I firmly believe that one of the biggest reasons for WWE's lack of star power, promo ability, and storytelling today is the long tenure of John Laurinaitis in talent relations. For nearly ten years, the talents acquired by WWE were short on charisma, short of speaking ability, and short on "performing" the way a pro wrestler should.

In short, they were athletes. Or big guys. Or unique looking guys. Look was king. Athleticism was key. Charisma was optional. Passion wasn't even a factor. And that's not a huge misstep by Laurinaitis at all, that's just old-school thinking. The territories' bread and butter were men who were spectacles, so long as the booker could protect them accordingly.

But that is no longer the case. As wrestling has evolved, look has become less important. The internet alone has caused even the layest of men to see all kinds of physical specimens, from the Adonis to the freak. And even without the internet, the business alone took care of this issue. Once we all saw Big Show, no giant could ever compare. And sure enough, the Great Khali, who was bigger, was worth no more than a handful of PPV matches. "Will Cena/Undertaker/Batista/Big Show/Triple H/Jeff Hardy be able to beat this big man?" Yes. And they weren't even good or fun matches because Khali could barely walk and we all knew it. Compare that to Big Show's impact on the business. Or Andre's. Or even Yokozuna's.

In addition, WWE has not held up their end of the bargain. Their job was to book talents well, I.E. hide their flaws, accentuate their talents. And they didn't. They still don't. Roman Reigns is not a very good talker, he cuts massive promos constantly. Bray Wyatt's character is entirely reliant on his being a threat both physically and psychologically, nobody has felt any lasting effects from a run-in with him.

Compare that to the Undertaker. When he started, he was a big guy without an ounce of promo ability. So they protected him. Gave him a manager and a gimmick that he could lean on to fill his gaps as a performer. He went all the way to the top, learned his craft, and cut some pretty good promos later in his career. And now, years and years at this point, the shades of his gimmick that he originally relied on are mostly absent. No Paul Bearer, no dead stare, no zombie-esque behavior, no slow-trudging in the ring, no mindless monster, etc. Now, he's just a guy like any other, with a really cool entrance and some great signature mannerisms. Today? He wouldn't be protected and he'd possibly wash out. Probably not, because Undertaker has something far too many wrestlers don't: Passion.

So for years and years Laurinaitis and all of talent relations are picking up guys, most of whom have never watched wrestling in their life, and handing them to a WWE that is very low on smoke and mirrors. And even the markiest of marks can see through a lot of the talents walking out. They can see guys being nervous as they pick up a microphone, hear their voices shake as they speak, etc. And those guys may be dynamite in the ring, but it's not the moves that sell tickets, it's the stories. As Vince McMahon himself has said "We make movies." But the guys out there are not storytellers, they are athletes.

They do not understand the business they are in. They understand that they put on good matches, they hit big moves, they get the crowds to pop, and they think that's a job well done. It's not. Because nobody cares if it doesn't mean anything. I've seen a Red Arrow, I've seen Rey Mysterio in his prime, no high-flyer will ever impress me ever again, but they can still make me feel something. And that's what stays with people. The feelings. The joy, the sadness, the anger, the triumphs. That's what brings people to these shows. That's what makes all those moves stay with us.

John Laurinaitis is by no stretch of the imagination a bad guy. Nor is he entirely to blame. His thinking was just dated and WWE's booking did not bail him out. Because it can't anymore. You can't keep people from seeing that the Great Khali can barely walk. The people see everything now. Great workers are a dime a dozen. Strong guys, big guys, fast guys, athletic guys are a dime a dozen. But great speakers? Great performers? Great storytellers? Those are very hard to find. And it's those qualities that take a guy like CM Punk, who was not big and didn't have much of a body, seem larger than life. Punk was hired to fill WWE's ECW brand, because his look was perfect for it. But I think it's safe to say that CM Punk won't be remembered for his look.

WWE doesn't have many storytellers today. Very few guys are decent public speakers and even less are decent promos. People can blame that on scripting talent, but scripts only exist because talents need them. Triple H has headed talent relations for the past couple of years and he has picked up all kinds of indie talent as well as create a brand with proper, protective booking. But that's not enough. A lot of the indie talent that comes in has the same problems that the old talent did. Many of them are poor speakers (Cesaro, Neville, Finn Balor), match quality is king, and cool moves reign supreme. Selling is rare, spots are heavy, and less is never considered more.

Progress is progress, and progress has undoubtedly been made. But while others here have hoped that the proper booking of NXT will someday be promoted to the main roster, I've found myself more worried about what WWE looks for in a talent. Because I hear it often. "This guy has all the tools to be a star." What tools? Who is the total package?

Is it Roman Reigns? Is it Brock Lesnar? Is it Apollo Crews? Is it Lex Luger? Is it Randy Orton? Is it Sting? Warrior? Hart? Taker? Austin? Michaels? HHH?

The truth is, it's the Rock. It's Ric Flair. It's Hulk Hogan. It's Stone Cold Steve Austin. It's John Cena. That's what the total package looks like. There's one thing all top guys could do, and that's talk. Despite their different roles, despite their different eras, the one universal truth to professional wrestling is that it's a work. Shoot fights have moves. Shoot fights have great bodies. And athletes. And big guys. And great matches. But they don't always have stories. That's the key difference. You can tell stories in pro wrestling that a boxing match never could. And the way you do that, is with guys who can go out there and sell that story, not just with their actions, but their words.

TL;DR: For far too long, WWE has been about athletes pretending to be entertainers, but professional wrestling has always been about entertainers pretending to be athletes. And now WWE is suffering the consequences of that decision.