Black Widow
04-26-2007, 09:29 AM
Earlier today I mentioned that a personal appearance by Batista in Wolverhampton, England had caused some upset with fans who were unhappy with how they were treated after (in some cases) being pretty much ignored.
We’ve had emails on the subject all day, with people telling us of similar incidents at house shows and after shows. One reader also contacted us a little earlier today to tell us of an incident after Monday’s Smackdown house show in Birmingham where Mark Henry made gestures to fans who were attemping to get an autograph, and footage has also popped up on YouTube of a fan being fobbed off by Shawn Michaels at a hotel in Italy.
But can the wrestlers really take all the blame here? As I said this morning, I appreciate that WWE wrestlers have a tough time with their travel schedules, and that they’re at the end of a long and exhausting European tour. But ignoring the people spend big money on merchandise and take a (sometimes lengthy) trip to come out and see them is just wrong, in my opinion. However, that line of thought only applies to official WWE signings. My take is that Batista was in the wrong for shunning fans at the Wolverhampton signing. There’s no denying that the security at some of these signings make life hard for everybody, but at an official event, any wrestler appearing does so as a representative of the company.
As for incidents at hotels, a gym, outside an arena after a show or elsewhere, in all honesty I don’t blame the wrestlers most of the time. With regards to the Mark Henry email we got, I’d like to be able to say it was Henry remaining in character and being a heel, but we know that likely isn’t the case. That said, after 2 weeks on the road, and at the end of a day that will have consisted of little sleep, a lot of the travel, and a show, I don’t blame the guy for not wanting to sign a few autographs late on a night.
I appreciate some fans will hang around outside the arenas after a show to get a photo, an autograph, or just to catch a glimpse of their favourite wrestler, and my take may seem harsh to some reading this. But if you’d clocked up thousands of miles and not slept in your bed for a few weeks (and barely had a good night’s sleep in weeks either), you’d be pretty cranky by that point as well. The official signings should be a perfect opportunity for you to get a picture and an autograph from the wrestlers. Hopefully the negative press this tour has created with regards to that will force WWE to ensure we don’t get similar situations during WWE’s next trip over here later in the year.
wrestlemag.com
We’ve had emails on the subject all day, with people telling us of similar incidents at house shows and after shows. One reader also contacted us a little earlier today to tell us of an incident after Monday’s Smackdown house show in Birmingham where Mark Henry made gestures to fans who were attemping to get an autograph, and footage has also popped up on YouTube of a fan being fobbed off by Shawn Michaels at a hotel in Italy.
But can the wrestlers really take all the blame here? As I said this morning, I appreciate that WWE wrestlers have a tough time with their travel schedules, and that they’re at the end of a long and exhausting European tour. But ignoring the people spend big money on merchandise and take a (sometimes lengthy) trip to come out and see them is just wrong, in my opinion. However, that line of thought only applies to official WWE signings. My take is that Batista was in the wrong for shunning fans at the Wolverhampton signing. There’s no denying that the security at some of these signings make life hard for everybody, but at an official event, any wrestler appearing does so as a representative of the company.
As for incidents at hotels, a gym, outside an arena after a show or elsewhere, in all honesty I don’t blame the wrestlers most of the time. With regards to the Mark Henry email we got, I’d like to be able to say it was Henry remaining in character and being a heel, but we know that likely isn’t the case. That said, after 2 weeks on the road, and at the end of a day that will have consisted of little sleep, a lot of the travel, and a show, I don’t blame the guy for not wanting to sign a few autographs late on a night.
I appreciate some fans will hang around outside the arenas after a show to get a photo, an autograph, or just to catch a glimpse of their favourite wrestler, and my take may seem harsh to some reading this. But if you’d clocked up thousands of miles and not slept in your bed for a few weeks (and barely had a good night’s sleep in weeks either), you’d be pretty cranky by that point as well. The official signings should be a perfect opportunity for you to get a picture and an autograph from the wrestlers. Hopefully the negative press this tour has created with regards to that will force WWE to ensure we don’t get similar situations during WWE’s next trip over here later in the year.
wrestlemag.com