PWI Weekly for November 18, 2024
PWI Weekly for November 18, 2024
Ending Of Eras, New Starts, And The Cold November Rain
IF YOU LIVE IN a climate with distinct seasons, then autumn usually signifies a time of change. With a presidential election taking place this year, the autumn of 2024 feels like one of particular change. As in life, wrestling also endures its changing seasons. This edition of the PWI Weekly is focused on shifts in the industry (with a little “November Rain” thrown in.) We hope you enjoy.
FACTION OF THE WEEK
In a recent interview with Gabby AF, Tommy Dreamer opined that, during the pandemic era, The Hurt Business was one of the best parts of WWE programming. The ECW icon went so far as to say that Shelton Benjamin, Bobby Lashley, Cedric Alexander, and MVP were the … well, MVPs during that time.
“I’m a big fan of Bobby, Shelton, and MVP. Personally and professionally, I’m friends with all those guys,” Dreamer said. “They do have a real-life friendship, which is awesome. I think … The Hurt Business, when they were in WWE, that was during a really bad time for WWE and the world (in general) with COVID. But I really did feel like they were the MVPs in the COVID era.”
Indeed, many wrestling fans still lament that WWE didn’t go all-in on The Hurt Business—and still rue the fact that the faction wasn’t pushed to the top. Recently, those same fans have been given a cause to rejoice as MVP, Lashley, and Benjamin have reunited in AEW. Seemingly they share the goal of proving that WWE missed the boat on them.
Now calling themselves The Hurt Syndicate, the talented triumvirate has been making its presence felt on AEW programming. Sometimes, a change of scenery is all it takes to show people that you mean business. The Hurt Syndicate is doing just that, and, in the process, changing AEW.
A QUICK WORD ABOUT …
With a little more than a month to go before Raw debuts on Netflix, wrestling fans are winding down a years-long ritual of appointment television viewing. Since its launch in 1993, Raw has been a constant cable TV fixture on the USA Network, TNN/Spike TV, and then back to USA. In that time, generations of fans have been treated to viewing that ranges from groundbreaking to heartbreaking—and sometimes just time-taking. The program’s place on Monday nights also helped convince cable networks to air WCW Nitro and—for a time—TNA IMPACT on the same night.
WWE’s flagship show will no longer be available on traditional television come January 2025. This marks the end of an era and the beginning of a transition to what someday might be the normal viewing platform for the sport we all love so dearly. Pro wrestling will continue to have a presence on cable TV. But soon, Raw will not.
TERRITORIAL DISSINGS
No matter the territory or the time, Paul Heyman has long been one of the greatest promo people in the business. In this delightful diatribe from 1996, ECW’s head honcho takes aim at Taz for suggesting that Sabu won’t accept a match with “The Human Suplex Machine” because he fears him. In his impassioned speech, Heyman sets the record straight before the promo gives way to an epic music video—featuring ECW footage set to the sound of “November Rain” by Guns ‘N’ Roses.
Recently Tony Khan secured the rights to the hit song so that AEW could produce a video in the same style. We’re still partial to the ECW version however.
Queue the violins!
FROM THE VAULT
During a wild eight-man tag at ROH Final Battle 2021, Brody King prepares to throw “Hot Sauce” Tracy Williams into the barricade. This show would represent the final Ring of Honor offering under the Sinclair banner, with the company being officially relaunched by Tony Khan the following spring.