2020 Pro Wrestling Thread

Ain’t that a kick in the head.

 

Controversy erupted later on, however, when an old clip surfaced of him repeatedly and angrily calling a black co-worker, "Stupid!"

 

This man is a king. This Tweet can simultaneously be read as a dig at a (probably) bad angle, and also selling that the mystery driver who clearly framed Jeff isn’t him.

 

Stumbled across the old-school WWF "Wrestling Album" on YouTube -- with "Real American" when it was not Hogan's song, but Michael Rotunda and Barry Windham. Then Hogan had his own instrumental theme.

 

Neat WWE Network video, a never before seen behind the scenes doc on Sting from Slamboree 1995 before facing Big Bubba (Boss Man).

Interested nugget: as he pains his face blue and red, he says he thinks these are the colors he'll stick with.

Fast forward about 16 months later...

 

That was a great little time capsule. Sting in his bleach-blond, neon-colored era, Pillman before he became a "Loose Cannon," Bagwell before he became "Buff," Big Bubba taking a break from the "Bossman" persona, and the Macho Man actually talking more like a real human being. It's stuff like this that had me re-subscribe to the Network even though I hardly watch any of "Raw" or "Smackdown" these days.

 

Watching matches and stuff like this from that 1995-97 period is so bizarre now, after we've watched the entire wrestling business change over the last 25 years.
I've mentioned it before, but go back and watch the 1997 Royal Rumble sometime. It's a fascinating time capsule of wrestling history. Almost all of the stars who would cement hall of fame legacies over the next five years in the Attitude Era are in the match (or on the PPV) in their "gimmick before THE gimmick." Triple H still playing the blue blood, The Rock as Rocky Maivia, Austin just coming into his own as Stone Cold, HBK still a babyface champ, a few others still working the cheesy late 80s/early 90s cartoon gimmicks that were getting stale. Hell, you even had Mil Mascaras make a cameo.
And something like this, where you have Sting before he went dark, and the others you mentioned right before they hit on something that helped define their careers.
Then you see how much everything changed in the next 12-24 months with the Screwjob and WWE's reset, the nWo, the shift to wrestlers basing characters on real-life personas and less on cartoon gimmicks, and think of where it is today, and it's mind blowing how it all came together right and shifted in that short little window of time.

 

I would also add that it's fascinating to watch ECW shows from around 1994-96. WWF and WCW were in the eras that you talk about, but ECW was ahead of them with that era. They were regularly smashing tables, doing crazy spots, being more real-life with personas and the fans were truly a part of the show.

Some of it, which looked exciting back then, would be passe today. Chairshots to the head, insane amounts of blood, oversexualization of the women, and we'd be complaining that the fans were hijacking the show. But a lot of what WWF and WCW did was bring ECW's style to a mainstream audience.

 

Seth says he's had his eyes on someone else for his posse. Wouldn't it be something if he gets Dominic to turn on Rey?

 

I'd say create a drinking game for every time they mention "The Greatest Wrestling Match Ever," but I don't think my local liquor store has that much stock.