Not much going on around here so Ill throw one up to give us something to bullshit about.
This MUST have been done before, but I don't remember it. Since wrestling is the tie that binds us...
"What is your favorite wrestling moment?(match, segment, promo, etc.)"
"What's the most disappointed you've been as a wrestling fan? (bad match, your guy losing, shitty angle, bad reveal, etc.) "
A) Wrestlemania XX Benoit tapping HHH brought tears to my eyes (and it wasn't even to tell Bret Hart he was the best X)
ReplyDeleteB) Last night... fucking bad Santa couldn't win and spare me time with my family?
Nothing was more disappointing/shocking/horrifying/depressing than the night of the Benoit murders, but if we're sticking to just on-screen disappointments, WCW's contant failings were always a disappointment. The Fingerpoke of Doom probably tops that list.
ReplyDeleteMy favourite wrestling moment came when I was a kid, and Bret Hart regained the title at Wrestlemania 10.
Might sound weird but the moment that sticks out to me is HBKS farewell speech. Seeing a guy who was "my guy", finally at peace with everything after turning his life around definitely hits an emotional chord with me more then any match or promo ever has. The brief part where he talks about "you guys were the only ones that ever made me like me" was such a transparent honest moment...fucking awesome. Also helps that he's responsible for a few of my favorite matches also
ReplyDeleteA) Andre the Giant pinning Hulk Hogan to win the WWF title.
ReplyDeleteB) "Disappointing" isn't the first word I think of with things like Benoit/Owen/etc., so I'll go with the Wrestlemania IV tournament. Had really high hopes for that, but the heavily implied Savage/Steamboat rematch never happened, and almost all of the matches were boring letdowns (the height of which occurred during Jake Roberts vs Rick Rude match).
I hope that the doctor was able to repair your detached retina.
ReplyDeleteFavourite moment was definitely Benoit getting the tap out win for the title at 'mania. That was out of my seat, holy shit this isn't really happening, oh my god it is, Second through nth are all Bret Hart victories.
ReplyDeleteMost disappointed would be Montreal, easy, after that I guess I would say Ax being phased out of Demolition. After the Harts, they were my boys, and Ax was my favourite. I was also pretty disappointed that the HHH/Perfect storyline had to be dropped and that Hennig went to WCW at all. I was a fan, and totally stoked for his return.
A.) Steamboat-Savage. The purest babyface ever getting crippled by one of the all-time great heel pricks. Savage's ultra-dickish post-beatdown interview--"I am SO proud of myself"--being so completely vicious and heartless that Bruno Sammartino (!) decided to kick his ass on general principle, just because. Steamboat fighting his way back and getting the title in what might be the greatest match in history on the biggest card ever.
ReplyDeleteB.) Summer of Punk. Loved it, and it made Punk as a permanent tippy-top guy, but it always felt like it could've been so much more. Not to say that it was bad--even when they tried to turn Punk heel, his egomaniacal streak-based promos were super--but once tHHHat guy and his Big Sexy buddy got involved, you could just feel the air getting sucked out of things.
With the 50/50 booking, bad easter rabbit is due for a win. You have that at least.
ReplyDeleteOk
ReplyDeleteThe most recent disappointment I remember was paying for the Royal Rumble last year, hoping beyond hope that John Cena wouldn't win and getting that feeling of inevitability just washing over me. It's my own fault, I knew it was going to happen and I still put the money down and went for it.
ReplyDeleteFirst of all... welcome.
ReplyDeleteSecond Summer of Punk has to be on the short list of biggest fuck ups and missed opportunities ever. I try not to be as negative about wrestling as everyone else and be a typical "Smark" there is absolutely no explanation for HHH being involved other than being an egomaniacal bastard and on this case he probably cost the company millions of dollars.
I bought it also. Mostly hoping for the same thing, plus I wanted to see Rock/Punk. The combination of an underwhelming punk/rock match along with Cena winning the rumble made it such a disappointing show. Yea, it was my fault and everyone knew what was coming but thought Rock/Punk would deliver.
ReplyDeleteQuite a few favorite moments. Hulk winning the WWF title the first time in 84 was one after him being denied all those years in the AWA by Bockwinkel.
ReplyDeleteAnother would be Kerry Von Erich winning the NWA title from Flair in 84. As a young teen I really thought he was going to have it for years. Wow was I wrong.
First disappointment would be David Von Erich dying. Little did I know that wrestling deaths would be quite common place over the next three decades.
Another disappointment would be the WM XX match with Goldberg vs Lesnar. Them leaving after and the crowd shitting on it really left a bad taste in my mouth on wrestling for years.
I'm always most disappointed when you discover how absolutely irredeemably shitty a lot of wrestling fans are. Like when I was working at KB Toys (back when THAT was still a thing) in 2007. I was "the wrestling guy" at my store, so of course all my co-workers wanted to talk about was Benoit. One day shortly after it all went down some parent comes in while I'm straightening the wrestling figures section. He goes on for like ten minutes about what a horrible person he must've been to do something like that, how as a parent he'll never be able to watch his matches again... all the while grabbing every single Benoit figure we've got left on the shelves, because of "how much they'll go for on eBay."
ReplyDeleteFavorite moments would have to be some of the stuff that caused lil' Elmo to mark out when I was 12 or 13, like Jericho's debut or Foley's first title win, or some of the memorable experiences I've had meeting some of my favorite wrestlers, like Danielson signing the cartoon I'd drawn at his last RoH show for free even though he & Nigel were supposed to be charging $25 each for an autograph (or when Nigel offered to PAY ME for a copy of the cartoon I'd done of him a year or two earlier).
