Hey Scott,
Been catching up on alot of old clashes and NWA ppv's. I have to say with the lack of old weekly NWA programming available on the network it makes it sort of difficult to recall how all of these feuds came about due to alot of the ppvs back then not having a video package for every match on why two guys have a beef to begin with. My question is since WWE own the footage to these ppv wouldn't they also own the 30 minute countdown that aired before the ppv as a way to entice the viewer to buy if so do you ever see a scenario where that content is added to the network possibly as an option to watch before the ppv. Probably wishful thinking and I might be in the minority but I always thought those old school half hour countdowns were an awesome way to catch up on little things you may have missed.
The problem seems to be that the people running the Network side of things are not wrestling fans and don't particularly seem to understand how wrestling fans think. I've seen dozens of awesome suggestions like this one (like scheduling WCW Saturday night on, you know, Saturday nights) or running old episodes of Nitro against RAW on Monday nights to recreate the Wars.
Maybe I'll do a column about how I would run the Network!
That MSG Raw is such a great show. The debut of Cactus Jack and the following match gives me goosebumps every time and I can't even say why for sure.
ReplyDeleteOh yeah and Austin stunned some guy.
The smarks would probably all watch Nitro and hurt the ratings!
ReplyDeleteBut seriously, WCW Saturday Night is right there.
No sale unless it's on at 6:05 and Dusty cuts promos calling the network the muthaship
ReplyDeleteDat convulsions sell.
ReplyDelete1997 was a fun year.
ReplyDelete"Dude, you really are eye-candy for the ladies"
ReplyDeleteThat would make it all the sweeter. So much nostalgia.
ReplyDeleteWish they would add more TV's. I like the PPV's but I would rather be able to watch all the Raw's leading up to a PPV and then watch the PPV.
ReplyDeleteAlso wouldn't mind stuff like Heat, WWECW, Confidential, FCW, NXT Pre 2014, etc.
Was thinking the same deal on Nitro outdrawing Raw. Vince would react by countering with Luger coming out to challenge Cena after the first Nitro aired. "People love Luger"
ReplyDeleteI think the Monday Night Wars shows begin sometime this summer. I'm just hoping they don't slow down the additions once we get there. That was my biggest issue with 24/7. We'd only get two weeks per month.
ReplyDeleteAs someone who doesn't have the network WCW Sat Night, the ECW home video library, whatever AWA's weekly tv show was, & Mid South/UWF Power Pro Wrestling being added is what would get me to buy
ReplyDeleteSo you're saying you're going to rebook the Network?
ReplyDeleteSeriously though, that would be awesome to see.
Who?
ReplyDelete(Not Neidhart)
Hogan?
(In WCW under nWo flag, brother.)
Or at the least, establish some type of time line. Yeah, a big draw is the archived content and if they blow through it all during this window, less of a reason to renew. So give a roadmap, with one monthly milestone. June Saturday Night, July Monday Night Wars Take 2, and so on......instead you have everyone figuring it's like the main product, a f'd up hodgepodge of random thoughts and half baked ideas that are planned out at the last minute with the only hope for random improvement.
ReplyDeleteIt's definitely not his best work, but one thing I learned from writing for the internet over the past 5 years is that one person's "mistakes" are actually just "well I wouldn't write it that way."
ReplyDeleteI once wrote an article about Star Wars and a guy wrote me a 3 page e-mail about my "mistakes" because I didn't go into every possible detail about the characters, like the time Chewbacca was in a go-kart race or C-3PO left his umbrella at home. It's not exactly mistakes when we're writing it on different wavelengths.
Now confusing Harley Race for Ric Flair? Now THAT was a mistake.
Put those old 15 minute shows that would run on the ppv channel in the early 90s hyping the show. You know when they had the ppv figure out two months ahead of time. Those would be great.
ReplyDeleteAlso all the WCW Sunday Night shows that aired live right before the ppv. I think that started out Superbrawl V?
The returned of Cactus Jack, Austin stuns McMahon, and I'm sure Bret, the most over guy on the show, cut a promo that many considered one of the greatest of all time?
ReplyDeleteTo this day I vividly remember discussing this show with my friends and online weeks before it aired. The buzz was hot that Austin was plowing through authority figures and it would culminate with the stunning of McMahon at the MSG show. Great stuff you just don't see anymore today.
ReplyDeleteThe good thing is they don't even have to bother to look it up, they can grab it all from here https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9XQL8A2Ax7oMRBsPjSGg4A/videos
ReplyDeleteI would be really stoked to read Scott reviewing Nitro. Are there really any Nitro rants?
ReplyDeleteClever girl...
ReplyDeleteA studio show with Renee Young and a revolving co-host that preview PPVs for you. You click on Slamboree 95, Renee and whoever spend a half hour previewing the show for you. Like recapping the angles that have led up to the show, showing clips of previous matches, shit like that.
ReplyDeleteI was thinking... if Scott's column is successful, will The Sporting News do a Sportsline and launch The Wrestling News?
ReplyDeleteI remember the 80s NWA so I started watching the WCW ppvs starting with 1990. Without the shows in between, it seems like just random feuds and matches. Why are the matches booked? What is the story? What is the payoff? Sometimes the commentary mentions it, other times I'm clueless. I didn't know they had the 30 minute packages/builds to these old ppvs. If I could see these before each ppv or watch the month or two worth of shows before these ppvs aired, it would be awesome, even if WCW sucked in the early 90s.
