Broken Originality
The wrestling world has come a long way regarding storylines and characters. The fact that for the most part, fans can and do accept bizarre situations in wrestling only adds to its lure. The perfect example of this is Hardy vs Hardy. Matt vs Jeff. Broken Matt vs Brother Nero. Final Deletion. The planning and build up for this epic spectacle was executed with nothing less than sheer brilliance. TNA took their time with setting the scene, which was vital considering it was two brothers whose relationship has been documented countless times over the years while becoming one of the greatest tag teams of all time. Their bond was strong, unbreakable, or so I always thought. So the fact that they came to blows more than once recently needed to be handled very carefully and not rushed into.
So started the Hardy vs Hardy feud. I’m sure for many, including me; it was watched with great anticipation and fascination. Having grown up watching the Hardy’s on tv every week, this new dynamic to the brothers brought with it huge potential and excitement. To see the changes in Matt slowly becoming apparent was incredibly thrilling and so well done I was invested in it from the start. The more ‘broken’ Matt became, the more I wanted to see. Am I the only one who is reminded of Zoolander every time Matt speaks? He is quite literally amazing and should be receiving nothing but praise. I have always admired both Matt and Jeff, but this new character Matt created has gone above and beyond anything I could imagine and he has pulled it off with such perfection it’s difficult to think of him in any other way now. I absolutely love that with the seriousness and downright brutality of the feud also comes some humour and truly hilarious moments that will live in many wrestling fans’ memories (“A dilapidated boat!”). Comedy in wrestling is difficult to pull off at the best of times so for it to go hand in hand with a very sensitive storyline such as this it had to be done correctly. It was.
So started the Hardy vs Hardy feud. I’m sure for many, including me; it was watched with great anticipation and fascination. Having grown up watching the Hardy’s on tv every week, this new dynamic to the brothers brought with it huge potential and excitement. To see the changes in Matt slowly becoming apparent was incredibly thrilling and so well done I was invested in it from the start. The more ‘broken’ Matt became, the more I wanted to see. Am I the only one who is reminded of Zoolander every time Matt speaks? He is quite literally amazing and should be receiving nothing but praise. I have always admired both Matt and Jeff, but this new character Matt created has gone above and beyond anything I could imagine and he has pulled it off with such perfection it’s difficult to think of him in any other way now. I absolutely love that with the seriousness and downright brutality of the feud also comes some humour and truly hilarious moments that will live in many wrestling fans’ memories (“A dilapidated boat!”). Comedy in wrestling is difficult to pull off at the best of times so for it to go hand in hand with a very sensitive storyline such as this it had to be done correctly. It was.
So, what way to better commemorate them than by having a ‘Final Deletion’ match at Matt’s home in North Carolina? I had all sorts in my head of what would happen but I can honestly say that it was way, way beyond anything I could have dreamed up. After seeing the teaser trailer Impact put out (Fireworks? Water? Flames licking the sky? OH MY GOD!!) I was left on the edge of my seat waiting for the full segment to be shown. With such a hype being built online I was desperate for it to live up to people’s expectations. In my opinion it surpassed them by a million miles. Even in today’s day and age where many things go and wrestling continues to push the boundaries for the fans entertainment, I honestly was not expecting what I saw. It was just crazy with a capital C! The onset at Maxel’s birthday was very funny and flamboyant and added a bit of light entertainment to something that could have quite easily gone the other way and become very macabre. Reby Sky’s involvement was excellent and understandable. The drone scene provided one of the most hilarious moments I’ve seen in wrestling. Extremely entertaining from start to finish with just the right amount of comedy thrown in (Matt’s face when he saw Jeff had the fireworks … priceless!). My kids loved it as much as my husband and I did which shows what a wide range of viewers it relates to.
The buzz it generated was well deserved and spot on. It was the most incredible, insane work of pure brilliance I have EVER seen on any wrestling show. It was simple, not over worked and the focus was solely on Matt and Jeff thanks to the understated music which could have been a stereo playing by the ring it was so unobtrusive, and the camera work was like watching a home movie – it worked so well with the premise. There were no Hollywood-esque scenes even though some of the action was so surreal it wouldn’t be out of place in a big blockbuster movie. Even the weapons were kept simple. Jeff climbing the tree was excellent. I would look upon it as only a tree. He looked upon it as a way to hurt and destroy Matt. Their story was told throughout the entire thing and although I’m sure some people would disagree with how good I think it was, I think as long as it is taken how it was intended then there is nothing not to like. The ending was shocking and superb.