I'm just going to go with gut reactions. Most disappointed was a tie between the blowoff of HHH-Angle-Steph angle and the HHH-Goldberg Elimination Chamber. Putting Angle with Steph would've made Angle the #1 heel in the promotion and made big money through Survivor Series. The Goldberg thing was just pure bullshit.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite wrestling moment was the month leading up to and including MITB 2011.
Favorite moment: Watching the Wargames match at WrestleWar '91. As an only WWF fan back then watching that was like nothing I've ever seen. Blood, carnage and violence on a scale I couldn't imagine. Then discovering the video store down the block has a ton of NWA Tapes.
ReplyDeleteWorst: Watching Hogan pin Sting at Starrcade. After a piss poor PPV that was the last thing hat show needed.
He never showed ass on the mic, either. He even brought up the fact that he/HHH paid for Punk's new theme music. "You're just a guy who held out for a few perks."
ReplyDeleteWMXX was probably the last time I marked out like a little kid watching WWE that I can remember. I don't even think I have it in me to care that much about the result of a match anymore. I thought I might for Bryan's win at SUmmerslam, but we all knew how that was gonna end.
ReplyDeleteSomebody wants this man to go blind. :(
ReplyDeleteMe too. There have only been a few times where I've found myself really emotionally invested in a match. That's definitely on the top of the list. IIRC, the smarts were all saying the planned for Benoit to go over but I didn't believe they'd give him the win until I actually saw it. Awesome stuff after a fucking awesome match
ReplyDeleteFuck that Punk/HHH match. It's hard me for to get emotionally invested in it at this point but I was definitely pissed after that one. I had convinced myself "HHH has matured, it's a forgone conclusion they'll put punk over." Jokes on me
ReplyDeleteWhen Benoit throws HBK out of the ring and HHH comes up behind him I was expecting "Kick Wham Pedigree go home pissed" I was shocked when he reversed it into the cross face and even more shocked when HHH finally tapped... best live event I have ever been to.
ReplyDeleteBeing there live must have made it so much more memorable obviously. MSG is a more intimate setting then a huge stadium show, probably just adding to the awesomeness.
ReplyDeleteI think meltzer reported they were gonna put Benoit over before hand, so that was always in my head but yea when it's just HHH and Benoit in the ring I started marking out.
Best case scenario that I thought could happen was Benoit pins Michaels, Hunter gets the belt back by King of the Ring (were they still doing that as a PPV at that point?) - no fucking way did I think he'd get a clean submission. Pretty sure I started preemptively cheering when he rolled into the middle of the ring, because it seemed like a sure thing at that point.
ReplyDeleteEspecially over HHH. Everyone was saying hbk was inserted into the main event to help sell it but to also take the pin. Having hhh tap was just perfect. Kudos to him for tapping by the way
ReplyDeleteFavourite moment: Randy Savage vs Ultimate Warrior Wrestlemania VII
ReplyDeleteDisappointing moment: Original Nexus feud (from the top of my head)
I didn't get to hear it until months later but JR was really on top of his game with the call... Benoit and Eddie showing legit emotion... just a perfect storybook ending.
ReplyDeleteWtf was it like there during the Brock match? Bizarre? Surreal? Just awesome booing the shit outta 2 guys?
ReplyDeleteNeither of those are really "moments". In the latter case, your "moment" would be several months long!
ReplyDeleteKind of what I am expecting this year with Punk. Every 10 years putting over the internet darling... and he knows he won't have to deal with Pun much longer regardless so might as well do it and be done with it... hell maybe even have Punk beat him with the Pepsi Plunge since it is basically a top rope pedigree.
ReplyDeleteYeah for me at least it was a bizzare mob mentality where we all just kind of started making shit up... and getting even more obnoxious when it became obvious that neither of them knew how to handle the reaction... oh and chanting for the Hogan impersonator was awesome.
ReplyDeleteDo you at least entertain yourself?
ReplyDeleteI went to 3 Wrestlemanias in a row; 19, 20, 21... even though 19 was the best card and best vacation... the only thing I really remember vividly from any of the shows is Benoit winning and the post match stuff.
ReplyDeleteThat's the funniest part to me. Seeing how increasingly perplexed and annoyed they get.
ReplyDeleteBrock stomping his feet like a child and screaming "WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME" and later legit flipping off the crowd sums him up as a person perfectly.
ReplyDeleteFavorite match: Empty Arena, Funk and Lawler. Just such a cool atmosphere
ReplyDeleteFavourite moments: the RAW where Austin clears out the Hart Foundation, then Pillman runs in through the crowd and goes nuts on him. It was minor in hindsight, but watching it live I exploded because it was ON. That car wreck ruined what should have been a legendary rivalry.
Moment #2 - 'when you signed that match to meet Ric Flair for the World Heavyweight title on February 25th, you signed your death warrant!'
Most disappointing match: Rude/Warrior in the cage for the WWF title, mostly because Warrior won. Rude was on FIRE and they couldn't even hotshot him the belt.
Most disappointing moment: WWE chickening out on Muhammad Assan. What did they think was going to happen? That character had the potential to be great. Same with Matt Borne in ECW.
I'm going with one memory from my childhood- Ted DiBiase winning a non-title UWF match over One Man Gang by ducking the 757. Here's the clip:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jvjs85N9jAU
As a kid, I loved it- OMG had been tearing up the UWF, and finally someone beat him with smart! It doesn't hold up today, but that joy as a kid did.