ReplyDeleteThe Dangerous Alliance stuff in 91-92 doesn't make sense at all if I'm only watching the ppvs.
ReplyDeleteI don't get the idea that putting too much up will hurt renewals. WWE owns so much historical content it would take you YEARS to get through it all. I mean, even getting through ALL of the Monday Night Wars era shows would take a long fucking time.
ReplyDeleteI'm just happy they've booked The Shield guys and Bray Wyatt strongly over the last year. If they 50/50'ed those guys, the company would have MAJOR problems, much worse than what they have now. Hopefully that mentality sticks and they continue to book people strong in the upper and mid cards.
ReplyDeleteThe ppv countdown shows were the best. With the box around the screen with the 30 minute countdown clock, etc. - the WWF ones with Sean Mooney in that "studio" with a billion monitors behind him, and then WCW would have super-ghetto ones with Bischoff or whoever superimposed in front of a reel-to-reel graphic that looked so fake it may as well have been on an Atari 2600. Nostalgia... they made the PPV so much more fun
ReplyDeleteThat's why you live in Canada. Long live the queen.
ReplyDeleteVince took an awful stunner but he can rest easy knowing that his isn't as bad as Linda's.
ReplyDeleteI want the episode where Pillman was praying all night.
ReplyDeleteHe reviewed the very first episode once
ReplyDeleteI did the first couple of them on 24/7 when they reset the Monday Night Wars back to zero late in the run, but then Sasktel dropped the channel. I can repost them if you want.
ReplyDeleteI'm actually dropping the title.
ReplyDeleteEven if Bryan has to walk away he'll get to be one of the very few to say he reached the very top of the mountain on the biggest stage of them all. And it's not like he'd ever have trouble getting paid either.
ReplyDeleteHow do you know that's what Vince and company are thinking? That's kind of unfair to just assume isn't it?
ReplyDeleteNot quite.
ReplyDeleteLegalize all drugs
Legalize prostitution
Not policing the world
With dems on social issues and with repubs on economic issues. But no not a carbon copy of either.
Reps and dems are the same party. Both want some form of big government.
Just going on previous history, plus the only reason he won the belt in the first place is because Punk quit and face Batista got totally shit on by the crowd. Either one of those things don't happen and we're not having this conversation.
ReplyDeleteLegalize all drugs
ReplyDeleteLegalize prostitution
Not policing the world
Explain to me why we're not doing this?
I grew up in that sort of environment, it's not healthy. Not saying that a gay person should have their biological children taken away from them, but I'm against gay couples adopting kids. I'm totally biased here though, and to be honest said kid is better off with a gay couple than in the foster system.
ReplyDeleteBecause EVERYONE changes once they get to Washington and get sucked in by the system.
ReplyDeleteI'm talking about using the neck injury as reason to believe he dropped the ball.
ReplyDeleteWell, look at Ziggler. And Vince should park him for good anyway. He both went over HHH clean and won the world title at WM NC-17. There's nowhere to go up from there, he's not going going to be the next Cena, which is about the only other thing he can achieve.
ReplyDeleteLike I said, walk away while you can still walk.
This RAW got me more excited to watch Badd Blood than I have been for any show since MITB 2011.
ReplyDeleteAll of the matches were solid, several memorable moments, and every segment advanced a storyline. 1997 was probably my top year as a wrestling fan. WWF, WCW, and ECW were all good.
I wouldn't call Orndorff turning on Hogan and Savage injuring Steamboat early 80s.
ReplyDeleteIf you are serious about this question, I recommend checkinging out this debate the libertarian magazine Reason ran a while back. http://reason.com/archives/2010/07/12/where-do-libertarians-belong
ReplyDeleteRight, both were in '86.
ReplyDeleteWhen your description of Republicans includes the words "greedy" and "scumbag," you're not moderate. Stop kidding yourself and just embrace your liberalism.
ReplyDeleteApples and oranges. Not all charisma is the same. A vast majority of grown men can't stand Cena's character. Does that mean he has no charisma? No, he has it in spades. It's the character that drives people crazy. People hated "blue-chipper Rocky Maivia" because he was playing an 80's smiling babyface in 1996 and was given the rocket push right out of the gate. Reigns has the physical presence and look of a bad-ass, but he's got the charisma of a long-haired Haku.
ReplyDeleteThat Cactus Jack reveal is one of the first modern "Smark pops" I remember
ReplyDeleteIf you haven't seen the Wookie go-kart race, you haven't lived. Completely changes how Return Of The Jedi plays out.
ReplyDeleteI love the idea of Bo Dallas having a submissive move and giving encouragement to his opponent mid-move. "Good luck! You're doing really well! Don't give up."
ReplyDeletePlease do!
ReplyDeleteWhy can't gay people raise kids?
ReplyDeleteThat's may 97
ReplyDeleteI never liked how Foley, in his book, interviews, TV, had to play his bashful crap and say "I didn't think anyone was going to remember or know cactus jack,". He knew full well an msg crowd would go nuts. I also hated his bullshit line about the second hell in a cell bump being unplanned....riiight.
ReplyDeleteWe need more McMahons on TV and the network! ;)
ReplyDelete