The buzz it generated was well deserved and spot on. It was the most incredible, insane work of pure brilliance I have EVER seen on any wrestling show. It was simple, not over worked and the focus was solely on Matt and Jeff thanks to the understated music which could have been a stereo playing by the ring it was so unobtrusive, and the camera work was like watching a home movie – it worked so well with the premise. There were no Hollywood-esque scenes even though some of the action was so surreal it wouldn’t be out of place in a big blockbuster movie. Even the weapons were kept simple. Jeff climbing the tree was excellent. I would look upon it as only a tree. He looked upon it as a way to hurt and destroy Matt. Their story was told throughout the entire thing and although I’m sure some people would disagree with how good I think it was, I think as long as it is taken how it was intended then there is nothing not to like. The ending was shocking and superb.
Now, while I completely understand that there are certain things which will be done and re-done by wrestling companies (storyline ideas aren’t endless, I get that), the whole Wyatt family/New Day promo and subsequent fight seemed to be a blatant rip-off of the Final Deletion. Of course I don’t blame WWE for trying to emulate such a brilliant segment, especially as it received a huge amount of positive press. BUT … so soon after? And going to such great lengths to imitate it? That’s a no-no from me. Surely Vince pays his creative writing staff humongous amounts of money. So why is it the best they can come up with is ripping off Impact? Talk about jumping on the bandwagon. TNA have been mercilessly harassed in the past for so called ‘copying’, yet WWE seem, for the most part to continue to get away with it time and time again. I can only assume they are catering for their fans who only watch WWE and will therefore think the Wyatt and New Day fight was genius writing.
You won’t hear anything bad from me regarding the Wyatt’s and New Day. I thought they did a very good job with what they were told to do. And I do love the Wyatt family. But surely they were cringing just a little bit inside when they were told what was expected of them. Surely it would have been better to let the dust settle on the Final Deletion before attempting to pull off their own brutal massacre. I’m not taking anything away from the wrestlers. I enjoyed the segment and loved the horror aspect the Wyatt’s brought to it, although I didn’t enjoy the camera work trying to make it look like the Hollywood blockbuster that the Final Deletion went to great lengths to avoid. I just think that it was disrespectful and a very low thing to do on WWE’s part. However, I do think it has had largely the opposite effect that they would have wanted and I think most wrestling fans have seen through it and realised they are just trying to get a slice of the Impact cake. Again, I can’t blame them. That cake is one to be sought after. But because WWE were so desperate to get in on the action their version had almost no build whatsoever which in any good feud is something that is essential. Nor did it warrant an invitation to the Wyatt’s compound in the middle of the night far from any civilisation. There was no explanation as to why the New Day, out of all the previous foes of the Wyatt’s deserved something so different and radical. And why would anybody in their right minds actually go when it is ‘just’ a feud? The Hardy’s feud was very different. Two brothers who have such a deep and painful hatred in them that only something drastic would quench. The New Day could have been countless other enemies to the Wyatt’s and vice-versa. So why them? Because it comes down to the fact that Vince and whoever he has working for him couldn’t bear for something so ridiculously popular and fantastic to be happening to another company. That’s what it always comes down to. That and very poor, sloppy writing. For the amount his writers are paid I could come up with good, new ideas. Just saying, Vince.
Yes, the Final Deletion was different. But different is good and the viewer ratings and consequent press have proven that. So maybe next time WWE should try and be different instead of trying to be the same whilst pretending they are doing the opposite.
So for the few who hated the Final Deletion, just be aware of the many similarities between that and the Wyatt/New Day battle. And bear in mind that without the awesome Hardy vs Hardy storyline, the Wyatt and New Day feud would have differed greatly from the segment that WWE were so quick to put out there. No Final Deletion, no compound battle.
So for the few who hated the Final Deletion, just be aware of the many similarities between that and the Wyatt/New Day battle. And bear in mind that without the awesome Hardy vs Hardy storyline, the Wyatt and New Day feud would have differed greatly from the segment that WWE were so quick to put out there. No Final Deletion, no compound battle.