Eric Bischoff is no stranger to an authority role on wrestling programming. You could even call him an expert on it.
With the new era of Monday Night Raw and Smackdown! Live there has already been drastic changes in part due to the new general managers of their respective brands. Mick Foley and Daniel Bryan set the tone for RAW and Smackdown! Live this past week, showing on both shows that anything can happen. Eric Bischoff who spent a portion of his time as general manager of RAW recently weighed in on how the two are doing on his podcast.
"I like them both, a lot," Bischoff said. "Obviously with Mick Foley I have a long standing relationship. I know him personally and professionally pretty well. Daniel Bryan I don?t know personally but I do know based on what I?ve seen, read and how he?s conduct himself in interviews that I have a ton of respect for him. I think you?ve got two great guys who are going to represent the industry very, very well. Who are both passionate about the industry. Both very talented. The challenge I see and I am going to be fascinated to see how this plays out over the next 3-6 months or even a year. You?ve got two guys that are really likable guys. You don?t have an antagonist and protagonist thing going on there. From a pure storytelling perspective it?s going to be interesting to see how that evolves. I don?t think Mick Foley based on the way I know him professionally and personally? I?m not sure he would ever feel comfortable in the role of an antagonist or heel. It?s going to be interesting to see how that plays out."
Bischoff noted that while some are sick of the idea of authoritative entities on pro wrestling shows, it's not a new concept by any means. Bischoff pointed as commissioners and referees as other forms of enforcement, as well.
"People talk often about how, ?Oh! We have too many authority figures! Why does it always have to be an authority figure?? Authority figures have always existed in professional wrestling. They were called commissioners before. You also had referees who actually had control and could have a serious impact on the decision of a match from a storytelling perspective. Those days are gone," said Bischoff. "You still need to have that structure of an authority figure to help tell that story and advance a storyline. It?s going to be interesting to see how this one evolves when you?ve got two really likable characters. I can?t imagine either one of them would necessarily embrace being a heel."
You can check out Bischoff's podcast at this link.
By Ryan Cook