Zack Ryder and One Note Characters

An awesome moment, whether he's one-note or not.
Photo Credit: WWE.com

Zack Ryder won the Smackdown general manager battle royale Tuesday night when he finally gave Kane the comeuppance he had coming to him for months and months. For those of us who have been clamoring for more Ryder in our lives, this was red meat, and for more than just the result. Ryder showed why he's so highly regarded by his most passionate fans when he emoted like he just won WrestleMania at the finish of the match. That's just a small sampling of what Ryder can do.

Still, people look at him and claim he's a "one note character". There's truth to that accusation. Long Island Ice Z is kind of one dimensional. He fist bumps, he goes woo-woo-woo and he spikes his hair. On the surface, there's not a lot he can do with that character (although I would argue that any character has room to show growth as long as they can act like a human being and not a cybernetic automaton that's only capable of spouting a catchphrase and doing five moves of doom). That being said, how much of that note has been played? There's a certain mileage that a character can get out of one note, and Ryder's stardom has been short lived while sandwiched between two periods of prolonged ignominy. However, arguing about when the expiration date on Long Island Ice Z to me feels like an exercise in pedantry.

The thing about one note characters is that they're different than one note performers. Ryder's character is shallow and could be played out. As a performer, he's shown that he could be an entertaining character if he were allowed to evolve. Characters evolve by being put into stories. Will the Smackdown GM trial next week turn into something for him long term? I have no idea. It could, but knowing WWE, it probably won't. That being said, why is it bad to get excited for him to have a moment?

Even if he was just destined to be the same guy his entire career, there are more than a few characters who have skated on similar, shallow characters. Not everyone has to have super upward mobility. While I feel like Ryder could make the main event some day thanks to his natural charisma and underrated wrestling ability, if he's fist pumping and calling people broskis his entire career, and that career isn't over within the year, then what's wrong with it?