Slobberknocker Central Monday Night Recap #191
July 12th, 1999

The Opening Word:

Not much I care to say about Bash at the Beach. Didn't see it. If you don't 
know the results by now, you'll pick 'em up in the Nitro Recap below.

I got a lot of feedback about what I wrote last week, and almost all of it 
was about Chastity. Rather than seeing the point I was trying to make, 
several people went off on a tangent and took what I wrote as a shot at her 
for being a former porno star. Whatever. Look, if people can't bothered to 
accurately digest what I write, what can I do about it? I know I'm not a 
great writer, but I made it pretty clear that I was talking about WCW being 
hypocritical in regards to the whole "WWF is porn" issue. I guess from now 
on I'll just put Chastity in her place and ignore her.

The other thing I'm not supposed to talk about is Mark Madden. Did you all 
realize he's just a "character", and that we're not supposed to take 
seriously anything he says? Yeah, me neither. Oh well, I'll try and ignore 
him too.

Wrestling fans figured the PPV would be the big topic of conversation going 
into tonight's shows, but they were wrong. Turns out the WWF stole the 
spotlight by announcing that they had come to an agreement with Minnesota 
Governor Jesse "The Body" Ventura to have him appear at SummerSlam in 
August! A press conference is scheduled for Wednesday, and it's expected 
that they will announce that he will be a referee in the main event. This 
is getting huge play here in Minnesota, with Ventura's political critics 
already lining up to crucify him. The only thing Ventura has said on the 
subject thus far is that some (perhaps all) of the money he'll be getting 
(expected to be more than a million bucks) will go to Minnesota charities.

Back on or shortly after May 23rd (the night Owen Hart died) Ventura 
appeared with Verne Gagne on a local Minneapolis sports show. They were 
there to talk about sports in Minnesota, but the topic invariably swung 
around to wrestling. They talked briefly about Owen Hart, and the changes 
in professional wrestling today. Somehow the rumor that Ventura was being 
offered a million dollars to wrestle by the WWF came up. Ventura and Gagne 
laughed, and said for that kind of money they'd do it in a heartbeat. 
Ventura it was the first time he'd heard the rumor, and that it wasn't 
true. It was pretty clear, though, that for the right amount of money 
Ventura would consider doing something with the WWF.

Ventura sued the WWF after he left there, winning a settlement just under 
$1 million. At issue was money Ventura felt was owed him for his voiceover 
work done on WWF videotapes. At one point, when Ventura was negotiating 
a contract, he asked the WWF if anyone else was getting a percentage from 
videos. They said no. Turns out both Hulk Hogan and "Mean" Gene Okerlund, 
among others, were making extra money from videos. Ventura sued on the 
grounds that the WWF had misrepresented the truth when negotiating his 
contract. He won. Last I'd heard the WWF was still dragging its heels in 
paying him (this was a few years ago).

All water under the bridge, it seems, as the two sides have buried the 
hatchet and will be coming together once again. Of course the driving force 
is SummerSlam being held at the Target Center here in Minnesoata. A story 
such as this will get Ventura more mainstream press, which he likes, and 
the benefits to the WWF are obvious. Ventura will take some flack over it, 
but he doesn't care much about that, and the gig will supposedly coincide 
with his taking a few days of personal vacation time, which he is allowed 
as Governor. He'll give some, if not all, of the money to charity. Sources 
in touch with various Minnesota newspapers and TV stations say he'll be a 
referee in the main event. There's some interesting history there, as 
eleven years ago Ventura was the referee in the main event of the first 
ever SummerSlam PPV at Madison Square Garden. That was the infamous match 
where Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage took on Andre the Giant and Ted DiBiase. 
Ventura was reffing the match in favor of the heels, until Miss Elizabeth 
took off her skirt, distracting Ventura.

I'd seriously considered going to SummerSlam live this year, but the Target 
Center's selling out in under ninety minutes kind of squashed that idea.

We'll learn more about this at the press conference on Wednesday.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

WCW Monday Nitro:
Live/Taped: Live.
Length: Three Hours+.
Location: Jacksonville, Florida.
HOUR ONE Hosted By: Tony Schiavone and Bobby "The Brain" Heenan.

 - Another look at that WCW video which opened last week's show. They
   should really uses this instead of the computer generated intro. It's
   not half bad.

