Classic Wrestling Discussion: Part III & Wrestler Poll

[Transplanted Caper]

Watching an old show from 1991. God was Slaughter/Hogan awful. When you need Hulk to carry the actual wrestling......

 

[These Are The Days]

Matt Hardy V1 is the antithesis of Jericho's Rockstar gimmick. If I can remember 21 years later Matt Hardy likes lots of pulp in his orange juice you know you nailed the gimmick correctly. I am just praying for a face turn for Jericho at some point in the next 2 1/2 to 3 years because this is unforgivably bad. I know he was a heel feuding with Cena when he came to Raw in 2005 and I hope to God there was some sort of break. I'm probably going to stop watching by Mania 21 because way too much went wrong way too quickly after that and I'll expound on it more later. I got cable around then and I started losing interest in a hell of a hurry

I don't remember when Jericho made "Don't you wish you were me" but I'm not gonna survive this being a near 4 year gimmick. Where the hell is the JeriTron 79,450?

 

[These Are The Days]

My God Eddie is just roided out of his mind. The "backne" this guy has is off the charts

 

[CDJ]

How much of a perv was Vince for having that sable stuff written

 

[These Are The Days]

How much of a perv was Vince for having that sable stuff written

You won't find a bigger perv anywhere

 

[These Are The Days]

It's not a Survivor Series without a screw job. I haven't seen all of 2002 but watching Heyman dupe Lesnar never gets old.

I think Peacock ruined the Elimination Chamber and I am hella pissed. They always have some image of the following episode of Raw and a button for you to be able to select and go to it. I'm like 99% sure the still they selected was Shawn Michaels posing with his freshly won belt Though I managed to get out of Raw without seeing the still shot nor the automatic selection of the following episode of Raw, the damn Peacock menu had it right next to the Smackdown before Survivor Series

I am just praying I hallucinated because I have tried for 20 damn years to avoid spoilers like this

 

[Megahab]

Matt Hardy V1 is the antithesis of Jericho's Rockstar gimmick. If I can remember 21 years later Matt Hardy likes lots of pulp in his orange juice you know you nailed the gimmick correctly. I am just praying for a face turn for Jericho at some point in the next 2 1/2 to 3 years because this is unforgivably bad. I know he was a heel feuding with Cena when he came to Raw in 2005 and I hope to God there was some sort of break. I'm probably going to stop watching by Mania 21 because way too much went wrong way too quickly after that and I'll expound on it more later. I got cable around then and I started losing interest in a hell of a hurry

I don't remember when Jericho made "Don't you wish you were me" but I'm not gonna survive this being a near 4 year gimmick. Where the hell is the JeriTron 79,450?

He was lost for a while after winning the Undisputed title but 2003 heel Jericho was pretty entertaining.

 

[These Are The Days]

He was lost for a while after winning the Undisputed title but 2003 heel Jericho was pretty entertaining.

I'll take your word on it and look forward to it then. I think my problem with heel Jericho is that for his entire career up to this point his gimmick was not taking anything seriously. Even as a heel he had a good sense of humor about things like calling himself a bad mamma jamma. Now? Dude breathes and it's like "IT WAS THE GREATEST BREATH ANY MAN HAS EVER TAKEN. I AM MORE OXYGENATED THAN YOU ASS CLOWNS EVER WILL BE! IMKINGOFTHEWORLD!" It's entertaining for a couple of weeks and then turns into something that reminds you of a bad rash

Other thoughts


Just finished Survivor Series. Yeah. I'm not happy that Peacock spoiled my results with that still of HBK posing with his freshly won title for the November 18th 2002 episode of Raw. I'm extra miffed because I somehow at some point accidentally learned HHH beats HBK in their hell in a cell match too. Oh well I might as well get over it. I gotta give Shawn credit for being able to whip himself into shape and come back like that at the time. He's still a near 5 star performer. The pop from the MSG crowd was great though

And I just realized I'm gonna get a sermon worthy of church from HHH as soon as I start Raw. Now that he's not champion anyway. Uggghhhh

 

[Unholy Diver]

My classic WWE watchthru has rolled into Wrestlemania 15

Butterbean just knocked the soul out of Bart Gunn, pretty much ending his WWE career

 

[Unholy Diver]

And Big Show KO's Vince, is this his first turn, just 4-5 weeks into his WWE tenure?

 

[These Are The Days]

I haven't started watching anything yet since Survivor Series 2002 yet but my one hope going forward is that Golddust keeps making funny movie parodies. His Crocodile Hunter skit, "Mini Dust" and joking about Home Alone in order to convince Booker T to tag with him left me in stitches. It's one of the few times Raw genuinely entertained me with nightly shenanigans

Also, sounds like WWE realized Reverend D-Von wasn't working anymore so they just sent him back to Raw. They made him Vince's spiritual advisor and then got rid of Vince. To be honest breaking up the Dudley's made no sense to begin with. Jeff Hardy feels kind of lost to be honest too. Matt Hardy V1 is at least a likeable shtick

Also they need to get Cena on the Thuganomics program already. I got Cole over here doing 2 weeks of scripted remarks about how he's lost in the 80's in order to get the gimmick over but he's only rapped once and still comes out dressed like a be a pro template in a video game. WWE is not doing this guy any favors like at all

 

[These Are The Days]

Oh yeah I almost forgot the best meme of Survivor Series. Steiner is in a ring for 10 seconds and already botches with "GIMMEDUHf***INMIC!" and King can only just laugh it off like "Uh oh" I don't know if WWE fixed that or Peacock but it's hilarious how in a world where WWF nonsense existed, THAT is what got edited out

And Big Show KO's Vince, is this his first turn, just 4-5 weeks into his WWE tenure?

