Reading about/Watching starrcade 97 again, and how awfully booked it was. Why didn't Kevin nash end up wrestling The Giant? I remember that being billed as the number 3 match behind the main event and Zybsko/Bischoff. Also, Larry freaking Zybsko was in the 2nd from the top match at one of the biggest cards of all time? Also Randy Savage wasn't even booked on the card and was a last minute replacement in the 6 man? And Raven didn't even wrestling even though he was booked in a feud with Benoit at the time? Any reasons for any of this??
God, why would you watch Starrcade 97 again?
Nash's story is that he had a heart condition scare that turned out to be heartburn or indigestion or something, although the most common rational explanation is that he didn't want to do a job.
Raven had a really gnarly staph infection that was causing inflammation of his pancreas, or something along those lines, so that one was legit. Plus Benoit got his revenge and beat the piss out of him at Souled Out, so fine.
Randy Savage wasn't originally going to be there because WCW had used up all his dates, and when Konnan went down with injury they had to basically call him and beg him to work and actually changed the finish of the match to Savage going over with the flying elbow to get him to work.
Zbyszko...well, it is what it is. Larry was pretty over in that role and I'd guess Bischoff wanted to work with someone he was friends with and trusted. But it at least made sense from a storyline perspective.
God, though, that show was so bad.
Was Nash really going to job though? They did the match a month later, he went over.
ReplyDeleteNash no shows Starrcade and it's cool. When Flair went to his kids wrestling tournament and as a result no showed Nitro, Bischoff tried to sue him.
ReplyDeleteHis dad died of heart attack and the whole family has heart conditions, but Scott will of course go the didn't want to job route
ReplyDeleteHey we actually spend an hour on that show on my wrestling podcast that's dedicated to bad angles!
ReplyDeletehttps://m.youtube.com/watch?v=u7KHtda8swY
Doesn't make it not true.
ReplyDeleteIn a case like savage - would they pay him extra to show up? Otherwise why bother if your not contractually obligated to?
ReplyDelete100% this emailer didn't watch Starrcade 97 live or WCW at the time. Larry Zybisko was legit super fucking over, somehow. Whenever he did that salute thing he got crazy cheers.
ReplyDeleteOf course they would. Savage never worked pro bono except for his father.
ReplyDeleteYes, he was really scheduled to job.
ReplyDeleteDoesn't not make it not true.
ReplyDeleteThat's...what I said.
ReplyDeleteI see a one word difference.
ReplyDeleteWell technically working for free is just plain foolish (meaning no consideration at all). Just wondered based in the reply did they just beg him or was it negotiated
ReplyDeleteWell OK then.
ReplyDeleteMoney is part of the begging.
ReplyDeleteFrom the WON...
ReplyDelete"The company wanted Randy Savage to fill the spot, and in negotiations to get him to fill the spot literally a few hours before the show was going on the air, had to agree to change the originally planned finish of The Steiners & Ray Traylor going over. To get Savage to agree, the finish was changed to where Savage got to score the pin using the elbow off the top on Scott Steiner. This left Scott Steiner visibly livid to the point he had major words with booker Terry Taylor and they tried to alleviate him by letting him do so many big moves at the end for saves before doing the job, although he still wasn't happy at all."
The important thing is that I win.
ReplyDeleteThat's just, like, your opinion, man.
ReplyDeleteThat doesn't make it not true.
ReplyDeleteSorry, but Kevin Nash has forfeited his right to "benefit of the doubt"
ReplyDeleteTriple H texted him: "Stick the booker."
ReplyDeleteI would've tried for actually$$, but I'm weird like that. Good stuff though!
ReplyDeleteHBK taught him well.
ReplyDeleteWhat makes it true?
ReplyDeleteNot only did WCW not run Nash vs Giant, they didn't even bother to run the logical replacement of Scott Hall vs Giant!
ReplyDeleteJust makes Nash all the more courageous for going against doctor's orders and facing Giant at Souled Out because he didn't want to disappoint his fans for a third time.
ReplyDeleteTo WCW's credit, they put out like 6 straight decent-to-awesome PPVs afterwards
ReplyDeleteI always likened Starrcade 97 with WM14 as both shows were the most important shows they done to that point and later changed the fates of both companies, but it seems both shows had more in common than I realized because WM14 was also mired in quite a few injuries.
