Extinct Wrestling Concepts (That need to be resurrected)
Chapter One: Permanent Tag Teams
#PWHS #Article #ExtinctWrestlingConcepts #EWC #TagTeams
May 6, 1987 - Richmond Review
When I started watching professional wrestling in 1968, categories and characters were much more clearly defined. There were heroes; there were villains. There were seasoned veterans; there were rookies. There were stars and there were the "losers" (guys who specialized in doing jobs-who often were far more talented than the people that they put over).
There were singles competitors and there were tag teams. The best tag teams were usually composed of two guys who stayed together for all or for a long period of their careers. The Fabulous Kangaroos; The Golden Grahams; The Tolos Brothers; The Scotts; The Torres Brothers. All legendary names in wrestling history-all tag teams whose members (arguably) are more strongly remembered for their tag team successes than for any singles accomplishments.
The entire concept of a solid tag team was that these guys wrestled exclusively in tag matches. If they did appear in a singles bout, it was usually to set up an angle for an upcoming series with another team. They were seen as a unit. You didn't think of Red Bastien without also thinking of his "brother" Lou (Klein). Miguel Perez immediately was followed by Antonino Rocca. The Fabulous Fargos. In the 1940's and 1950's this was the standard in United States Professional Wrestling.
In the 1960's and 1970's the trend continued, albeit with some modifications. Top singles stars would become tag teams, and dominate the competition. The Bruiser and Da' Crusher; Verne Gagne and Leo Nomellini; Bruno Sammartino and Antonio Pugliese. These teams did not tag together for one match, they were a regular tag team that also wrestled singles matches. The standard tag team was still thriving as well. The Blackjacks; The Vachons; Fuji and Tanaka; Shibuya and Saito; The Medics; The Infernos. Every territory had at least one or two long standing teams that were solely identified as a unit.
Then it started to die.
The death can be traced to Vince McMahon. He is said to have considered tag teams to be somewhat passé. Suddenly any two guys could be paired and start competing for titles. In almost every episode of modern wrestling, two guys have a beef and get interrupted by two other guys-and voila! You have a main event of all four in a tag team match. The underlying message is that *anyone* can be a tag team with little effort or preparation. The idea of a tag team as an unbreakable unit started to weaken.
Next came a shift in purpose. "Let's team these two guys for a while; give them the belts...and then have them feud in about a year." Tag teams became a means to start storyline feuds. The tag team stopped being an entity unto itself, and simply became a means to a different end. The Rockers, The Hart Foundation, The Bulldogs-all of these classic teams eventually ended up feuding. Tag teams were now used for building one of the team to eventually be a headliner as a single.
There were singles competitors and there were tag teams. The best tag teams were usually composed of two guys who stayed together for all or for a long period of their careers. The Fabulous Kangaroos; The Golden Grahams; The Tolos Brothers; The Scotts; The Torres Brothers. All legendary names in wrestling history-all tag teams whose members (arguably) are more strongly remembered for their tag team successes than for any singles accomplishments.
The entire concept of a solid tag team was that these guys wrestled exclusively in tag matches. If they did appear in a singles bout, it was usually to set up an angle for an upcoming series with another team. They were seen as a unit. You didn't think of Red Bastien without also thinking of his "brother" Lou (Klein). Miguel Perez immediately was followed by Antonino Rocca. The Fabulous Fargos. In the 1940's and 1950's this was the standard in United States Professional Wrestling.
In the 1960's and 1970's the trend continued, albeit with some modifications. Top singles stars would become tag teams, and dominate the competition. The Bruiser and Da' Crusher; Verne Gagne and Leo Nomellini; Bruno Sammartino and Antonio Pugliese. These teams did not tag together for one match, they were a regular tag team that also wrestled singles matches. The standard tag team was still thriving as well. The Blackjacks; The Vachons; Fuji and Tanaka; Shibuya and Saito; The Medics; The Infernos. Every territory had at least one or two long standing teams that were solely identified as a unit.
Then it started to die.
The death can be traced to Vince McMahon. He is said to have considered tag teams to be somewhat passé. Suddenly any two guys could be paired and start competing for titles. In almost every episode of modern wrestling, two guys have a beef and get interrupted by two other guys-and voila! You have a main event of all four in a tag team match. The underlying message is that *anyone* can be a tag team with little effort or preparation. The idea of a tag team as an unbreakable unit started to weaken.