Saddest moment- when JR was drafted to Smackdown. You could it was a royal real screwjob. I loved listening to JR on RAW throughout the years, and that moment damaged my love of wrestling for a long time.
As a kid: The Ultimate Warrior returning at WM8... without the internet and being a child this was the greatest mark out moment of my life when I saw it. Being a huge Warrior fan I wondered where he had disappeared too for the last 8 months... thinking he'd never return, then that familiar opening riff kicks in... damn I was overjoyed.
ReplyDeleteAs a more 'aware' slightly older fan: The Rock finally winning the title at Backlash 2000 the culmination (well I thought it would be) of the Rock/Authority (McMahon/Helmsley) rivalry. He was finally officially 'the man' after turning face almost a year earlier and getting out of Austin's shadow.
Adult years: Punk beating Cena at MITB... a huge reward to the hardcore fans who were genuinely getting sick of the same old stale shit that WWE was forcing down our throats, finally OUR guy had a voice and the title.
All he had to do was have Big Johnny do everything he wanted to do, including the match. I'm sure Johnny Ace could turn back the clock a couple times.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite moment would be considered an unusual one. It's not an epic moment that stands out in the forefront of most fans' minds, like Janetty going through the Barbershop Window or Hogan bodyslamming Andre.
ReplyDeleteGo back to the Royal Rumble 1992 match, arguably the best Rumble of them all. Wait for Hacksaw Jim Duggan to get into the ring. You already had the fans eating up Flair getting joined by Piper, then Roberts (pretty damn awesome to begin with, right?). Duggan does his thing, gets his offense in. Then he does his, "HOOOOOO!" and it's the crowd response that always gets to me. They return with a deafening "HOOOOOO!" I know, it's crazy, It's just Hacksaw Jim Duggan. But I always love that part of the match...maybe because it was from a time when the WWF/E realized the importance of the a strongly developed and well-booked undercard roster...which doesn't really seem to be the case today.
As far as most disappointing...well, that's a long list. We'll go with Vince being revealed as the Higher Power. I was at that Raw, and it was a crummy experience to begin with because the audio in the arena was terrible. You couldn't hear shit from where I was in the balcony. The next Raw in Boston that I attended was much better in that regard.
MitB is why I am sitting here today... I had thrown in the towel for the previous 3 - 4 years except for the odd show here and there, someone told me about the pipe bomb, i went and watched it, and started DVRing/watching RAW again and have never stopped.
ReplyDeleteI'm not going to lie, the only reason I didn't get rid of the Benoit 2-disc DVD I had was because I thought it might eventually be worth something. Now I just don't see a point in getting rid of it. It doesn't take up that much space and it's put away with the rest of my WWE DVDs (not on display).
ReplyDeleteWrestleMania XX was absolutely the last time I marked out while watching a match. I never once thought that Benoit would get the win, despite reading online that he would, and when they rang the bell and announced him as the new champ, my buddies and I absolutely lost our shit.
ReplyDeleteThe first HBK-Taker match almost sucked me in as much. Almost, probably because I was watching with people who were CONVINCED Shawn was going to win. I won a few bucks that night off the dumb marks... uh, I mean, my friends...
That and the Rock return definitely brought me back also. We like 3 years without watching for awhile
ReplyDeleteI'm kind of curious as to how he spells it...
ReplyDeleteEvery evening!
ReplyDeleteOf SO many to choose from, one of my favorite wrestling moments of all time is Steve Austin winning the WWF title for the first time at Wrestlemania XIV. The most disappointed I've been as a wrestling fan was when Raw went to 3 hours.
ReplyDeleteFavorite 1: Wrestlemania 17. Austin vs Rock. NOT the match (which was still great), but the promo video. Easy enough to explain and follow. One WWF title, two men.
ReplyDeleteFavorite 2: Bash at the Beach 1996. The Hogan turn was NAILED. Hindsight makes this moment bittersweet at best, but it was almost perfect in the moment.
Favorite 3 (comedy moment): Royal Rumble 2002. HHH and Austin have just knocked each other down. 3, 2, 1, BUZZ! Here comes Hurricane. Goozle to HHH, Goozle to Austin... http://cdn.bleacherreport.net/images_root/slides/photos/000/620/984/hurricane_display_image.jpg?1294436708
... Can you guess what happened next? ;)
(Honorable Mention: http://www.boredwrestlingfan.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/heresvinny.jpg , from the moment his eyes came into view, both my friend and I were in hysterics. EVIL VINNY MAC!)
Disappointing moments in reply below.
Benoit winning has one flaw (personal, not the match)... my friend was starting to become a little jaded, and actually left about 1/3 into the match, thinking there was NO WAY he was leaving MSG as champ. I didn't let him hear the end of it for a while... but it's not so funny anymore.
ReplyDeleteDisappointing 1: The Fingerpoke of Doom. Yes, I was one of those flipping between WCW and WWF... seeing NWO chapter whatever beginning pretty much put the ball in the WWF's hands. And the WWF never fumbled it away.
ReplyDeleteDisappointing 2: I've stayed away from "smark" moments so far, but the Summerslam 2013 ending was just, to quote the current champ, STUPID STUPID STUPID!
Daniel Bryan does the same thing as Hacksaw when he says "YES!"
ReplyDeletePunk's heel turn in 2012 made me legitimately sad. Punk is my favorite guy ever and watching him turn heel was demoralizing. Sure it lead to some good stuff but I basically had no babyface to cheer for 8 months.
