Rewatching WCW

[air_raid]

On 3/15/2021 at 8:24 PM, wandshogun09 said:

Early 90s though. The days of Hogan ruling the world with a mighty leg drop, Piper using the sleeper, Shawn using a bog standard back suplex etc.

Bit harsh, that. The elevation and throw that Shawn managed to get with his err, reach-around, gave some of the best ones a look more in common with an Olympic Slam than a plain belly to back. He was no Dr Death, but I think we’re doing him a disservice there. Apart from some of the ones on fat jobbers that he couldn’t really lift.

Im tempted to say it’s no wonder he switched to using the superkick (thanks, Chico) as the best finishers are ones are you can hit on anyone, but to be honest sometimes that’s an extra layer of intrigue to matches. I remember as a kid thinking “How is Bret supposed to get the Sharpshooter on Yokozuna with his tree trunk legs” in the build to Mania IX. Better still, after years of the Undertaker finishing fatties with a choke slam, I jumped out of my seat when he Tombstoned Vader at Canadian Stampede.

[tiger_rick]

Watching World War 3 1997 and Heenan says, about Saturn, "Now he's got a belt" and then immediately corrects it to "He's got a Championship". I can't decide if it's a coincidence or Heenan had been brainwashed by Vince even then.

[tiger_rick]

On 3/28/2021 at 10:14 PM, tiger_rick said:

Watching World War 3 1997 and Heenan says, about Saturn, "Now he's got a belt" and then immediately corrects it to "He's got a Championship". I can't decide if it's a coincidence or Heenan had been brainwashed by Vince even then.

I know World War 3 battle royals are famous for being clusterfucks but the last few minutes of this show feature some of the dumbest stuff that just kills the commentators. This isn't one of the multiple commentary team shows, it's just Heenan, Tenay and Skiavone. They do alright trying to see the action in three rings at once for the most part. There's not that much to see, really, it's just a mass of bodies and eliminations. The only thing that piques the crowd is Scott Hall nearly being eliminated which they go ape for. The rule is that the last 5 in each ring will form one huge match. The ring with The Giant in gets down to 5 so they stop working. The commentators don't notice. They say something about how the action in that ring has slowed but no explanation to the viewers that it's down to 5 so they're essentially waiting. The same happens in the other non-nWo ring. The commentators finally cotton on and explain. However it seems someone had decided that they were going to have a 5 on 5 WCW vs. nWo stand off so for no real reason, The Giant then gets jumped and eliminates the other 4 in his ring and someone gets thrown out of the middle one. The commentators aren't well briefed so just pretty much say what they see.

Then it's 5 on 5 and eventually comes down to 2 on 1, Giant and DDP vs. Hall when the nWo music hits and we wait on #60 finally entering the match. They plug that it's Nash who was announced beforehand. Instead, it's a surprise Hogan appearance - Did that cost them his $300,000 PPV bonus??? Sting then drops from the rafters. This "Sting" is massive. He's also got fair hair. He steps over the top rope. The commentators MENTION that he just stepped over the top rope. Hulk Hogan feigns fear and eliminates himself. He then jokes with a fan at ringside while we're all still in suspense. "Sting" then whacks The Giant with the bat and eliminates him. There is absolutely no suggestion from the commentators that this might not be on the level. Eventually Nash unveils himself. Did anyone bar Skiavone think this was Sting? WCW loved to make their announce team look like idiots.

I had this show on a LP VHS with Halloween Havoc back in the day. I'd long forgotten that you didn't have to go over the top rope in the match. Savage just got kicked underneath. I'm not against it to be honest. Makes it a bit different.

[air_raid]

The Nash as Sting bit is double stupid because it “fools” the commentary guys in contradiction to many previous angles in the >12 months since the initial “fake Sting” ruse, where they’ve always been “but is that the real Sting??” despite none of those imposters being able to step over the top fucking rope.

Mind you it always used to piss me off when they’d get fooled by randoms in masks. Sting painted his face, he wouldn’t show up in a Sting mask. Except that one angle where he did, to blend in with the imposters, and nailed Buff with the Death Drop. THAT was excellent.

[CavemanLynn]

I wish I could find the clip now, but it's still not as bad/brilliant as the time Big Kev disguised himself by wearing a baseball cap.

[air_raid]

1 hour ago, CavemanLynn said:

I wish I could find the clip now, but it's still not as bad/brilliant as the time Big Kev disguised himself by wearing a baseball cap.

[IANdrewDiceClay]

Watched this about 500 times, cant stop laughing.

 

[Doog]

I’ve never really watched WCW before, got into wrestling in early 1999 and it was just WWF on Sky Sports that I used to watch, I was aware of WCW around that time but had little interest for whatever reason, think it was just because all my mates at school were watching WWF so didn’t feel the need to seek out anything else.

Anyway despite having the network since 2014 I’ve never really gone back to watch anything but having started listening to 83 weeks with Bischoff last few weeks it’s made me have the urge to give it a watch.

Ive seen bits of when the NWO formed and stuff so started with the Nitro after Starrcade 1997. I’m actually really enjoying it, it’s so different to WWF and feels so ahead of its time. The presentation and aesthetics of Nitro in comparison to Raw at that time in 1997/1998 is unreal, Nitro looks so much slicker and modern, especially when looking back on it today. 
 

What I also really like is how it feels like there’s no plan to the show as such, the segments all mould into each other and it doesn’t feel like you’re watching a TV show, with RAW, especially these days but even back then, there’s a very clear way that all the episodes plan out, it’s segment to segment, they have the graphic that advertises what matches are coming etc, there’ll be a promo, music will hit and out comes the other guy, with Nitro half the time there’s a promo a guy will come wandering out, no music, so it feels unplanned, the segment will end and then it’ll switch to something else but the wrestlers from the last segment will still be there and be wandering off or whatever, everything feels genuine and real. It’s chaotic but in a really good way.

