmick, there's just no meat on the bones. There's no story to tell. It's like everybody is working a story where each page begins with "And then Johnny Peters did this move...". I think the indies need to have bookers/promoters who take the reigns a bit and make sure that everybody is contributing to an entire show, and now just their own segment. It's kind of weird, because all the talent act like wrestling is a socialist compound now -- making sure everybody gets their shit and everybody wins a belt -- but ironically it's the most selfish the business has ever been. No one accepts that their place might be on the bottom making top guys look like top guys so everyone can make money.