 - "Last Week" highlights package.

 - "Mean" Gene Okerlund is out to interview the new WCW World Heavyweight
   Champion, Randy "Macho Man" Savage. Savage, without Sid or his ladies,
   challenges anyone to come out and fight him tonight. Anyone, that is,
   except Kevin Nash. "Great," I thought, "Goldberg's winning the title
   tonight." Nope. Turns out to be "Hollywood" Hogan instead. Savage is
   hesitant at first, but Hogan says it's a done deal. You know, the last
   time Savage won the title, he lost it to Hogan the next night. "Great,"
   I though, "Hogan's winning the title tonight." What is it with Hogan and
   Sting that they can go away for months, then come back and get instant
   title shots? I should note that Hogan got a pretty big pop here, which
   is really depressing.

   Here's something odd I noticed: as the show starts we see the metal
   rampway which a lot of the wrestlers have been having problems with,
   tripping on the raised WCW logo. When Randy Savage comes out, though,
   the ramp has been covered with a carpet. After this interview, the
   carpet is gone. Why? Beats me, they should just leave it there. Could
   this have been taped before the show went live?

 - Nitro Girls.

 - They replay the "I Hate Rap!" video, edited to include new footage from
   last week's live performance, as well as footage of Curt Hennig and team
   walking around Nashville. Pretty much a whole new video, actually.

 - VAMPIRO vs. KONNAN
   Vampiro has drawn something of a cult following on the Internet. First
   it was because he's supposedly so good--then because WCW spent the last
   eight months holding him back. Things came to a head last week when
   Vampiro had to job to Rick Steiner on Nitro. For months Vampiro has
   claimed that WCW tells him to show up at events, then they don't use
   him. Or he doesn't show up because he wasn't booked, then they claim he
   was. Vampiro has earned the wrath of WCW for airing his grievances on
   their WCW Live Internet show. Last week he announced that if they didn't
   use him on Thunder, he was finished with the company. Turns out they did
   use him, in a match taped for this week's Thunder (which airs on
   Wednesday instead of Thursday). Whether this whole thing has been legit,
   or just Vampiro using the Internet to build himself a fanbase, is
   unknown. In any event it looks like WCW is finally getting around to
   pushing him.

   ... not that you could tell from this match. Basically he and Konnan
   combine for one interesting exchange of moves. They then move to the
   floor, where Vampiro whacks Konnan with a chair, drawing a DQ. Vampiro
   leaves Konnan laying in the ring after applying his version of the
   Michinoku Driver. (This has been another bone of contention with
   Vampiro, as WCW supposedly asked him to not use that move because
   Juventud Guererra uses it. Vampiro refused, pointing out that he'd been
   using it long before Juvi stole it from Taka Michinoku.)

 - PPV stills.

 - Ernest Miller comes out to annoy the crowd with his usual spiel. Buff
   Bagwell then comes out and counters with some blatant sucking up. An
   impromptu match breaks out, with Miller getting the pin following a kick
   from his ruby red shoes. Onoo counts the pinfall, though, so it's not as
   if it counts or anything. Still, this was pretty awful to watch.

 - More PPV stills.

 - Nitro Girls.

 - In case you were watching "Dilbert" (is that still on?), WCW replays
   clips from the Savage/Hogan confrontation.

HOUR TWO Hosted By: Tony Schiavone and Bobby "The Brain" Heenan.

 - RIC FLAIR (w/ Arn Anderson & Asya) vs. DEAN MALENKO
   Eric Bischoff joins the announce team, causing me to officially write
   this week's show off as having gone to the shits. Chris Benoit and
   Saturn accompany Malenko to the ring, but Flair sends them away before
   the match. I'm still trying to figure out what the payoff is to having
   Dean Malenko do all these jobs. A decent match, for what it was, but the
   finish is pretty much the same as in Malenko's match against David Flair
   at the PPV. Asya knocks out the ref, and Charles Robinson comes in to
   declare Flair the winner. Anderson attacks Malenko, and the beat-down is
   on. Sting then comes out for the save, and challenges Flair to a match,
   with control of WCW being at stake. Flair agrees, but only if Sting can
   beat David Flair in a match later tonight. Comments from Sting indicate
   he's aligning himself on the "Young" side of the whole "Young vs. Old"
   feud. Isn't Dean Malenko almost 40 years old? Seriously. Sting's no
   spring chicken either.

