Wrestling Needs A Main Story

 The Bloodline angle in WWE has been the hottest thing in the fed in the past three years, which started as simply Roman finally turning heel upon his return during the Thunderdome era in 2020 and cementing his legacy within the A'noai family. Has now morphed into a family mafia level drama full of twists and turns that has left us tuned in every week waiting for the next bombshell in the story. Now, the cracks in the armor have been shattered and a full blown civil war exists between The Usos and Roman and Solo. They will face off at Money In The Bank and I'm sure the story will continue through Summerslam.

One thing we do know is that this storyline has been damn good TV, even when it seems the story lulled a bit at certain points. Which brings me to a very important piece within pro wrestling...the story. Wrestling has several stories to pull from, good vs. evil, revenge tales, student vs. mentor, the lifelong journey to get to the top, the desire to be the best, jealousy, David vs. Goliath. You name the story, wrestling has found a way to incorporate it within their environment. 

Even through all of it, wrestling organizations need a primary storyline full of "characters" the fans care about and are willing to get invested in to really maximize the environment. Think about it? what are some of the best storylines fans have been invested in over the years. The Mega Powers imploding in WWF during the 1980's over jealousy.  The nWo hostile takeover between 1996 and early 1998, and Sting's mission to destroy them at all costs. 

Stone Cold's year's long battle against Vince McMahon and the establishment which spearheaded the attitude era which is still the most successful period in wrestling history. Even though Vince McMahon claims he didn't develop the Mr. McMahon character until the Montreal Screwjob, the tension between Vince McMahon and Stone Cold could be seen during the Summer of '97.

CM Punk's 2011 Summer of Punk against the establishment angle was a great storyline, until the leg's were cut out from under it. Chris Jericho and Shawn Michaels feud in 2008 which was a personal vendetta feud, built on cheating and proving a point. ECW's Tommy Dreamer vs Raven feud was a masterclass in pro wrestling storytelling.

Nexus appetite for destruction and tear down John Cena was a good storyline. Adam Page's conflicting relationship with fellow members of The Elite. Kenny Omega's current quest of wondering who can you trust? After Don Callis's betrayal. Cody's current quest to be world champion in the WWE. Steve Maclin's sudden rise in Impact. All great storylines, Even Goldberg's rise to the top of WCW was actually a good storyline. 

All of these angles were engaging, multi-layered and full of drama and anticipation, as the audience looked to what's going to happen next? 

Good storylines turn mid-carders into stars and stars into superstars. The drama of the story amplifies the in-ring dramatics during a match. It can even make the other stories in the drama of wrestling better.

Make no mistake about it, for all the performers, matches, championships and move sets the main storyline drives professional wrestling and whether fans tune in or not. Once The Bloodline story is complete, it'll be interesting to see the next main event storyline to steal the show.