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| Updated: Saturday November 21st, 2009 09:56:37 AM PST |
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| Ben Miller talks Michaels-Jericho angle |
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EXTERNAL AFFAIRS By Ben Miller What do you do when you’re the man who’s done it all? You’ve bumped two enduring gimmick matches into the wrestling consciousness, you’ve partied like a supernova, you’ve helped reinvigorate mat wrestling after declaring it dead and you’ve been Saved into a family man. If you’re Shawn Michaels, you take the stage during WWE’s biggest event of the silly season and help deliver their most memorable angle in years. The Michaels/Jericho/Michaels confrontation at SummerSlam needs neither recollection nor praise. Plenty of both have been deservedly doled out already. Will the memories survive as vividly as the Wrestlemania X ladder match or the Badd Blood ’97 Hell in the Cell match? Only time will tell. But no matter what the long haul delivers, that turning point in the story was done brilliantly. Sadly, the events following the punch heard ‘round the molars indicate that this angle may be taking a direction that could lead to mere middling business returns. It is no secret that professional wrestling is, at its core, a storytelling medium. What apparently is a secret to some is that the storytelling in professional wrestling must be built around external conflict, not internal conflict. Storytelling is a reflection of life. People flock to movies, books and television shows not because they feature sexy actors or lurid action, but because they feature that most elemental ingredient to human existence: conflict. A major part of human nature is a desire for conflict. War, pestilence, plague, TNA booking; at first glance all of these things seem to be part of some grand mistake. Upon closer examination one finds that it’s just another example of conflicting human interests and the failings of men. Storytelling that captures the public’s imagination needs compelling conflict and surely professional wrestling often offer this. Ahh, but what type of conflict? Extra-personal conflict works. Think of Stone Steve Austin and his battles against the boss. Inter-personal conflict works, too. Fans of a certain age still smile at memories of Bret Clarke’s back and forth with Shawn Michaels a decade ago. But intra-personal conflict? That’s another story altogether. Writers generally love internal struggles that lead to character revelations and wondrous personal growth, but wrestling fans don’t have time for that stuff. Shawn Michaels cutting promos blaming himself for his wife’s knuckle sandwich may get him nominated for a treasured CableFAX award, but it’s counter-productive in a storytelling medium more suited for external conflicts. Wrestling thrives on the archetypal, and blaming yourself when your wife gets punched ain’t it. Archetypal angles that draw big business allow the fans to have empathy for the babyfaces. Think about this: What would you do if you were Michaels? If your wife got punched would you attack the perpetrator with hellish vigor? Would you attempt to put him in the hospital until security was forced to remove you from the building? If you were banned from the arena the next night because the general manager deemed you unstable, would you climb through the crowd as soon as the villain’s music hit? Would you attempt to violate restraining orders and hire surrogates in an attempt to exact revenge? And when you finally did get a one-on-one confrontation with this jerk, would it not be the most satisfying feeling imaginable? Perhaps not. Perhaps you would kneel by your wife’s wide, blame yourself for her suffering and stew quietly because the doctors told you to retire. Maybe you’d wrestle with the inextinguishable desire for revenge on the one hand and the unquestionable health risk on the other. Maybe you’d take a while to think things through and decide what’s best for your family. Maybe. When comparing those two stories, they both seem plausible. In fact they are both emotional and maybe the second one is even borderline understandable. But it’s not money. In pro wrestling money is in the big, the bold and the simple. Big story equals big money in pro wrestling and there’s plenty of evidence to prove it. It’s the reason Hogan vs. Savage beat Hogan vs. Warrior (you’ve been attacked for extending kindness to a friend’s woman). It’s the reason Batista vs. HHH beat Cena vs. HHH (your potential has been bottled by a former mentor). And it’s the reason Jericho vs. Michaels played externally would beat Jericho vs. Michaels played internally. Michaels, Jericho and the WWE creative team still have time. Hardcore fans are still in love with the angle and causal fans still have a piqued interest. There is still time to make Michaels the enraged protector and Jericho the fearful lowlife. Still time to ditch the Fox Searchlight story involving Michaels, his wife and his eye and craft a Warner Brothers blockbuster featuring a guy delivering a receipt. Keeping the conflict in this angle mostly internal may well lead to critical acclaim, but to reach its drawing potential this affair has to be taken external. ********** Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it Archives: http://web.me.com/ben_miller Podcast w/ Todd Martin: feed://web.me.com/ben_miller/Ben_Millers_Website/Podcast/rss.xml {plug} |
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