Was he champ yet? I can't remember anymore

 

[These Are The Days]

I am so happy. Batista killed Kane in defense of Ric Flair and we have our first sign of Evolution. Big Show is finally acting like a giant and is rightfully a champion again. D-Von isn't lost anymore being reunited with Bubba. Raw has a big name tag team. Although the Reverend gimmick had potential D-Von could never save it because of how poorly written it was. Big Poppa Pump is a genetic dump truck of LOL's. It's gonna be fun watching Brock kill every heel on Smackdown for the next several weeks until he wins the Rumble. I'm gonna mark out when **MY** Olympic Hero not only becomes champion again but is supported by the world's greatest tag team

 

[CDJ]

Best WWE tags from 2000-2010

WGTT, Eddie + Tajiri, London + Kendrick, La Resistance

Then everybody else

 

[These Are The Days]

Best WWE tags from 2000-2010

WGTT, Eddie + Tajiri, London + Kendrick, La Resistance

Then everybody else

I don't necessarily disagree with anyone on that list but Edge and Christian along with the Hardys and Dudleys need to be added onto that list. Eddie and Mysterio were very good together too

 

[CDJ]

I don't necessarily disagree with anyone on that list but Edge and Christian along with the Hardys and Dudleys need to be added onto that list. Eddie and Mysterio were very good together too

I should’ve made it post-attitude era because those are all great/obvious choices

 

[These Are The Days]

I should’ve made it post-attitude era because those are all great/obvious choices

I think it was by default anyway. Those were all good choices, none of which I'd take down. La Resistance was underrated

 

[These Are The Days]

I've heard Chris Jericho talk about how Vince wanted him and Christian running around buck ass naked all the way down to the arena after getting their clothes stolen because he thought it was funny. Jericho shoots it down and Vince is all "Well dammit we gotta do SOMETHING!!" as if these poor blokes being naked is the only possible option.Vince is freaking sick.

Them being in towels was a much needed compromise that was genuinely entertaining. I didn't hate it. Jericho is a genius

 

[These Are The Days]

Dude. Stephanie has lost her f***ing mind. I knew Big Show tried to kill Moolah but I don't remember it was because Stephanie got pissed about South Carolina booing her over suspending Lesnar; so the best she could do was feed the hometown geriatric to a giant. I really hope this was just a one night thing because one heel GM on Raw is enough as it is. And I am struggling knowing that this incredible honeymoon is gonna crash and burn by SummerSlam 2003 with Smackdown being (at times) close to unwatchable with Vince in charge. There's that sicko father/daughter match shit and Lesnar throwing Zach Gowen down a flight of stairs and killing him in front of his mom. God that heel turn was on par with WCW Austin as one of the worst I've ever seen. I gotta watch it again and hope I have more sympathy this time.

I'm pretty sure "Aunt Flo" as Stephanie said is the problem here and it needs to be. She is probably the one sane, *ACTUALLY* good GM WWF/WWE has had in the 5 1/2 years of programming I have watched.

 

[These Are The Days]

That awkward moment when I can't be so sure that the 400lb Rosey isn't more athletic than his brother Roman

 

[These Are The Days]

Oh my God. Billy Kidman is over. I mean f***ing **OVER** y'all. It started with him literally saying "The fans don't know who I am" right after the brand extension to near deafening applause when he hits the shooting star. I think switching his music to that hip hop theme he has really did him a favor. It's instantly recognizable, it's charismatic and it somehow fits.

And speaking of hip hop, after a month since he first spit a rhyme on Halloween, John Cena finally ditched his create a pro tightie whities and is having a rap battle with Rikishi. Jesus Christ they HATE Cena out there. I can't remember the last time a switch in gimmick worked so quickly and effectively. Probably the New Age Outlaws. They dressed up like trailer park trash, Vince let Road Dogg have a live microphone and rip on whatever city they were in and the rest is literally history. I'm not surprised how well this is working for Cena right now because he's basically doing the exact same thing but with rapping. Honorable mention to Ron Simmons being able to pull off a black panther gimmick to a heavy for the Undertaker to a bar room brawler. Every time he switched he got over immediately.


But anyway, new Tribal Chief confirmed. I am so happy right now it's not even funny.