ReplyDeleteNot really. The birth of The Nexus was one of the most mark out moments in RAW history. So at what point did it start disappointing you?
ReplyDeleteWhen Linda McMahon "comes out of her canonic state" at Wrestlemania X-7 and you can see THE ENTIRE CROWD GET ON THEIR FEET, she low blows Vince, Mick beats the shit out him and pops the crowd beyond belief.... It's absolutely one of the moments that still give me goosebumps.
ReplyDeleteYou know, I was unemployed during the summer of 07 and I just realized now how I avoided having to explain Benoit to people.
ReplyDeleteAs a fan, that was a terrible few months for me, because I strongly identified with the REAL Benoit.
Nothing about Goldberg/Lesnar was disappointing to me.
ReplyDeleteI marked out for CM Punk and money and the Bank.
ReplyDeleteI also marked out for Mark Henry's big swerve earlier this year.
I guess it's still real to me, dammit.
Punk should be winning the World title at Wrestlemania this year. If he doesn't they are truly creatively bankrupt.
ReplyDeleteFavorite wrestling moment? Attending Wrestlemania X7 with my wife the month before we got married. Close second would be us meeting at a house show in 1989. Third would be my first live event...Royal Rumble 1989. Daniel Bryan in general.
ReplyDeleteMost disappointing? Too many to list, but off the top of my head...
Black Scorpion reveal. Being a huge fan of Hacksaw Duggan under Watts and seeing him turn into a goof under Vince. Seeing what's happened to Kurt Angle in the past several years. The higher power reveal.
And we still lose are shit whenever he shows up.
ReplyDeleteThat pissed me off too about Ax. God, I was so hyped for the LOD/Demolition feud, and...yeah. I actually saw one of the six man tags w/Warrior at a house show and...it sucked.
ReplyDeleteLance Archer's work in New Japan suggests that WWE might have better utilized his presence as well.
ReplyDeleteWho meets their wife at a wrestling show? You have a good life my man.
ReplyDeleteSame here - I was psyched as hell for the Punk/Rock match, but it was so bad and the ending was so poorly booked that it pretty much killed any real interest I had in the product for months.
ReplyDeleteJust such an overwhelming feeling of "more of the same".
Great moment, crazy that it gets lost in the shuffle of all the other WM 17 awesomeness. Perfectly captured...they go to the wide shot, the entire crowd rises, and Vince turns around with that over the top look on his face and they pay off the whole thing with a kick to the nuts. Perfectly done.
ReplyDeleteHell yeah. When she got out of the chair slowly, I got out of my seat so fast I spilled my drink all over the dude sitting in front of me. Thankfully he didnt care.
ReplyDeleteI was excited for those months also. Punk/Rock had tons of potential and I thought Punk/UT and Cena/Rock would be pretty good. What hurt it the most IMO was that the outcomes for everything tjose 3 months were known by pretty much everyone.
ReplyDeleteFavorite - Probably Jericho's WWE debut. There was SOOO much build, and the roar from the crowd (for what was basically a WCW mid-carder) was insane.
ReplyDeleteLeast Favorite - Other than the obvious "real life" stuff (deaths, Benoit, etc.), I think it might be a tie between two moments from this year: Punk dropping the title to Rock, and Bryan dropping the title to Orton. Two super-hot properties that could help carry the company, and they were jobbed out for "more of the same". Just so symbolic.
Well, we were kids, and it was a general admission show. When the doors opened there was a mad rush to get good seats. We both got separated from our families, struck up a conversation, and ended up as best friends until we started going together right after high school graduation. Really did hit the jackpot... Dana is an avid gamer , sports fan, and also has the same taste in music.
ReplyDeleteI have a girlfriend who was willing to go to a Smackdown with me more or less so she could get a novelty laugh out of her friends by instagramming and facebooking and instagramming shots of her wearing a wwe shirt and a fake title AND because she wanted to see Randy Orton in real life.
ReplyDeleteAnd you know what? That was good enough for me.
It's the kind of moment you could show to someone and say, "See? This is why you become a fan."
ReplyDeleteI've thought about selling mine and giving the money to charity. But then I think about why someone would want it in the first place.
ReplyDeleteThat's an awesome story.
ReplyDeleteHHH was supposed to be the Authority figure for Punk to rally against. I know, I'm shocked it didn't work, too.
ReplyDeleteBut I think it's a little strong to call it the biggest fuck-up ever.
Yeah, that was cool and unique I think, in the big leagues anyhow. It should totally get reused by some other big guy.
ReplyDeleteFavorite is flair winning the 92 rumble. I was in 5th grade and loved the flair/heenan/perfect trio. That was the shit. I was so happy flair won the belt and that was the coolest way it could have happened.
ReplyDeleteWorst was when hhh first popped up in the summer of punk. Not only did I think we were finally rid of on screen hhh I thought something huge was going to happen with punks push. As soon as he showed up I knew it was bad news and was so disappointed.
That's funny, I had like an opposite reaction. I think punk is my favorite heel ever and I was bummed when he turned face against heyman. Just shows what an amazing performer punk is.
ReplyDeleteAnytime Flair won the belt stand out for me. Rumble 92', Starrcade 95' and surprisingly the last time on Nitro when he beat Jarrett were all favorite moments.
ReplyDeleteHBK vs. Undertaker - Hell in the Cell
ReplyDeleteMost money left on the table IMO
ReplyDeleteShe just started watching again a few years ago...she quit watching when she miscarried the day after the Lita/Snitsky angle started. The Nexus debut got her interested again. Fwiw, she's a bit more cynical than I am about the current product, although she gets a perverse enjoyment out of Curtis Axel 'because that kid sucks at just about everything' and 'has about as much credibility as Shawn Stasiak in 2002'.
