There's Just One Problem...: True Tales from the Former, One-Time, 7th Most Powerful Person in WWE

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After talking to Dwayne about it, we were like, “How do we take the success of Dark Side of the Ring and translate it into another docuseries but not focus on the dark of it?” There's also so many great, crazy, fun stories, especially with the territories in the 70s and 80s. Each region had its own empire, basically, and so many of these amazing stories are only known within wrestling circles and inner circles. With Dwayne having his dad and his grandfather as wrestlers, and having been both in the Hall of Fame, and his grandmother being the first female promoter in Hawaii, he is instilled with the stories of the territories. Brian grew up wanting to follow in his uncle’s steps of becoming a television script writer. After a couple of failed shows, Brian falls into becoming the lead writer of WWE at the height of the Monday Night Wars. Brian shares many of his job details, the history of major WWE storylines, and behind the scenes stories. Side note : I didn’t realise that it wasn’t Bryan himself on the audiobook until the very end. Well done to the narrator for making it believable enough for me to think it was actually the author! I helped Evan and Jason based on my relationships with some of the wrestlers. I reached out to one of my heroes and one of Dwayne's heroes as well, Bret “The Hitman” Hart, because we needed him if we were going to do an episode on the Calgary Stampede territory. And part of the reason he wanted to come on the show was because we got Abdullah the Butcher to be on the show—there's not nearly enough television shows with Abdullah the Butcher talking. With untold stories from a career spanning over 15 years and featuring the biggest names and controversial moments in wrestling history, THERE'S JUST ONE PROBLEM is an honest, unflinching look on how an introverted life-long fan unexpectedly became one the most powerful men in all of professional wrestling.

As a life long pro-wrestling fan, I was excited to dive into “There’s Just One Problem…” by Brian Gewirtz. Considering he was the head writer for WWE for over a decade and one of Vince McMahon’s inner circle, I had some pretty high expectations. Now that I’ve finished the surprisingly brisk memoir, I have to say I found it pretty mid. It’s not bad, mind you. I just expected more, and frankly that wasn’t the only disappointment I had during my experience. I mean, Randy Orton WAS Sabretooth. John Cena WAS Wolverine. Their battles were epic. But behind much of this narrative were writers like Gewirtz, scripting the story to maximize impact, and, above all, generate fan interest which translates into profits. And boy, did WWE succeed in that endeavor. BOOK REVIEW: There’s Just One Problem – True Tales from the Former, One-Time, 7th Most Powerful Person in the WWE The CEO is IN IT, too. Not sitting somewhere else figuring stuff out like it’s an abstract thing - we’re talking headphones on, papers in hand, CONTROLLING things.The only thing that didn’t resonate with me is that there are quite lot of American tv references that I just didn’t get, similar to Justin Roberts’s book. In fact, as a whole this is a very similar experience to Justin’s effort, which isn’t a bad thing at all, both are great! The truly fascinating moments in this book involve Vince McMahon. With all the recent news surrounding the former CEO of WWE, Gewirtz' peak behind the curtain shows just how endlessly challenging it was working for a man who always insists he is right. While there are a few stories collected in here that have certainly made the rounds over the years (having to completely rewrite shows from the ground up at the drop of a hat), there are others that will make your head spin. If you're a life-long watcher of WWE, you're likely well aware of Vince McMahon's penchant for toilet-humor (vomiting, farting, etc). In one of his first meetings with Brian, Vince told him that WWE "doesn't do comedy, we do humor" and that "there's nothing funnier than someone stepping in dogshit. If I could, I'd write a whole show on peopling stepping in dogshit, I would." Speaks volumes for what we've seen on TV for decades. Gewirtz is set to release his book "There's Just One Problem...True Tales from the Former, One-Time, 7th Most Powerful Person in WWE" on August 16 detailing some behind the scenes stories from his time in the company. The truly fascinating moments in this book involve Vince McMahon. With all the recent news surrounding the former CEO of WWE, Gewirtz’s peek behind the curtain shows just how endlessly challenging it was working for a man who always insists he is right. While there are a few stories collected in here that have certainly made the rounds over the years (having to completely rewrite shows from the ground up at the drop of a hat), there are others that will make your head spin. If you’re a life-long watcher of WWE, you’re likely well aware of Vince McMahon’s penchant for toilet humor (vomiting, farting, etc). In one of his first meetings with Brian, Vince told him that WWE “doesn’t do comedy, we do humor” and that “there’s nothing funnier than someone stepping in dogshit. If I could, I’d write a whole show on people stepping in dogshit, I would.” Speaks volumes about what we’ve seen on TV for decades.

In There's Just One Problem, former WWE head writer Brian Gewirtz tells of a contentious meeting with Vince McMahon that ultimately soured their then decade-plus working relationship. With RAW taking place in Miami that night, Brian pitched a line surrounding Dwayne Wade, then superstar player for the NBA's Miami Heat, for The Miz to use to rile up the local crowd. Unaware of who Dwyane Wade is, Vince dismissed the line essentially saying that because Vince himself isn't aware of who Dwayne Wade is, then no one else would be.

The other issue I had which is entirely a me thing and not Gewirtz’s fault is I already knew a lot of the revelations he shared due to being perpetually on the internet for the majority of my life and learning about these things in real time. There are a few instances in the book where I learned new information by reading about it from his side, but I’d say 70% of the information I gained was nothing new to me, so I spent a good portion of the book bored and ready for the next chapter. Vince always encouraged Brian to fight for his ideas but if he ever had a disagreement with Vince himself, Brian would never win, which is what ultimately damaged their working relationship. Brian knew he couldn’t win in an argument based on what should or shouldn’t be on television, but even after years and years of loyal service, Vince still would only listen to himself and if he didn’t get what Brian presented, it didn’t go on the show. I can only imagine how frustrating this can be for someone who knows the product inside and out and has proven time and time again to be of considerable value.