For nearly two years now WWE has toned down their programming and rate their programming PG rather than TV14. Since then we have heard a lot of complaints that WWE’s product is suffering because of the PG rating, that PG means that there is no content suitable for adults on WWE shows anymore and it’s all too child friendly. Allow me to disagree.
A significant change brought by the PG ratings was that WWE stopped showing blood. While I don’t think blood is such a vital element of wrestling, and if we look at many of the greatest matches of all times we will not find a single drop of blood, it can add a lot to the visual element of wrestling. Would Hart-Austin from Wrestlemania 13 be remembered in such a glorious dramatic fashion if Austin had simply collapsed without the blood pouring all over his face? I doubt it. We certainly wouldn’t have that classic image. And while WWE seem to do just fine when it comes to match quality without blood, they have taken things to the ridiculous extreme by stopping matches because wrestlers were bleeding for real. It’s also absurd to have an event called “Extreme Rules” and not have at least one bloody brawl.
Another change is that we no longer see bra and panties pillow fights. There are many who see the lack of this thing as a sign that WWE’s product is getting worse, that it’s too childish. I think that those who miss bra and panties matches are anything but adults – they’re childish fans who try to act like adults by talking about boobies. We all went to school with these kids. I’d be happy if I never see another bra and panties pillow fight.
When it comes to writing, WWE showed that they can deliver good, mature storylines that do not insult our intelligence, and keep things within the PG rating. I dare anyone to claim that CM Punk’s character and the feuds that he had with Jeff Hardy and Rey Mysterio are not suitable for mature audiences. Scary ass Punk singing “Happy Birthday” to Rey’s daughter is still one of the creepiest things ever seen on WWE TV. The feud between The Miz and MVP earlier this year also delivered some good, mature promos between the two, last year’s pre-Wrestlemania feud between Randy Orton and Triple H was also well written and there are more example of good writing that is not harmed by the PG rating.
So where is the problem? I believe that the real problem with the PG rating is that WWE often confuse “family friendly” with “infantile”. I get this frustrating feeling every time I see Hornswoggle on my screen. Every time someone insults a female wrestler because she looks healthy rather than anorectic. Every time I see an idiotic segment with a Raw guest host that involves Santino and Jillian Hall. These bits are not suitable for children. They are suitable for brain-dead infantile idiots. When I saw both Hornswoggle and Vickie Guerrero on Christian’s Peep Show last week I cringed in my seat, I felt that my intelligence was insulted. They did not need this stupid setup for a feud between Christian and Dolph Ziggler, they could have done it differently. And speaking of Ziggler, who the hell came up with the Mr. Ziggles line that John Morrison used last year (Yes, I know I moaned about it in my last column). It’s that kind of things that make people curse the PG rating and think that it’s the cause of WWE’s problems.
So it’s not the PG ratings. WWE can still deliver excellent matches and compelling feuds. It’s not the attempt to be family friendly. When PG becomes infantile – that’s the problem.