ReplyDeleteHe is a good entertainer... but as a person; not so great.
ReplyDeleteI'd like to change my biggest disappointment to never getting to see The Rock & Sock & Brock Connection.
ReplyDeleteFlair beating Vader at starrcade 93 stands out for me too.
ReplyDeleteAs long as he closes the show I will be happy... I honestly think that is all he cares about at this point in his career.
ReplyDeletePunks my guy also, favorite dude on the roster by far. Was excited for his turn tho, I'd rather have him as the #1 heel then stuck behind Cena as the #2 face and just petsonally like his heel work so much more.
ReplyDeleteIt sure turned to shit pretty quick but Benoit and Eddie at the end of Mania was awesome at the time.
ReplyDeleteBiggest disappointment was probably the first NWO war games. For some reason, I thought they'd let the NWO give a little...silly me.
She sounds awesome, is she singl... Oh.
ReplyDeleteFoley and Venis 'Cock and Sock'
ReplyDeleteMy girlfriend loved ECW, loves TNA and ROH (loves the X-Division kind of style), but isn't so familiar with WWE.
ReplyDeleteBeen having a lot of fun introducing her to Botchamania and classic moments like the 92 Royal Rumble match.
My favorite and most disappointing are kinda tied together.
ReplyDeleteWatching Ric Flair's final match at WM 24 and his retirement ceremony the following night on Raw.
I had watched Flair since '83, and those two nights were to me the culmination of my viewing years. It was great as a fan of his to see him crank it up one more time on a big stage.
Watching him the following night was satisfying, and at the same time sad as it was an end of an era for me. I stopped watching the product at that point, as he was the last thing remaining from when I started watching.
Even now, I don't watch the product. I read about it, and still watch old school footage, but that's it.
Whooooooooooooooooooooooo *4*
ReplyDeleteYou aren't missing much
Flair is my all time favorite, but I strongly prefer him as a heel.
ReplyDeleteRock and billy gunn and Chuck palumbo
ReplyDelete"Rock n Dock"
Dana gets a kick out of Botchamania too. Hell, we're watching A Christmas Story right now on TBS and I pointed out one of the Asian guys butchering Deck the Halls corpses and she responded 'send for the man'. Meanwhile our six year old daughter is getting annoyed because our laughing ruined her enjoyment of 'the duck's head getting lopped off'.
ReplyDeleteYeah that warrior return was the shit
ReplyDeleteI was glad he retired because I really didn't enjoy his work by that point...I missed the 'real' Flair. There was a match against Hurricane on RAW a couple of years previous where Flair kept coughing and looked so winded that I thought he was going to drop dead of a coronary right there. That said it made me sad because I realized that I'd never again see a classic Flair match again. I'd always held out some hope, but realizing that his performance against HBK was the best he could do by that point made me sad...but not nearly as much as his TNA run did.
ReplyDeleteAnother disappointing thing... Backlund jobbing the title to Nash so quickly and never being a serious threat again. I enjoyed him playing a bitter character and when he started being portrayed as more of a senile goof... I was mad. These days I look back on it and realize how awesome he was at comedy, but back then it added to the disillusionment I was already feeling towards the WWF at that point.
ReplyDeleteFavorite moment, John Cena's 08 Rumble Return, just because of the surprise factor that no one was expecting.
ReplyDeleteWorst, The Nexus post Summerslam, the faction had year of domination written all over them and Cena being the ref at SS giving Wade the title would have also added a nice redemption story to last until WM.
I think I'm going to look this up now..
ReplyDeleteJeff harvey
ReplyDeleteYou've never seen Wrestlemania 17?!
ReplyDeleteFavorite moment: Flair beating Vader.
ReplyDeleteWorst Moment: Nikita Koloff beating Magnum TA
Most Disappointed: Gobbledegooker, Cena smiling at the end of the Lesnar match, HHH beating Booker T.
I loved the whole Barry Windham joining the horsemen angle.
ReplyDeleteToo many negatives, pet peeves . . wouldn't even know where to start
This reminds me of the one thing I liked about the Invasion angle - Freddie Blassie rolling in in his wheelchair and doing a great motivational promo.
ReplyDeleteThe Foley match in TNA was damn good fun. Flair had plenty of classics during his last WWE run. The ladder match with Edge for example.
ReplyDeleteFavorite moments in no particular order:
ReplyDeleteFlair returns in 98
Warrior returns at WM8
Austin/Rock sit down interview before WM17
Hogan/Rock promo to set up WM18
Goldberg spears Christian on Raw
Benoit tapping HHH at WM20
Evil Jake Roberts fall 1991
Cactus Jack returns 2000
Taz ECW Promos
Disappointments:
Cena wins 2013 Rumble
Cena over Michaels WM23
HHH wins the chamber over Goldberg
Orton over Benoit 2004
Jeff Jarrett multi time WCW champion
HHH still wrestling in 2013
Diesel returns at Rumble 2011, doesn't appear again until Summerslam, killing Punk off.
Del Rio winning the title, any of the reigns other than when he beat Big Show.
The Black Glove OF EXTREMELY EVIL EVIL
ReplyDeleteThat Flair 98 return is often forgot since it never went anywhere. Was so awesome at the time.
ReplyDeleteGod yes on the WM17 promo video for Austin/Rock. Just amazing.
ReplyDeleteI love that Cena return because all the snarky smart fans were caught with their guard down and erupted.
