WWE took the Wynn Hotel by storm last night (Wed., Jan. 8, 2014) in Las Vegas, Nevada, at the International Consumer Electronics Show to official announce it will launch the WWE Network on Mon., Feb. 24, 2014, immediately following Monday Night Raw that evening.
There was a ton of information delivered with a flair for entertainment in the presentation. You can click here and here for the cold hard details, but this post will serve as a place for reactions to all the night's events.
- Remember when this was rumored to happen like two years ago? Thank god they waited and worked out all the kinks. That's because...
- Out of the gate, straight away and all things considered, the WWE Network is awesome. There isn't anything to be upset about here, at least not yet. It was expected that WrestleMania 30 would be a part of the initial package as a way to entice fans to subscribe and never bother to cancel. Instead, WWE is going all in and offering the whole shebang for $9.99 a month in six-month intervals. That's an absolute steal no matter which way you slice it. For the price of two pay-per-view (PPV) shows in one calendar year, you can have access to everything the WWE Network offers. Really, it would be stupid not to subscribe.
- My hope is WWE offers a pricing plan something like NFL Game Rewind, which I bring up because it's another service I subscribe to. Basically, I was offered to pay roughly $17 a month for a few months, automatically deducted from my credit card, or pay around $60 up front and have access to everything for "X" amount of time. I would rather pay up front and have it done than do it in intervals.
- I literally have zero complaints about the content being offered. Every PPV? Check. Cool shows like a look back at the Monday Night War? Check. Countdown style shows that do so well on NFL Network? Check. Live studio show on the regular? Check. Pre and post event shows? Check. Every PPV from WCW and ECW's history? Check. WrestleMania Rewind? Check. NXT? Check. The possibilities for new shows are endless, too. Plus, we still get Raw, SmackDown, and Main Event on TV every week. This is perfect.
- One of the best parts about all this is previous shows won't be edited down, meaning we don't have to worry about the PG rating infiltrating Attitude Era shows that went off the rails. We'll get an advisory and parental controls are available to filter content, but the shows will air unedited and uncut. That's exactly how it should be. Chris Benoit will also no longer be scrubbed from history, which is something that needed to happen. They shouldn't exploit him or his actions to make money, of course, but they also shouldn't avoid talking about the WrestleMania 20 main event either. An advisory will air for programs featuring him. This seems like the best possible scenario.
- The partnership with the folks at MLB Advanced Media should allay any fears fans may have about the streaming capabilities of the company. If you remember, there were a ton of issues with the WrestleMania 29 stream last year but all should be well once the Network rolls out. How often do you go to Netflix and there are streaming issues? Not very. Expect the same here.
- Now on to the actual presentation with its various shenanigans. This felt like it could be Vince McMahon's final parting shot, the last big splash he'll make as the big banana at WWE. Well, kudos, Mr. Chairman. It appears you've hit a home run.
- Stephanie McMahon was fantastic leading the ceremony and did an outstanding job commanding the stage. Her presence is almost as big as her famous father. All of this is being overshadowed by her wardrobe choice, of course, but it should be said that she did a great job up there, even when it got uncomfortable with D-Generation X up to their old, tired antics.
- Really, though, I could have done without the DX jokes about Stephanie hiking her skirt up, Shawn Michaels acting like a big child, and Triple H talking about never having "done it" in front of this many people before. I mean, yeah, I get the act and how they'll probably sell a few subscriptions from Attitude Era fans who want to relive their glory days but this just felt out of place at a presentation like this. Stephanie was a good sport, at least.
- I did like Perkins Miller playing Michael Bay. That was a good gag, and for the first time in forever, WWE was timely with one of its references.
- I'm not sure why I expected more out of Stone Cold Steve Austin's appearance but looking back, he served his purpose just fine. He's quite possibly the biggest star in the history of the company, so he needed to come out and talk about whooping ass and delivering stunners and all that. Loved Stephanie answering his call for a hell yeah, too.
- Can you tell I thought Stephanie was amazing last night? Because I did.
- The folks at PW Insider pointed this out the other night but there's a big reason John Cena is the man at WWE. He is a workhorse in the same way Hulk Hogan and Austin were workhorses. They didn't just get on top and coast, they got on top and worked themselves into the ground. In this case, Cena was in Vegas for a commitment on Tuesday during the day, flew out to Philadelphia all the way across the country just to wrestle a quick dark match against Randy Orton that night, then flew back out to Vegas to be the guy to reveal the official launch date and do media for the Network. Is Cena the best wrestler on the WWE roster? Not even close, but he absolutely deserves his spot, and his work ethic is a big reason why.
There's literally nothing here to quell my excitement for what WWE is offering.
Grade: A
That's it from me, Cagesiders. Now it's your turn to tell us how you feel about the WWE Network and the entire presentation the company offered in Vegas last night.
Go!