Next came a shift in purpose. "Let's team these two guys for a while; give them the belts...and then have them feud in about a year." Tag teams became a means to start storyline feuds. The tag team stopped being an entity unto itself, and simply became a means to a different end. The Rockers, The Hart Foundation, The Bulldogs-all of these classic teams eventually ended up feuding. Tag teams were now used for building one of the team to eventually be a headliner as a single.
February 9, 1960 - Santa Cruz Sentinel
The final nail in the coffin was the rise of the factions. From the Four Horsemen to the N.W.O., to the Nation of Domination to The Shield. Unity now came in the form of a lot of different wrestlers all partaking in gang attacks. The last of the true tag teams-like The Midnight Express died off, and gangs became the norm for "teams".
There were a few holdouts. The Dudleys come to mind immediately. However, even the Dudleys were split for extended periods and feuded. Classic tag teams would never have split, much less feuded. It was a new world and one that wasn't necessarily better.
Look at the top tag teams now. How many of them have been teaming exclusively, or at least regularly for more than three years? Five years? Dare I ask...seven years? Tag teams today are a part-time enterprise. That isn't right.
The classic concept of the full-time, fully committed tag team needs to return to wrestling. Why? Simple. If done correctly, tag team matches can be just as compelling and entertaining as their singles counterparts...sometimes even more entertaining.
Imagine two guys that work together like cogs in a well-oiled machine. They truly work as a team. Every move, every maneuver every piece of action takes advantage of the fact that there are two guys working as one. No individual programs; no feuds with each other; no splitting them up. Imagine a roster full of pairs working exclusively as teams. Much as WWE's "205 Live" is a vehicle for the lighter weight wrestlers, imagine the competition and matches that could come from tag team divisions that are made entirely of *teams*.
Furthermore, in a practical sense. putting undercard guys in permanent teams would give more people a chance to shine and more people a chance to get much needed exposure. With so many guys just sitting idle on major company's rosters, a permanent tag team division would give a lot of workers a purpose, rather than just a downside guarantee. Think of merchandise sales alone. There is a lot of money on the table being passed over.
Agree? Disagree? Don't care?
There were a few holdouts. The Dudleys come to mind immediately. However, even the Dudleys were split for extended periods and feuded. Classic tag teams would never have split, much less feuded. It was a new world and one that wasn't necessarily better.
Look at the top tag teams now. How many of them have been teaming exclusively, or at least regularly for more than three years? Five years? Dare I ask...seven years? Tag teams today are a part-time enterprise. That isn't right.
The classic concept of the full-time, fully committed tag team needs to return to wrestling. Why? Simple. If done correctly, tag team matches can be just as compelling and entertaining as their singles counterparts...sometimes even more entertaining.
Imagine two guys that work together like cogs in a well-oiled machine. They truly work as a team. Every move, every maneuver every piece of action takes advantage of the fact that there are two guys working as one. No individual programs; no feuds with each other; no splitting them up. Imagine a roster full of pairs working exclusively as teams. Much as WWE's "205 Live" is a vehicle for the lighter weight wrestlers, imagine the competition and matches that could come from tag team divisions that are made entirely of *teams*.
Furthermore, in a practical sense. putting undercard guys in permanent teams would give more people a chance to shine and more people a chance to get much needed exposure. With so many guys just sitting idle on major company's rosters, a permanent tag team division would give a lot of workers a purpose, rather than just a downside guarantee. Think of merchandise sales alone. There is a lot of money on the table being passed over.
Agree? Disagree? Don't care?
Unique content strictly for the Professional Wrestling Historical Society.
Extinct Wrestling Concepts: Chapter One.
Author: Harry Grover.
Published: April 2, 2018.
Article: #188.
Editor: Jimmy Wheeler.
Extinct Wrestling Concepts: Chapter One.
Author: Harry Grover.
Published: April 2, 2018.
Article: #188.
Editor: Jimmy Wheeler.
Extinct Wrestling Concepts: Chapter Two - Read Here.
Other articles by Harry can be Read Here.