ReplyDeleteI was tempted to throw in Punk/Cena just for the crowd reaction on the intro. When Cena's music starts playing, that immediate BOO is the strongest crowd reaction I've ever heard. It's stunning- it's as if the crowd synchronized their reaction to all say Boo at the same time.
ReplyDeleteFavorite moments:
ReplyDeleteOrndorff turning on Hogan.
Watching Saturday Night's Main Event LIVE instead of TAPED with Macho Man vs. The Snake.
Andre challenging Hogan.
The Mega-Powers EXPLODE!
Marty Jannetty through the Barber Shop window.
Vader beats down Gorilla Monsoon.
Austin beats down Bret in the ambulance.
Jericho debuts.
Kurt Angle suplexes Shane McMahon on his head.
Edge spears Jeff Hardy in mid-air.
Batista gives Triple H the thumbs down.
Brock Lesnar kicks the hat!
Most disappointed:
Vince is the higher power.
ECW becomes very popular on the internet.
Eric Bischoff.
Eddie Guerrero dies.
Chris Benoit.
Chris Benoit is erased from our memories.
Cena beats Brock.
I daresay this:
ReplyDeleteFlair's return to WWF in 2001 > Flair's return to WCW in 1998.
Flair beating Vader is one of my favorite moments as well. I was such a Flair mark back then, and Vader was A MONSTER and it was the perfect story from such an imperfect company.
ReplyDeleteRight on it. You can see Canada from the front porch of my mom's house where I grew up.
ReplyDeleteMy biggest disappointment is not ever seeing Ric Flair wrestle live.
ReplyDeleteTriple H vs. Randy Orton at WrestleMania 25 was immensely disappointing on every level. Bad match, bad booking, Orton lost. That's the most recent moment that just completely sucked.
ReplyDeleteI had no hope that was going to be any good in the first place.
ReplyDeleteCan't get on board. Liked his 01 wwe return alot but i was more into his wcw return because he was always a wcw guy. Had more of a "homecoming" feel to it. That and the fact it was in Charlotte gives it the edge to me.
ReplyDeleteThe hat kick was a small unscripted thing but has become such a "thing", such a cool visual. Love it also.
ReplyDeleteNo, I started to really follow in 2006.
ReplyDeleteI have WM 25 on DVD, watched every match at least once except for that one.
ReplyDeleteUp vote for Brock kicking the hat. Seriously WWE is so PG that we actually cheer for a hat being kicked.
ReplyDeleteHere's my logic: In 1998, he was only coming back from being mistreated by the company. And we knew it was happening, and we also kinda knew it was going to suck.
ReplyDeleteIn 2001, I was legit surprised when he returned; I had not heared he was going to return, and the crowd heat was better. And it went somewhere good, a pretty hot Flair/McMahon feud.
Summerslam 92 will always be the greatest moment for me
ReplyDeleteMy two favourite wrestlers as a boy, squaring off in my country, in front of the legit biggest crowd the WWE has ever drawn , in the greatest match of all time.
What's not to love. I love that match bell to bell but I especially get goosebumps when Bret finally shakes Davey Boy's hand and the fireworks & music kick in.
Biggest disappointment would be not actually being in Wembley stadium that day
The only thing I remember about that TLC match is that little kid laughing uncontrollably.
ReplyDeleteYea, the follow up for his wcw return was just shit. That's why I think his actual return gets forgotten among great moments...it never ended up meaning much.
ReplyDeleteFor me, I just was more into the 98 return. Liked the authenticity and the hometown thing
I'm assuming you live in England? That's one of those matches I WANT to like but somethings always lacking for me.
ReplyDeleteEh, I don't like seeing Punk do evil shit. I will always justify Punk as being a face, so everybody (announcers, other wrestlers) calling him evil upsets me.
ReplyDeleteNo it isn't rational, but my fandom of Punk is as marky and child-like as it gets.
I just want to cheer Punk. I do it, but I'd rather not be called an asshole for it by the TV show that I'm watching.
ReplyDeleteThat's me with Shawn Michaels
ReplyDeleteHaving expectations for that was a mistake.
ReplyDeleteSo did I, but you gotta go back and watch the classics!!!
ReplyDeleteIt was a certain set of circumstances that made me have high hopes for that match. First, I didn't watch any wrestling from the time of the Benoit murders through most of 2008.
ReplyDeleteWhat got me back watching was that I stumbled upon Orton vs. Triple H Last Man Standing from No Mercy 2007 on YouTube. I watched that match and thought it was tremendous. I started watching again around Summerslam 2008. Being a Randy Orton fan since '04, I was hyped about his run in late '08. I'd missed his 2007 run and he did some awesome stuff in late 2008 and 2009. I thought the build for their match was great and I had visions of that Last Man Standing match dancing through my head because of the hatred. Needless to say, they never recaptured the magic they had on that night in Chicago.
Makes sense. Being out of the loop for a few years you missed some boring Orton/HHH stuff. I was a casual fan at best during this point also but had seen enough of them together to temper my expectations. I did actually enjoy the WM build between them tho.
ReplyDelete1) Mankind winning the title for the first time, such a great moment that I had the privilege of seeing first-run, and my enjoyment of it has only enhanced in the Youtube Era.
ReplyDelete2) Any time I'm watching and expecting a big swerve, and a clean match happens (and vice versa), but more specifically, Kane losing his mask to Triple H on Raw, I felt like he should have gone over there, 2002-3 Kane had an amazing look and unmasking + going bald made him look like a goof. Plus, I wasn't expecting him to unmask at all so I was geeked up for a Kane title win.