ReplyDeleteAs others said Bischoff/Larry was a pretty big feud at the time. Of all the things to slag that show for that wasn't one of them. Had Sting/Hogan not sucked a colossal dick I doubt it would even be remembered as being a bad show.
ReplyDeleteYeah, well, at least Sting returned and got the big, decisive win over Hogan to put an end to the nWo!
ReplyDeleteWait....
If I ever get the opportunity to host a drunk spelling bee, one of the words I will slip into the contest will be "Zbyszko."
ReplyDeleteWell yea. Because he didn't want to job. Nash always seems to have convenient things come up when he's eating a pinfall
ReplyDeleteFuck I miss WCW
ReplyDeleteDid WCW not have someone keeping track of how many dates guys were working? It seems like them blowing through guys' dates and having to scramble to come up with last minute plans or beg the guy to work happened there frequently.
ReplyDeleteBut it came through "Book the sticker" and Nash got out his Panini sticker book and forgot about the show.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure it was Zybszko v. Bischoff, so much as it was Zybszko v. nWo, specifically Hall. That should have been the match to happen at Strarrcade, Zybszko v. Hall at Starrcade. The whole idea that a lot of the angles have been built up FOR A YEAR, and the payoff for the semi-main was guanateed not to happen for the following month.
ReplyDeleteHe disappointed fans anyway, sorry.
ReplyDeleteProbably ran out of Hall's dates, too.
ReplyDeleteRooster' s got balls to do that to Scotty. I'm pretty sure I'd have folded and gone to Bossman and told him to lay down again.
ReplyDeleteSavage probably wanted to go over the most over guy in the match, and that was Scotty.
ReplyDeleteMatch was pretty decent actually.
ReplyDeleteYeah that would actually make sense.
ReplyDeleteThey already did Zybszko vs Hall.
ReplyDeleteNo, Hall was there. I think he came out and cut a promo on the Giant and was choke-slammed: they just didn't run an actual match for whatever reason.
ReplyDeleteSwear to god, did you just try to win an argument by saying "Does not not make it not true."
ReplyDeleteTNA is WCW if it still lived on.
ReplyDeleteConfusion is my secret weapon!
ReplyDeleteI'm not a fan of Tna really. WCW was so different from WWF. I miss 1985-1999 WCW then
ReplyDeleteNo they didnt. Hogan was paid extra for going over dates so he did that quite often.
ReplyDeleteIsn't that where Spiccoli joined the nWo? Or Dusty?
ReplyDeleteAside from Sting/Hogan. This could have been a really good show with some actual thought put into the booking. The subs really did hurt too. Raven vs Benoit was like **** 1/2 at SO, Flair/Hennig in a cage was talked about behind the scenes at least leading up to this show. Giant/Nash was decent at Souled Out too.
ReplyDeleteTo me the biggest disappointment was DDP/Hennig. That could have easily been a **** match, but they just slept through it.
Hennig couldn't go at that point whether he was going through the motions or being energetic.
ReplyDeleteYeah Hennig seemed pretty done at this point, but I recall him putting in some good matches down the line.
ReplyDeleteThe problem with this show is leadership -- you really needed someone taking control of the booking and ensuring that most of the matches were passable. Such a waste of WCWs biggest PPV audience ever.
And yet Giant jobbed next month. Now unless Giant was always jobbing from day one, I'll think it was Nash fearing to do the j o b. The dude ducked CM Punk for "health reasons" and got to job to Triple H instead - so I got nothing to say.
ReplyDeleteAgreed, I think Eric/Larry was OK for what they were going for.
ReplyDeleteThe injured guys didn't work Starrcade, whereas two cripples put on a hell of a main event at WM14
ReplyDeleteYup, Souled Out is majorly underrated in particular. DDP/Benoit at Superbrawl and DDP/Raven/Benoit at Uncensored are still extremely fun.
ReplyDeleteI had an odd affinity for that match. The Savage intro pops the crowd out of their coma and the match is actually pretty good, fun finish too.
ReplyDeleteAfter dropping Giant on his head of course.
ReplyDeleteHe had the same issues when he was supposed to job to Jarrett in TNA. I have zero issue with being overly cautious, but this is too convenient.
ReplyDeleteThat and a face going over in the first five matches on the card. It might have livened things up a bit.
ReplyDelete