 - More PPV stills.

 - STEVEN REGAL (w/ Fit Finlay & David Taylor) vs. KIDMAN
   Some really good wrestling here, though I don't like seeing Regal going
   up against the smaller guys. And of course, since this is a good match,
   WCW rules dictate that they screw up the ending. Kidman accidentally
   levels the ref, allowing Finlay and Taylor to come in and work him over.
   Kidman rallies back, though, and sends the two to the floor. He then
   goes for the Shooting Star Press, which he botches (deliberately?)
   Flipping himself a good forty-five degrees in the wrong direction, his
   legs hit the ropes, and he crumples to the mat. Eric Bischoff, who had
   started into the ring once the ref went down, checks on Kidman, who
   appears to be okay. Regal grabs him, but is tucked into a small package.
   Bischoff makes the three count. Finlay and Taylor then yell at Bischoff,
   who shoves the two to the mat! (Bear in mind that Finlay just beat
   fourteen other men by himself the night before at the PPV.) The yelling
   continues at the desk, as Regal seems to be challenging Bischoff to a
   match. This was all weird, and the while point seemed to be to establish
   Bischoff as a won't-back-down badass. I'll just assume that I'm supposed
   to forget Bischoff has no power (in storyline terms) in WCW.

 - Nitro Girls.

 - SID VICIOUS vs. KENNY KAOS
   Another patented Sid squash which lasts forever. Afterwards Sid throws
   out a challenge to Sting.

 - Two Nitro Girls do a silhouette pole dance behind a screen. I actually
   had someone write me over the weekend to refute the notion that the
   Nitro Girls are used as sex objects. Yeah, sure.

 - They replay the Sting/Flair confrontation from earlier.

HOUR THREE Hosted By: Tony Schiavone and Bobby "The Brain" Heenan.

 - DAVID FLAIR (w/ Torrie, Ric, Arn & Asya) vs. STING
   Do I have to write about this? Sting kills David, quickly slapping him
   into the Scorpion Deathlock, but referee Charles Robinson won't declare
   him the winner. Sting gives Robinson the Scorpion Deathdrop. Everyone
   runs in. Sting gives Flair and Asya the splash in the corner. I guess we
   now just assume Sting gets that match against Flair.

 - Fit Finlay comes out and, in an interview conducted by "Mean" Gene, runs
   down his opponents at the "Junkyard Match" at the PPV. Finlay, I should
   mention, is the new Hardcore Champion, a title which is signified by a
   large trophy of welded together scrap metal. All the other participants
   of the "Junkyard Match" run in and attack Finlay. Jimmy Hart steals the
   trophy.

 - DIAMOND DALLAS PAGE vs. BOOKER T.
   At times this was an okay match, but it ran way too long (especially
   given the finish). Kanyon comes in, after the ref has been knocked out,
   and nails Booker with the Flatliner. Booker kicks out of the pin. Kanyon
   then comes in with a handfull of powder, but Booker sees it coming.
   Bigelow finally runs in to complete the schmozz. Backstage the NWO Black
   & White (remember them?) look on as the Jersey Triad kicks Booker's ass.
   Stevie Ray doesn't like it, though, and runs out with a steel chair to
   chase off the Triad. The crowd pops for this, chanting "Harlem Heat".
   WCW would do well to take notice of that.

 - "HOLLYWOOD" HOGAN vs. RANDY SAVAGE (w/ Team Madness)
   You know, I really liked this match ... WHEN I FIRST SAW IT IN 1989 AT
   WRESTLEMANIA V! Early on Madusa and Miss Madness try to interfere. Hogan
   grabs the two and knocks their heads together. The two then get into a
   catfight, causing officials to remove them from ringside. From there the
   match follows their usual routine, with Hogan "hulking up", blocking a
   punch, and setting up for the big boot and leg drop. Sid runs in and
   fights with Hogan, which the referee sees, but lets go. Kevin Nash then
   comes in and Jackknifes Savage. Hogan covers, the ref counts, and we
   have a new World Heavyweight Champion. Nash rains on Hogan's parade,
   though, by challenging him to a title match. Nash says that this time he
   won't just lay down for Hogan. Heel turn? The crowd pops for Hogan's
   win, but is mixed in reacting to Nash's challenge.