Late-era WCW tended to make Flair look like crap, but his 2001 return to WWF instantly rehabilitated him.
ReplyDeleteYea, but that's using hindsight to judge the returns. His post 98 wcw run did suck. I was saying that within a vacuum I prefer 98 over 01.
ReplyDeleteI worked at a factory when the Benoit thing happened and people I didn't even know were walking up to me and asking about it. Pissed me off.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I didn't really watch WCW, but I was coming from more of a "why not both?" kind of position. Fair enough.
ReplyDeleteDrunk in Buttshit on Christmas eve, tragedy.
ReplyDeleteFavorite moment is split in two:
Mark Moment: Earthquake kills Hogan on the Brother Love Show, I wrote him a letter and got back a mass printed card that I threw in everyone else's fourth grade face.
Smart Moment: Hart/Austin 13 for all the obvious reasons that everyone has already driven into the ground
Same rules for disappointment:
Mark: Savage loses to Warrior after all those goddamn elbow drops.......FUCK
Smart: Match-wise I'd say no final blowoff to the Hart/Austin feud where Bret finally eats a Stunner, storyline wise it's easily Angle/HHH in...what...2000? Angle of course overcame anyway but man, that angle could have made him a legend 2-3 years before his ring work demanded it.
It feels like one of those things you can't blame people for loving but just can't get into...like Radiohead.
ReplyDeleteButtshit isn't a term that really gets its due
ReplyDeleteFavorite match: HBK/Taker HITC.
ReplyDeleteMost disappointing: Justin Credible winning the ECW title. Right then and there I just thought to myself "Yep, this company's fucked". Also, Starrcade 97, Jeff Hardy winning the TNA title last year (still haven't watched 1 minute of TNA since), and Cena winning this years Rumble. And Rock beating Punk. I don't even like CM Punk and that pissed me the fuck off, plus the match itself was shit.
For as much as they talk about Harley and Meng and all those guys...Shane in that match is one of the best displays of real toughness fucking ever. Angle too for that matter but Shane was just a dude, so awesome.
ReplyDeleteI feel that way Savage/Steamboat
ReplyDeleteAgreed... that match is troubling to watch... in a good way.
ReplyDeletehttp://deadspin.com/shit-ranked-1486653659
ReplyDeleteSee... it isn't even ranked
ReplyDelete"Horseshit" should have been ranked higher, IMO.
ReplyDeleteAnd technically all shit is buttshit, so putting it on the list would be kind of redundant.
This is a 2am on Christmas morning conversation if I have ever seen one
ReplyDeleteONE match with Punk Rock would have killed.
ReplyDeleteI loved when Vince did it and totally understand why he did it....
ReplyDeleteFavourite: Mick Foley beating The Rock with Steve Austin's interference.
ReplyDeleteMost disappointing: Triple-H beating Booker T at WrestleMania.
It's funny, because most of my co-workers didn't know I was into wrestling (I hadn't been watching for a while), and I was the one who brought it up, because suddenly I was the guy "in the know" about a big current event.
ReplyDeleteI still remember Lance Storm ripping on that Goldberg/Lesnar match: "Don't even get me started. I've worked harder in front of 50 people for twenty bucks"
ReplyDeleteFav match: Bret v Austin wm 13
ReplyDeleteYoun40? Not that it's a bad thing but I was tn born yet when orndorf turned on hh.
ReplyDeleteYeah, it seemed so obvious that Shawn was dropping the fall to Benoit that even HYATTE, who was the #1 Triple-H Apologist out there, basically sent out an open letter BEGGING Hunter to do the right thing.
ReplyDeleteFlair Bret at spilled out was good in 98.
ReplyDeleteHow about verbal diarrhea?
ReplyDeleteFavourite moments:
ReplyDeleteJericho's surprise return at the 2013 Rumble ("YOU STILL GOT IT!" "I NEVER LOST IT BAAABBBYYY!")
Bret beating Perfect for the IC title (He countered the Perfect Plex! He really is the Excellence of Execution!)
Piper beating Mountie for the IC title (lousy match, one of the best feel good moments ever)
Warrior v Savage, WM7 retirement match (Warrior's best match and the aftermath with Elizabeth's return is surely THE feel good moment of all moments)
Austin's music hits during the Rock v Mankind match (biggest pop I've ever heard, hardest I've ever marked out in excitement "GO MICK!")
Debut of Tazz v Kurt Angle (match sucked, the entrance was the peak of Tazz's career)
Steve Blackman v Shane McMahon, Summerslam 2000 (I was a huge Blackman mark, even just for his music)
Any cool Rumble spots e.g. Kofi or Rey or JoMo staying in via agility; Kane destroying Honky Tonk Man (as I recall)
The entirety of the 2013 post-WM Raw.
Linda standing up and getting her revenge, WM17
The Royal Rumble 92 match's commentary
Most disappointing:
HHH buries Booker T, WM19
The Higher Power is Vince
The Invasion (lots of bad matches, the wrong people losing e.g. the burial of DDP, it was a shitty angle with bad reveals of the McMahons as owners of the Alliance etc.)
TAKA should have been a bigger star.
Sale of WCW.
The Jumping Bomb Angels should have been bigger stars.
Not getting to see a Big Bully Buswick match live in person.
That's me with Big Bully Buswick.
ReplyDeleteLike it!
ReplyDeleteYou could add Tugboat for extra Dock and then have him turn heel, "I DIDN'T THINK YOU MEANT THAT KIND OF DOCKING!"
