Just getting all reflective before I starting drinking.
Hey Gang, hope you all had a happy holidays. We are getting close to the end of the year, that magical time where it’s socially acceptable to stay up late and drink. I myself will probably drink copious amounts of soda (Most likely Fresca, gotta beak out the good bubbly for the occasion) and be up that late anyway, so what the hell?
As is customary for this time of year, it’s time to look back at where we’ve been in the last year and take a look ahead to where we think things are going for the next year. So I will take this time to do the same.
WWE: Looking back, honestly I do not think this was a very good year for them. The launch of the WWE Network really had a big effect on the company and not in a good way. The biggest thing we saw was that much like a lot of companies when they have big ideas is that they didn’t think things through and thought way to much of themselves, leading to disappointing numbers and some not so happy investors. The failure to get a TV deal that they promised and the consequential stock plummet gave the company something to think about as well, but typical in the way that Vince does business, a scapegoat was named and they didn’t seem to learn anything. Their TV ratings have hit lows not seen in years, but the WWE doesn’t seem to really care. 2015 I think should really be a year for them to turn this stuff around. Whether that turnaround lies with Daniel Bryan coming back or with Roman Reigns being put in a top spot (Notice I didn’t say THE top spot) I’m not sure, but it’s obvious that they aren’t going to fix things by going back to The Authority angle. I don’t see much of a change in the WWE network, just more people excepting it’s not going to get the million subscribers that the WWE promised. I don’t think this will be the year that Vince finally takes a real step back, so as much as I say they need to change, probably a lot isn’t and things will be the same for much of the year.
TNA/Impact Wrestling: This is going to be a do or die year for them. They don’t have Spike to help them out anymore and they are moving to a much smaller network. There has been talk of a reboot to go with the new tapings for Destination America but honestly I don’t hold out hope that they are going to reverse everything that they’ve done in the last decade and change. With the same people owning it, and the same people running it, what’s going to happen that will be different? They may do some things different presentation wise, but they will be right back to old habits soon enough at a time when they probably can’t afford it anymore. My outlook for them in 2015 isn’t that they will go out of business, but you will likely see them nearly drop off the map in terms of relevance even more so than they already are. Maybe even be overtaken by ROH in the eyes of wrestling fans. I could be wrong, and hopefully I am, but TNA has to prove to me that they really can do things differently to try to make an impact in the wrestling world anymore.
Elsewhere on TV: I see a decline in two of my favorite shows, sadly. Mythbusters I think gave itself a big hit when Tory, Grant, and Kari were let go for money reasons. They are going to have to convince fans they are still worth watching even if it’s just Adam and Jamie as the hosts now. With the prmosie of all ew graphics and a whole new look, I’m a little skeptical as fans typically don’t like All New anything. It’s a great show that I think does bring something worth while, but at this point having such a big chance might not mean well for them in the long haul. And sorry to say but I think we might see a downturn for the Bronies out there. Not that the show itself will diminish in quality, but I think the novelty of the show is wearing off. The extra long lay off isn’t doing the show any favors and while I think the show will still be around, I think it’s audience will begin to shrink in the coming year.
Movies: Superhero movies of course will still be a big thing next year. But I think the release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens will be the talk of 2015’s releases. Although not scheduled until late next year, there is going to be a lot of talk and hype behind this one. Here’s hoping this trilogy has a better reaction than the prequels did. There is a new Hunger Games movie coming out and from what I’ve seen the Peanuts movie looks like it will do well too.
World Events: It seems more so than ever this year was the year of the hashtag. It seemed like every other week there was a new hashtag involved social justice campaign. And ultimately each of those ideas was forgotten for a new cause. If your world view was from twitter and Tumblr this year, you would have a pretty awful view of things and of the human race as a whole. I hope 2015 is the year when people discover that for all the hashtagging they’ve done, it’s actions that do more to change things, not sitting around posting on your lunch break. Recently a list was published on the “Hashtags that changed the World” of 2014 and like many others kind of snickered since none of them truly changed anything. Let’s hope in the next year more people find out that you aren’t going to get very far with your point of view by hurling hateful labels at people just because they see things differently.
Me: As for me personally this was a rebuilding year. I worked hard to get out of the retail shadow and start focusing more on my writing. Hopefully 2015 will build on that and I’ll be able to take a step in the right direction. I’ve still got some changes to make in my life, here’s hoping that the new year will let me make the right ones.
With that I hope everyone has a safe and fun new year and here’s looking for all of us to make 2015 a damn good one!
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