2008 Running Pro Wrestling Thread

Don't know if there has been a mention of this here yet, but ESPN Classic is running old AWA shows around midnight every night. They were doing UWF, which was horrible. But this has early Shawn Michaels, a healthy and sober Scott Hall and some other interesting characters. I used to watch it when I was a kid, at home after school, and if I remember correctly, I even had the ring and Larry Zbyszko and Nick Bockwinkel action figures.

 

The only thing about having Matt Hardy involved in an angle with Edge is that the WWE really didn't want that feud to take place to begin with because it really blurred the lines between what you see on TV and backstage. It took the fans basically booing babyface Lita out of the building, and a whole lot of "We want Hardy" chants for the WWE to face the music and bring him back after his firing. And even then, they really didn't push the Hardy/Edge feud that hard. It's something that should have been a main-event caliber feud for a year or so, but it got buried pretty quick. Even today, on the rare times when Matt and Edge have battled, announcers barely make mention of their previous issues.

Favorite Wrestlemania? I haven't actually watched them all, but my three favorites were WM6 (at the time, I was rooting for the Ultimate Warrior, who would have thought he would have turned into such a nut), WM10 (The first ladder match between Michaels/Hall and Bret vs. Owen) and WM18 (Rock vs. Hogan, plus Austin vs. Hall).

 

I've peeked them out, although the UWF reruns were unintentional comedy at its finest. Hall was pretty jacked when he started, quite a change from seeing him now.

 

Gotta say I'm a big fan of WM3. Hogan/Andre was a big part of it, since I was a huge Hulkamaniac (until I realized he couldn't wrestle), but I could watch Savage/Steamboat all day.

 

Quite a change? It's like a completely fucking different guy.

 

Is the UWF you're talking the Herb Abrams' UWF or the Bill Watts' UWF? I ask because I saw some Watts' UWF TV shows before Crockett gobbled it up and I thought they were great.

And the AWA shows were welcome viewing after I got home from school, though the promotion was starting its downward spiral.

 

I used to love coming home from school and watching the AWA shows. I still remember they devoted an entire hour episode to watching the replay and discussing whether or not Larry Z. handed Curt Henning the role of dimes to hit Nick Bockwinkel with to win the title.

As I was watching the show, my father, who hated wrestling, said "this is one of the most stupidest things I've ever seen on TV." Now that I think about it, he probably was right. But it was a great memory nonetheless.

 

If you have A&E, "The Unreal Story of Professional Wrestling" is on. Great mini-doc about the history of the biz.

 

I'm going to go with Wrestlemania XX as my personal favorite because I was there for it. Not a bad main event, Chris Benoit beating Trips and HBK for the belt. Eddie beating Kurt Angle to keep the belt. I so wanted that Lesnar, Goldberg match to be off the charts. What a dud that was.

 

Here's one for you.

Watching the aforementioned A&E special. Just watched the end of the Andre-Hogan WM III match and could only think, 'I wish I could have been there that night.'

Which matches/events in the history of the biz give you the same thought?

 

This doesn't count, but I was at ONS II when RVD beat Cena for the title. I think that was one of those I wish I was there nights. I just watched that match for the first time the other day. Still can't believe I was in the crowd for that one. Also, watching this A&E special, it's funny to see this Sarge character from the Power Plant. He was the one who told Batista he would never make it in pro wrestling. Batista had some choice words for Sarge in his book.

I wish I could have been there for Rock, Hogan. The atmosphere for that match was off the charts.

 

I also wish I could have been there that night, but to see the Steamboat/Savage match. However, Hogan/Andre, while not a great match as far as workrate, was worth seeing just for the historical value.