Oh my God Cena said the "R" word that describes the mentally challenged. This dude would get cancelled so fast now lol

 

[Unholy Diver]

Oh my God. Billy Kidman is over. I mean f***ing **OVER** y'all. It started with him literally saying "The fans don't know who I am" right after the brand extension to near deafening applause when he hits the shooting star. I think switching his music to that hip hop theme he has really did him a favor. It's instantly recognizable, it's charismatic and it somehow fits.

And speaking of hip hop, after a month since he first spit a rhyme on Halloween, John Cena finally ditched his create a pro tightie whities and is having a rap battle with Rikishi. Jesus Christ they HATE Cena out there. I can't remember the last time a switch in gimmick worked so quickly and effectively. Probably the New Age Outlaws. They dressed up like trailer park trash, Vince let Road Dogg have a live microphone and rip on whatever city they were in and the rest is literally history. I'm not surprised how well this is working for Cena right now because he's basically doing the exact same thing but with rapping. Honorable mention to Ron Simmons being able to pull off a black panther gimmick to a heavy for the Undertaker to a bar room brawler. Every time he switched he got over immediately.


But anyway, new Tribal Chief confirmed. I am so happy right now it's not even funny.



Oh my God Cena said the "R" word that describes the mentally challenged. This dude would get cancelled so fast now lol

I've been amazed how much they have thrown that word around in reference to Kane in 98-99

 

[These Are The Days]

I hereby declare that Smackdown is entering its hip hop era. This is the best WWE has ever been.

I've been amazed how much they have thrown that word around in reference to Kane in 98-99

It was grotesque and overboard. It takes a lot to offend me but the constant verbal abuse of Kane is the closest thing to legitimately outraged.

 

[These Are The Days]

NO! NO STEPH! NOT THE BOOM SHACKALAKA! YOU CAN'T GO BREAKING PROMISES TO THE BIG BAD BOOTY DADDY! AWWW DAMN!

PS- Victoria is queen. Victoria is life.

Also welcome back Albert. Always been high on him. Also, I'm pretty sure Benoit just set the record for the single longest tweener stage ever

 

[Toothless Legend]

Keeping on my Mega Powers rewatch. Other takeaways from 1988:
-In hindsight, knowing the results, Wrestlemania 4 was borrrring. I know high work rate matches were few and far between in this era and in-ring stalwarts like DiBiase and Savage had multiple matches, but not a single match itself stood out as halfway decent. Even Steamboat/Valentine was pretty bad. The tournament format also zapped a lot of story potential from nearly all matches. Beyond the Andre/Hogan rematch and Dibiase/Savage in the finals, very little thought went into the rest of the matchups. Missed opportunity for sure.
-Speaking of Steamboat, I know he took time off right after WM3 (which led to him dropping the title to HTM immediately), so maybe he was rusty in early 1988, but his match against a VERY green Rick Rude at the Rumble was also pretty awful. Two stinkers in a row at big time shows coming off a first of its kind classic <1 year earlier kinda makes me feel like he's a bit overrated based on WM3 and his Flair saga overshadowing the rest of his repertoire. Maybe it's better to characterize him as a good dance partner, but one who can't lead.
-We finally get the Ultimate Warrior, and holy hell is he green af. Obviously everyone's seen his super short IC title victory (and we know why it was so short), but he really has no clue what he's doing out there and it's surprising that his career wasn't derailed with a couple broken necks (of opponents). Hard to fault him since he's making a living. Feels very irresponsible of Vince, but a lot of guys were just botch machines back then. I think a lot of the old school, body builder tough guys just didn't have respect for doing things safely and it really shines a light on how far ahead of his time someone like Bret was even back then, amidst all the cavemen.
-Summerslam 88: The secret weapon is Elizabeth ripping her skirt off to show panties and "distract" the Mega Bucks, leading to the win. It's amazing how the whole spectacle of it all just causes DiBiase and Andre to freeze, without much actual reaction. Would have been a nicer touch if they showed a bit of male interest--but alas, this is WWF in the 80s and one of the first times they touched on selling sex, so I can't expect much I suppose.
-We get the terrific angle where Andre's deathly afraid of snakes and Jake exploits it as Andre's first true Achilles heel (ever?). Great work by Andre, at a time when he couldn't do much.
-Survivor Series was much better than the prior year. Definitely some lessons learned, although still ran out a 10 team tag match, which is just far too many fn wrestlers to be on the ringside apron. At least we got a mustachioed (and soon to be gone) Dynamite Kid hitting what's gotta be on of the first tombstone piledrivers and Bret, eliminating himself with a rare German suplex where he pinned himself (maybe this is how he learned to avoid doing this at WM6 vs. Piper).
-Jesse the Body Ventura continues to be the MVP of almost everything he does. He adds in little touches which add to the narrative so well, which I think only Heenan could replicate. Like when Elizabeth is trying to get into a KO'd Slick's pants pocket for the handcuff key to unlock Hogan, Ventura's going on about how Elizabeth's trying to steal Slick's wallet. Spiritual successor to Heenan spinning the barbershop window as Jannetty trying to jump through the window to get away from Shawn. Chef's kiss!