 - This Thursday: Thunder is on Wednesday this week.

 - Next week: Sting vs. Ric Flair, for control of WCW.

Comments:

Err ... umm ... yeah. First, the good: some awfully decent wrestling in a 
number of the matches. The bad: most everything else, including all the 
screwy finishes, the Bischoff stuff, Ernest Miller, Hogan coming out of 
nowhere and winning the title, etc.

I'm really disappointed at how the crowd marked out for Hogan. I guess it 
really says something about how bad WCW has been lately that they will 
welcome him back with such open arms. Have they so quickly blocked out 
everything this man did to ruin this company?

I don't know, I'd be lying if I said this was a "good" show, but all things 
considered, I've seen a lot worse recently.

Still no Hummer driver.

So much for Goldberg.

Somebody forget to call DJ Ran?

Where'd Tank Abbott go?

Did they fire Master P?

Isn't Dennis Rodman supposed to be here? I think Bischoff said he'd be on 
next week. The Insane Clown Posse will be there too. Then KISS will be on 
the week after that. (All this according to Easy E.)

I hear Shane Douglas finally signed, but WCW can't figure out what to do 
with him.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

WWF RAW is WAR:
Live/Taped: Live.
Length: Two Hours+.
Location: Louisville, Kentucky.
WWF RAW Hosted By: Jim Ross and Jerry "The King" Lawler.

 - "Stone Cold" Steve Austin hits the ring. He has with him a contract
   drawn up for his "First Blood" match against the Undertaker at Fully
   Loaded. If Austin wins, Vince McMahon leaves WWF TV forever. If the
   Undertaker wins, not only does he get the WWF Championship, but Austin
   never ever gets another shot at it. Vince McMahon comes out in a
   wheelchair (he was in a motorcycle accident 4th of July weekend). Austin
   gives McMahon the contract to sign. McMahon looks it over, then says he
   won't sign it until Austin signs it first. Austin replies that he won't
   sign it until Vince returns his "Smoking Skull" title belt (last seen
   around the waist of the Undertaker). Speak of the Devil, the Undertaker
   slides into the ring behind Austin and waffles him with the belt. Austin
   is busted open again. He then takes Vince McMahon's fountain pen, dips
   it in Austin's blood, and McMahon uses it to sign the contract.

 - A doctor in the back tells Austin he needs to have that cut looked at.

 - EDGE vs. GANGREL
   The Brood is officially split up, since Gangrel turned on Edge and
   Christian on a six-man match on Sunday Night Heat. Several minutes of
   back-and-forth action leads to Gangrel trying to walk out of the match.
   The two brawl up on the stage, with Edge winding up being tossed down
   the open whole which the little elevator rises out of.

   Backstage a medical team tells Austin he's going to need stitches to
   close his wound. Austin's reaction is as you'd expect.

 - Wednesday the WWF will be holding the press conference to announce Jesse
   "The Body" Ventura's involvement at SummerSlam.

 - X-Pac and Road Dogg have cornered Howard Finkel in the back, and they
   pay him back for ratting them out last week by tar and feathering him.
   The two then hit the ring for a promo, tossing out Degeneration-X themed
   catchphrases. Kane comes out, and Road Dogg asks where he stands in all
   this. Triple H, Billy Gunn hit the scene, sparking an all D-X brawl. The
   Undertaker then comes out, clears the ring of everyone but his brother
   Kane, and tells him to think over his options and make the right
   decision. Kane is left between his brother and friends in D-X.

 - Michael Cole will have an interview with the Evil D-X after the next
   match.

 - VAL VENIS/GODFATHER (w/ Ho's) vs. THE HARDY BOYZ (w/ Michael Hayes)
   This one goes by in a blink, as Hayes has to come in with a tag belt to
   save Jeff Hardy from being pinned. I guess the idea here is that the
   more experienced Venis and Godfather got the jump on the rookie
   champions. Disappointing match. Afterwards the Acolytes run out, but
   find themselves outnumbered by the Hardyz and Venis & Godfather.

   Triple H throws out a challenge to X-Pac, Road Dogg and Kane for a
   six-man match.

