The year is 1996. An incident has happened that shattered the illusion of kayfabe, revealing what most people already knew – wrestling was scripted. Four men hugged in the ring – Razor Ramon, Diesel, Shawn Michaels, and Hunter Hearst Helmsley, some of which were enemies on screen. A fan would sneak in a camcorder at the Madison Square Garden House Show, how little did this person know that they would play a factor with changing the wrestling industry as we knew it.
There was only one person that was punished that night, and that would be the man who would later be Vince McMahon’s future son-in-law, Hunter Hearst Helmsley.
You’ve probably heard this story many times over. You know that it stalled Helmsley’s career for about a year or more. He was told by McMahon personally that he would have to “learn to eat shit and love it”, to paraphrase the now executive chairman.
Now, Hunter Hearst Helmsley, known as Triple H onscreen and Paul Levesque offscreen, is once again being served a platter of shit by McMahon with a grin so smug that it bends his new and off-putting mustache, who remarks simply with “bon appétit”.
When last I wrote of Triple H’s tenure in running WWE’s creative on the main roster, I gave it some fair review; but in the midst of McMahon slithering through the grass, his return felt inevitable. I think deep down we all knew he was coming back sometime, but we wanted to give this a chance. We wanted to give Paul a chance. While he didn’t soar with flying colors, he steered the ship in a way that made the programs feel must-watch. History might be kind to this period of time, leaving it to be over-romanticized, but still very much a bright spot.
Sure, Paul’s direction was not perfect, as booking storylines doesn’t always bring about consistent gold all the time. There could have been improvements, but whether you thought the product was incredible or bare minimum, there was no denying it – it had been a vast improvement. Leaps and bounds. Triple Paul had managed to win back the love and goodwill of most fans.I don’t think anyone is wrong in having been hyped up for something new and unknown. Not that the company wasn’t breaking ground, but they were willing to put smiles on faces.
Remember how it all felt when it started?
In the summer of 2022, most of the wrestling fan base was in celebration at Vince’s “retirement”. The vibes during this time was like a party. Everyone was cracking jokes and smiling a lot more. A horrible human being having his creation snatched from him, his source of power gone. The product became so much more competent as a result, and the bar was lower than Vince’s future home, Hell itself.
I had seen people jaded to WWE slowly come back in until they could walk more comfortably as they stayed and watched. People were actually having fun watching WWE’s product. We felt listened to, catered to, and happy.
Wrestling has been headed into a wondrous direction. World Wonder Ring Stardom was seeing more integration with NJPW, who themselves have been having a great 2023. Tokyo Joshi Pro Wrestling has been gaining momentum as well. Indies like DPW, Defy, Prestige, and Limitless Wrestling have been brought up in the conversation more. Ring of Honor has been a very solid product, and AEW’s been finding its swing again post-All Out 2022. To see WWE brought up in the conversation, it was great. Growing up with WWE, this time was exciting.
Do I wish Triple H had maximized more with what he had? Sure. There’s always room for improvement. You don’t know how much time you have. Triggers may not get to be pulled because of whatever stupid reason. A part of me also wonders if he held off on making the biggest moves possible because he knew. Obviously, I’m not a mind reader. I’m just some dumb guy who makes words happen.
If you need proof at how much better wrestlers were being presented, look at Gunther. He’s had solid performance after solid performance and helped rejuvenate Sheamus’s career – even landing them both a five star match. Drew McIntyre caught fire ahead of Clash at the Castle, Sami Zayn ahead of Elimination Chamber, and Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania. And these may be Paul’s failings to not strike while the iron was hot. While I’m sure they can get back there and heat whoever back up, it likely won’t feel like it did at that moment unless the moment is so good that fans can’t help but ignore it.
It’s like having a crush on someone – you really like this person and you think they see things the way you do but you’re too anxious to say anything so it festers and festers and you lose that moment when you could’ve seized it. That’s what this is.
Now, we may not be getting that feeling back for a long time. Unless some fate befalls Vince, we are going to either flock somewhere else or get used to his booking, or anti-booking, as it seems. He books as if he wants to spite fans for watching his product. Like it’s funny that he’ll piss fans off. Nowhere would you find someone finding glee in ruining their own consumer’s experience and still get money for it.
If you look beyond the jokes, the difference between bookings is night and day. Triple H was putting care into his stories, allowing stories and references to other companies to happen, and for the most part, he stuck to his visions. Aside from Roman Reigns’s title defenses, Hunter actually let hometown heroes get their wins in, and things had meaning. Little easter eggs in the backgrounds, the body languages of wrestlers, everything had a deeper level of nuance for the company.