This must be how Vince Russo feels all the time.
I've never seen A Christmas Story - is there a bit where a duck's head gets its head lopped off? Otherwise your story is kind of... scary!
ReplyDeleteWatch the 91 RR and WM. Both are PACKED with great forgotten classics and near-classics. And you NEED to see the first ever Survivor Series. 86 or 87 I forget.
ReplyDeleteDitto. That brought me back, things like Jericho's return (and Heyman's) kept me me watching. Chatting on here keeps me interested when there is no reason to watch that week's TV.
ReplyDeleteGood moments:
ReplyDeleteEddie guerrero winning the WWE title
92 rumble match
Austin as the COO
You-know-who winning at main event of mania 20
DX impersonating the corporation
Macho man's wedding
Miss elizabeth saves Savage from sherry
Bad moments:
burial of DB
Mike awesome never becoming a star.
The build-up was excellent,that was Orton best days as heel,they should have booked as street fight,let blood run in ring.
ReplyDeleteThat's me with Lazortron.
ReplyDeleteI remember reading an article in PWI getting to the bottom of how, if it was a surprise, they had his music queued up.
ReplyDeleteYou sir,are blessed!
ReplyDeleteDon't Piss Him Off
ReplyDeleteDefinitely incorporating "fuckshit" into my vocab
ReplyDeleteNo,, they both were great. My opinion was just based on having to choose 1 or the other. When Flair hugs Vince and Vince gets the "Vince" look...good stuff.
ReplyDelete4 words...X Factor tag team
ReplyDeleteThe shizzle:
ReplyDeleteHogan VS Rock 'Mania
Hart VS Austin double turn
Anything Great Muta
Hogan VS Warrior
CM Punk
Monday Night Wars
old school blue steel cage
Flair VS Steamboat > Funk
Invasion/last Nitro simulcast
ECW in general, live attended half dozen shows MAD FUN
Hammerstein Ballrooom One Night Stands
Saturday Nights Main Events
Foley beats Rock via Austin chair shot
Rock 'N Sock Connection
Macho Man Randy Savage
Grew up on mid 80's - earlys 90's WWF, NWA/WCW so basically entire time period
brings me back
THE SHITS:
WCW closing, Invasion lacking the big players for Vince to keep WCW alive
TNA never becoming competion or an alternative it is needed & wanted
Completely agree.
ReplyDeleteI think that the majority of "smarks" actually like and respect Cena, it's just that, a) they hate the booking that surrounds him, and b) booing Cena is the "cool" thing to do.
Old school blue steel cage. Can't agree enough
ReplyDelete1. Ending to Uncensored 1997. I remember it vividly. I was 9 years old; the perfect age for the best time in wrestling history. I was so upset that Sting had apparently joined the nWo. Savage was nWo and beat down DDP that same night. Rick Steiner was laid out. Luger fell short in the main event. And then...it happened. I had left the room to go play WCW/NWO World Tour when the nWo started celebrating and the room erupted as Sting repelled from the rafters. I flew into the room with glee and watched my hero dismantle the evil New World Order. My excitement level had never been higher. When he dropped Hogan and stood tall to end the show, it was my favorite moment ever as a rasslin fan. I could not WAIT to see the Stinger beat him down in a match, win the belt, and put an end to the nWo.
ReplyDelete2. Starrcade 1997. 'Nuff said.
Oh I do.
ReplyDeleteThe Good: Austin beating Michaels; Austin beating Kane on Raw the night after KotR; the Rock winning at Backlash 2000; Hogan-Rock at WM18; Michaels-Taker at WM25.
ReplyDeleteThe Bad: The Fingerpoke of Doom. I'm not shitting on it because its "what killed WCW" but I was a big Nash fan and Hogan was absolutely garbage by this point. Nash and Goldberg could have feuded without the Hulkster in sight.
But that switch led to Diesel leading the New Generation, the era that forever changed wrestling!
ReplyDeleteThat's unusual for the people on this blog, as you can tell by fixation on things that happened 15 years ago.
ReplyDeleteFavorite ever was when Jericho debuted. I knew he was gone from WCW. Wwf.com had an article and a picture of Jericho visiting titan towers way before he debuted. Just remembering this now......what an awesome time that was.....when breaking wrestling news, other than a death, felt like it mattered.
ReplyDeleteI remember being the smart mark to all my friends ruining the millennium countdown surprise. What a cunt 16 year old me was. Looking back now it was completely obvious it was him. But just like a rub-n-tug and you have that little doubt that it might be a real massage until she brushes the balls with her fingertips, i wasn't quite sure it was Jericho til I saw that stupidly awesome pony tail sticking up.
ReplyDeleteYes...after the family's turkey gets eaten by a pack of dogs, they go to a Chinese restaurant. After being serenaded by a Engrish version of Deck The Halls they are presented with their entree...a whole roast duck. The father points out the head is still attached ('it's... smiling at me!!!'), upon which the chef pulls out a meat cleaver and decapitates the duck right there.
ReplyDeleteSo Jarrett will never ever show up since there's never been any money made involving Jarrett.
ReplyDeleteSeeing as no one else got a 3 disc DVD set, let me pull a Charles Nelson Reilly and say, "As always Gene, the CORRECT answer...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uwyFABQX62A "
ReplyDeletePG says first wish won't happen...
ReplyDeleteBetween Warrior, Bruno, and Cornette showing up for a SMW retrospect on the website, I imagine HHH having some powerful Stepford-izing machine.
ReplyDelete