Its the same with how the shows end as well, usually a wild brawl or an argument or whatever and it feels like the show can’t end there but it does, as opposed to a WWF ending where the baby face or heel convieniently gets to celebrate to the camera just as the show goes off the air or whatever.

Its brilliant to be honest and I’m really digging it, if I had a choice which show to watch id have picked WCW every week. I know it sounds like things go downhill soon but it’s very easy for me to see why WCW was beating WWF for so long.

[air_raid]

The night after Starrcade is definitely chaotic but it’s everything good AND bad about WCW at the same time. Things feel exciting because you’ve got a super-heated Goldberg squash (fuck Glacier), two title changes, Benoit getting a modicum of revenge on The Flock and the slow burn of a Horsemen reunion, the start of Jericho’s heel turn, a great (and largely forgotten) Page/Mortis match with a super-smooth finish, and a really popular Luger revenge win over Buff, further putting the nWo in its place on a night of celebration. Everything feels like there’s a direction.

And then..... not only are you reminded that they fucked up Hogan vs Sting at the PPV, they proceed to fuck it up again. And they run out of time before you even get to see how badly they fuck it up.

Edited April 5, 2021 by air_raid

[Your Fight Site]

39 minutes ago, air_raid said:

The night after Starrcade is definitely chaotic but it’s everything good AND bad about WCW at the same time. Things feel exciting because you’ve got a super-heated Goldberg squash (fuck Glacier), two title changes, Benoit getting a modicum of revenge on The Flock and the slow burn of a Horsemen reunion, the start of Jericho’s heel turn, a great (and largely forgotten) Page/Mortis match with a super-smooth finish, and a really popular Luger revenge win over Buff, further putting the nWo in its place on a night of celebration. Everything feels like there’s a direction.

And then..... not only are you reminded that they fucked up Hogan vs Sting at the PPV, they proceed to fuck it up again. And they run out of time before you even get to see how badly they fuck it up.

Having watched this period of WCW recently, I really can’t understand how badly Sting vs. Hogan was. I’m a huge Sting fan so it could be taken as sour grapes, but the booking of those few months was awful.

Sting and Hogan had three title matches and each one has a screwy finish. Like, you take one of your most popular wrestlers out of action for 18 months and then he can’t win a single match decisively? With that build and commitment, Sting should have came back, thrown Hogan around, and then dropped him on the back of his bald bonce for the 1–2–3.

[Chili]

8 minutes ago, Your Fight Site said:

Having watched this period of WCW recently, I really can’t understand how badly Sting vs. Hogan was. I’m a huge Sting fan so it could be taken as sour grapes, but the booking of those few months was awful.

Sting and Hogan had three title matches and each one has a screwy finish. Like, you take one of your most popular wrestlers out of action for 18 months and then he can’t win a single match decisively? With that build and commitment, Sting should have came back, thrown Hogan around, and then dropped him on the back of his bald bonce for the 1–2–3.

I think an person you've mentioned a few times there would have a maybe some sort of hand in all that goes to shit and them looking pretttty okay out of it.

[wandshogun09]

2 hours ago, Doog said:

I’ve never really watched WCW before, got into wrestling in early 1999 and it was just WWF on Sky Sports that I used to watch, I was aware of WCW around that time but had little interest for whatever reason, think it was just because all my mates at school were watching WWF so didn’t feel the need to seek out anything else.

Even if you’d checked in on WCW in 99, it was pretty shite by then. And that’s coming from someone who watched pretty much every week. Everyone seemed to turn face to heel and vice versa at least once that year. Even Sting went baddie for a bit. And the Russo booked WCW Title tournament towards the end of the year is absolutely dire. Even the look of the Nitro show went downhill that year. With the big gawdy new wCw set and everything being a dull grey. Can’t beat the classic Nitro set from 95-98 for me. By 99 I was still watching out of habit more than anything but Raw had overtaken it for me by then. Although saying that, I find WWF from that period hasn’t aged well either. 

1 hour ago, Your Fight Site said:

Having watched this period of WCW recently, I really can’t understand how badly Sting vs. Hogan was. I’m a huge Sting fan so it could be taken as sour grapes, but the booking of those few months was awful.

Sting and Hogan had three title matches and each one has a screwy finish. Like, you take one of your most popular wrestlers out of action for 18 months and then he can’t win a single match decisively? With that build and commitment, Sting should have came back, thrown Hogan around, and then dropped him on the back of his bald bonce for the 1–2–3.

Yeah but Sting hadn’t done enough sit-ups or tanning. 

Edited April 5, 2021 by wandshogun09

[Egg Shen]

WCW '99 is probably one of my favorite era's of wrestling, guees you could call it a guilty pleasure. Ive seen very little of the TV, but when those PPV's were released over here on VHS i watched the shit out of those things.

[The Gaffer]

Saturn and Kidman have a cracking little match at Souled Out 2000. There's fuck all psychology to it - just Saturn off his nuts trying to call it, occasionally trying to pop people in the back by doing a perfectly executed big move off the ropes - so the crowd never really get going, but I enjoyed it. They both take a decent beating and it's just an oddly pleasing scrap to watch. 

The match graphics for the show look like old photos your nan would keep framed in her house, though:

[gmoney]

People say the Ultimate Warrior was a different guy when he came back, how come no one ever mentions that Devon Storm/Crowbar doesn't even look the same ethnicity?