We won’t get any of that with Vince. If you thought any of Hunter’s slip-ups were bad, oh, get ready. We’re going to have baffling choices again. Name changes, music changes, storyline changes. So many retcons are possible now thanks to the world’s angriest albino raisin. He’s so behind the times and is so stubborn, and I just hope that anyone staying or going there finds the money to be worth all of that, because I know I wouldn’t.
He’s actively a detriment. To the company, he’s going to hurt the image again. To the talent, he’s going to hurt their resume with his decisions that he doesn’t have to live with. To the creative team, he’s going to be stressful to work with.
As of the Raw after WrestleMania, he was already changing creative. People that were meant to be featured were taken off the show or had their time cut. Morale was at its lowest since before his retirement.
Do not listen to the company when they say Vince won’t be involved. They are lying to you. They know how bad he is and they’ve put the scapegoat on the man among many who seemed to be trying to fix the company’s image. Do not believe them when they say Vince isn’t “in the weeds”.
Vince is not only in the weeds, he is the weeds. Unwanted and unsightly, he’s there. Only these weeds hate you and your soul, but with a mustache. These weeds are going to fling feces at you and yell obscenities at you. I didn’t even know he could do that. He’s become the weeds. Oh my goodness.
All jokes aside, make no mistake – some of the choices on WrestleMania Night Two and the Raw right after feel very Vince-y. He can’t let go. The company and the man himself know that his performance levels are pure ass. I mean, why else would they give false reassurance to let everyone know that Triple H is “still in charge”? Why else would they try to make him seem not as involved? This was always his plan.
All of that goodwill is going to evaporate. Hell, it might be gone entirely after Cody’s loss to Roman in one of WrestleMania’s biggest matches ever.
What’s worse is that it is very clear that the people who actually care and are passionate about this medium of storytelling and performance are going to put their all into it until the joy is sucked out completely. They want to tell stories and give people something to believe in while letting others forget their problems. They perform because they love this so much, and want to make art in the midst of the unfortunate capitalism that allows men like Vince to come back to the company. That’s the passion that will likely carry the company.
I want to be Crystal Pepsi clear here – though I’m currently a little disappointed in the creative for my own enjoyment purposes, this is the part I have a gripe with. This is what I’m more worried about – people and their jobs and wellbeing. These people love pro wrestling, they’ve loved working with Paul Levesque and Stephanie McMahon, and all that passion is going to be snuffed. These are workers and talents that felt genuinely cared about. I don’t know what others feel, but I wonder if Stephanie left for this reason, and if Paul is doing his best with what power he holds to ensure things won’t be as bad as they could be.
A silver lining here is that this means it’s the chance for other companies to pick the ball up and run. They can make the most of this and remind people there are alternatives all over the freaking globe. Whether it’s NJPWs Sakura Genesis or AEW’s Double or Nothing, there’s more out there. And if you have to watch WWE programming (I don’t know your life), there’s still these things to look forward to. There is always something else to watch, and in a time where more wrestling is accessible, now’s the right time, baby.
I’d like to hope we’re overreacting. That I’m overreacting. That we’re wrong. That he’s going to be out soon or won’t be involved as much as he seemed to be on Raw. But my faith is already diminishing.
To address a further elephant in the room, there is the glaring issue of the horrible, horrible things Vince McMahon has done in his life. This man has done some morally reprehensible things alongside crimes against the law and humanity. These are things easily searchable and have been covered in-depth numerous times. He’s admitted as much to these “mistakes” that he’s “moved on from”. Well, gee willikers, that’s fine and dandy. Vince has moved on from something others have to live with, y’all! He’s going to get away with it because he is Vince McMahon.
Listen. I don’t like writing negative things. I love writing about things so amazing that bring joy and emotion to people, but for this, it has to be said. I just had to get this out and let go, because there’s nothing I can do. Otherwise, I’m still on my Twitter joking along with everyone and just reacting with a “well”, for that very reason. People will still watch the program and cheer for Vince, and nothing’s going to change with however many people leave or voice their disappointment. People will cheer and continue to watch, and stocks might rise. He’ll survive in spite of everything like the cockroach he is.
I apologize if I’m making this scenario sound like the worst thing to happen in human history – I often can accidentally over-dramatize things and I genuinely wanted to provide some laughs because this is deflating as hell. So many people found joy in this, and it may be gone for the foreseeable future.
In any event though, during this time, the company proved it could do so much better without Vince. He’s a hindrance to the quality of the product, but Triple H will be the scapegoat, so long as he’s touted as the head of creative. The mistakes of Vince will be Triple H’s. He’s going to have to learn to eat shit and like it.
But they said they’re not going anywhere, that things are going to be how they’ve been. Then. Now. Forever. Together. Except when it’s not.
Everything’s fine.
