I confess to no longer watching
wrestling, having long ago lost interest in the current product,
both WWE and TNA. But Ric Flair continues to be the common thread
that links us from today back to 1974, when Flair first made a big
splash in the wrestling business right in front of Mid-Atlantic Wrestling fans. He took the
wrestling world by storm, and hasn't let it go yet.
I suspect many of you don't watch the
current product either. But I think we all still have an interest in
the Champ. So occasionally Jim De Medeiros will update
us on what's happening with our hometown boy, the "Nature Boy" Ric
Flair.
-D. Bourne
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On November 26, 2007, Ric Flair
returned to the WWE and began his last run. The plan, originally
envisioned by Steve Austin, was for Flair to appear on all three
brands of the WWE. However, something changed. While Flair was
originally slated to appear on the December 3rd Raw tapings, as well
as the December 4th Smackdown/ECW tapings, the plans were changed.
Apparently, for reasons that are unclear, the entire angle may have
been dramatically altered.
Flair was left off that week’s shows
altogether. He returned on December 10th’s Raw Anniversary show for
the Evolution reunion. A visibly distracted “Nature Boy” took part
in a six-man tag match, while Jim Ross announced in passing that the
stipulations to Flair’s retirement have been changed. Now, Flair
only has to retire if he loses in a singles match. The way the
stipulation changed is certainly cause for concern amongst the Flair
faithful. Rather than having owner Vince McMahon make the
proclamation, the play-by-play announcer did so, which could be
signaling the downplaying of the storyline.
©
WWE.com
Perhaps the greatest test to this
theory will occur on December 18, 2007 when WWE tapes its Smackdown
program. WWE has promoted this taping to feature Ric Flair wrestling
in a career-threatening match. If during the course of the program,
they announce that the Flair appearance is a special cameo, then the
angle will probably be given a chance to develop as originally
intended. However, if they announce that Flair has once again become
a Smackdown wrestler, the message is very clear that WWE no longer
views Flair and the angle as profitable.
The notion itself is mind-boggling.
Television ratings certainly would indicate the contrary. On the
night that the angle was launched, ratings increased from a 3.41 to
a 3.67 as the night progressed. If nothing else, the growth proves
that people were into the story and wanted to see if Flair’s career
would continue after his main event match against Randy Orton. The
following week without Ric Flair on the show, ratings plummeted to
3.24.
Some critics claim that Flair’s less
than stellar performance in the match against Randy Orton may have
something to do with downplaying the story. However, it should be
noted that the performance may have been playing into the storyline.
After all, in order for the story to properly climax, the opening
stages must feature Ric Flair appearing to be well past his prime
and without a chance. The fact that Flair hadn’t wrestled a match in
over three months was undeniably also a factor. Flair himself had
stated in the weeks prior to the match that it would take him a few
weeks to shake the ring rust. Regardless, the match against Orton
told the story that needed to be told quite well. Flair opened the
match with perhaps the worst chops of his career. As the match wore
on, his performance improved. However, viewers were left with the
impression that not only was Flair battling against insurmountable
odds, but he was also in a losing battle against time. In a sense,
this was the ideal way to begin the Rocky-like storyline originally
conceived by Steve Austin.
However, that may have been the
problem. The very fact that WWE creative did not conjure up the
storyline in the first place may be the reason that it won’t be
given a chance to work. Austin pitched the idea to McMahon around
April 2007. McMahon was said to have loved it, but creative did not
and stalled the launching of the angle. It has been rumored that
some of the writers had issues with idea of a 58 year-old winning
against the younger talent. Whether that was really their only
concern is a topic up for debate. What isn’t debatable at this point
is that the next chapter in this story will be quite telling. If WWE
still intends on allowing this storyline to be prominently featured,
the way Flair is used on the Smackdown program will make that point
more sharply than even Flair’s own signature “Wooo!”
James De Medeiros
December 17, 2007
Previous updates:
Flair
Promises to "Go Out in a Blaze of Glory"
Ric Flair: The Final Countdown
© 2007 Mid-Atlantic Gateway
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