This Day in Pro Wrestling History

[snuffbox]

Also: WM 4 to 5. And 1997 WCW.

 

[Valeyard]

The Mega Powers saga is the best overall work and of course made the most money and I love it so fucking much, but like...Hogan didn't need to kill off the elbow, man. Wrestlemania 5 is another of my favorite matches ever but you don't kill the elbow. Fuck Hogan all over.

I say Rumble '91 to around Summerslam '92, roughly. Extra crazy Macho King, redemption arc with Liz, dragged back in because Jake is pure evil, defends Liz's honor against wrestling's ultimate sleaze in Flair. When Liz left it threw a lot off, of course, but I can't sleep on the build and match with Warrior at Summerslam. Just classic Flair mindfucking with Perfect and Heenan feeding it so well.

A big, big part of my frustration with the nWo is that it meant never getting the final resolution with Flair. I have my own issues with nWo Savage as it is, but dude never got his proper revenge.

 

[Cackling Co Pilot Kamala]

Savage is one of those guys that has never really had boring stretch of his career. Even New Generation era pitchman and Team Madness/"What Up, Mach?" era, he was giving his absolute all even if he wasn't into material he was being given. Maybe his brief TNA run but that's almost like Bret Hart's early 2010s WWE comeback in that I mostly try to pretend it didn't happen.

 

[strummer]

Savage's 1990 is pretty terrible but I wonder if it would have been different if he wasn't dealing with nerve damage in his arm. They obviously had to work around the injury during the Dusty feud. Btw, the Dusty feud seemed to last an eternity

 

[BruiserBrody]

I think he would have done pretty well in JCP. If he comes in mid-June 85 and spends the next 5 months going over low end guys (like his WWF stuff) while calling out Magnum, Dusty, etc. Magnum follows his Starrcade 85 blood bath with Tully by spending the next six months battling Macho Man as JCP expands markets. Savage can bring in Lanny and revive some of his Memphis stuff with the RnR Express too. Eventually he and Dusty can feud so Rhodes can stop working Flair and Tully non-stop from 1985-1988. Maybe Savage gets the Luger spot in the Horsemen, only to spend too much time blowing his own horn instead of protecting Flair's neck, and Starrcade 87 can be Savage winning the NWA title to kick off JCP on PPV.
Maybe Liz works as Macho's valet w/o Vince coming up with it and you can have Flair saying lecherous things when he and Savage are Horsemen together to add to the slow burn,

 

[Valeyard]

I can never get into Team Madness Savage. It's like when you'd have a hair band put out a grunge record after Nirvana hit and then saying they always were going in that direction.

 

[strummer]

The Nash/Savage feud in summer of 99 might be the worst main event program of all time

 

[BruiserBrody]

Savage's 1990 is pretty terrible but I wonder if it would have been different if he wasn't dealing with nerve damage in his arm. They obviously had to work around the injury during the Dusty feud. Btw, the Dusty feud seemed to last an eternity

Almost a year I believe as they started up in Dec/Jan 90 IIRC and the final final blow off was a SNME the following October or so where Dusty was already busy with Ted and Savage was chasing the Warrior.

 

[Valeyard]

Dusty and Savage just didn't have chemistry and it was clearly busy work for both guys. Sherri was the biggest star of the whole thing.

 

[Cackling Co Pilot Kamala]

Dusty & Sapphire Vs Macho King and Sherri is a feud I would put in the "Fun bad" category.

Want to clarify that I think that the Team Madness angle sucked eggs but Savage always seemed like he was trying way harder than any of the other old dawg WCW main eventers. Even Flair and DDP occasionally had "pin me, pay me" mode.

 

[strummer]

This got me thinking. Apparently the crown changing match between Savage and Duggan in fall 89 was deemed so bad that it was unairable. The ending was only shown on tv. How bad was this match if it was unable to make air in 1989 WWF? What the hell was the story here?!?!?

 

[Valeyard]

Team Madness Savage just was so immobile it's hard to watch. He went much further out trying to reestablish himself than the rest but he just couldn't go anymore. It was like the little brother in A Christmas Story who couldn't put his arms down or get back up when he got pushed over.

 

[Cackling Co Pilot Kamala]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1405913720635592705

 

[snuffbox]

Kurt Angle and Shane McMahon beat each other to pulps 20 years ago tonight.

 

[Cackling Co Pilot Kamala]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1410231771065692163

I'm of the mindset that there's no way to objectively pick the GOAT Pro Wrestler BUT if you have to pick one, Terry Funk may be it.

It's astounding this crazy old bastard made it to 77. Happy Birthday Champ!

 

[snuffbox]

He is the most versatile wrestler to ever live. And one of about a half dozen that are in that goat conversation.

 

[Cackling Co Pilot Kamala]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1410651307275399171

Love this match. Rare free TV match where I remember exactly where I was watching it.

 

[BruiserBrody]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1411695060354228228

 

[snuffbox]

Dusty had some goat ideas and that was one of them.

 

[Cackling Co Pilot Kamala]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1411654629985820677

 

[Cackling Co Pilot Kamala]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1412145758221053960

20th Anniversary of the Birth of WWFCW

 

[Cackling Co Pilot Kamala]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1413762413481005056

 

[Cackling Co Pilot Kamala]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1414632056596877321

 

[BruiserBrody]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1416366173734809606

I likely saw Brody on AWA TV as a wee lad, but I do not have any actual memories of it. I first learned of his death in an Apter mag my mother bought at a rummage sale in 1990 or 91. The story of this mad man who was brutally killed actually had Tony Atlas, Dutch Mantel and the Youngbloods interviewed for it (and likely others). It left a strong impression on a 9/10 year old Brody.

 

[Cackling Co Pilot Kamala]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1419317092491345924

Underrated moment. Never noticed that Heenan shoves Bruce Prichard to get over to Cornette lol.

 

[Cackling Co Pilot Kamala]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1422188153486651395

 

[BruiserBrody]

As I mention every year, I watched that on WCW Worldwide @ midnight in my brother's trailer in the woods. Total mark out moment.

Odd to think after smashing Sting that Vader was almost simply a transitional champ.

 

[Cackling Co Pilot Kamala]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1422603251434803205

Arguably last major New Generation era show.

 

[Cackling Co Pilot Kamala]

22 year anniversary of moment where IMO WWF officially put the exclamation point on their victory in the Monday Night Wars. Once WCW countered one of the best debuts in years with underdeveloped, premature red & yellow Hogan nostalgia, I knew they'd never come back.

 

[BruiserBrody]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1426658574663618566

Ugh.

Nash went on Twitter and kayfabed that he was told to "stick it to the winner either way" IIRC. I think I'm glad I forgot most of this.