   IC Champ Jeff Jarrett and Debra are next.

 - Austin has his head wrapped in a large bandage, with a black band of
   some kind holding it in place. Not the best look for "Stone Cold" there.

 - Tori (remember her?) is shown in a very revealing video clip.

 - Jarrett is out, and barely has a chance to mention Debra's puppies, when
   suddenly he's rushed, kicked and Stunnered by Austin. Austin calls the
   Undertaker out for a no rules brawl, right there, right then. Out comes
   the "Big Show" Paul Wight instead. Wight points out that any fight with
   the Undertaker will also attract Kane. The "Big Show" suggests they team
   up for a tag team match. Austin is open to that suggestion, so long as
   it allows him to kick someone's ass.

   Jarrett is back in to pick up where he left off, but Austin returns and
   gives him another Stunner for good measure. Gratuitous, and funny as
   hell.

   D-X members are walking down different hallways in the back. Road Dogg
   expresses doubts about Kane's reliability.

WWF WAR ZONE Hosted By: Jim Ross and Jerry "The King" Lawler.

 - X-PAC/ROAD DOGG/KANE vs. TRIPLE H/"MR. ASS" BILLY GUNN/CHYNA
   Kane no-shows, but the crowd is alright with that, because his surprise
   replacement turns out to be the Rock! Isn't it great how all these
   various winding story threads can come together like this? A wild match,
   which sees the Rock drop the People's Elbow on Gunn for the win.

 - Terry Taylor is in the back to get comments from Droz. Droz is really
   digging the cross-dressing thing (apparently seeing what it did for
   Saturn's career). He throws out a challenge to anyone for an "Evening
   Gown Match". Prince Albert is understandably disgusted.

 - The Undertaker and Kane are plotting strategy in the back.

 - Droz is out to make his open challenge. Someone lets loose with a
   snippet from "Chances Are" backstage, and out comes Al Snow in an
   evening gown of his own. Snow says he'll accept the challenge, so long
   as it's fought under Hardcore Rules. Droz tells him to "bring it on ...
   BITCH!"

 - DROZ vs. AL SNOW (w/ Head)
   Snow delivers most of the offense, hitting Droz with a cookie sheet,
   squeezing his privates with a pair of salad tongs, then pulling off
   Droz's gown to earn the win. Snow then legdrops him through a table
   propped up in the corner for good measure. Meanwhile, as that is going
   on, Prince Albert comes out with his piercing kit. He removes a large
   mallet and railroad spike, driving said spike into Head. Snow is none
   too happy when he realizes what's happened.

   Before the show went on the air, Mark Henry was told by a doctor that he
   couldn't wrestle because his blood pressure was too high. After the
   break, we see Henry and D-Lo Brown exiting the arena. They were supposed
   to face the Acolytes tonight, with the winning team becoming the number
   one contenders to the Tag Team Titles. "Hardcore" Holly is shown
   standing nearby, overhearing all that is going down.

 - The Acolytes, now without opponents, throw out an open challenge to
   anyone. "Hardcore" Holly comes out to accept.

 - THE ACOLYTES vs. "HARDCORE" HOLLY
   A slaughter, as Bradshaw and Faarooq brutalize Holly. Things then go
   from strange to bizarre as the "Big Show" comes out to help Holly! First
   he clobbers Bradshaw (Faarooq already being down from a shot from the
   steel stairs which Holly kick-blocked), then he carries Holly up to the
   stage. Holly tells Wight that he had the two where he wanted them.

   Our latest "GTV" segment eavesdrops on a conversation between Joey Abs
   and Stephanie McMahon. Abs says he'd like another date with her.
   Stephanie says she just went out with him once as a favor to her brother
   Shane, and would never even consider going out with him again.

 - A quick look at Steve Blackman, then Steve Austin.

 - TEST vs. THE MEAN STREETS POSSE
   This is a "Gauntlet Match", meaning Test has to face his opponents one
   man at a time. Anyone who's seen a martial arts film knows this strategy
   never works for the bad guys. Pete Gas is in first, and Test puts him
   away with a monster flying elbowdrop off the top, from two-thirds the
   way across the ring! Rodney lasts a bit longer, but falls victim to
   Test's version of the Meltdown. Joey Abs is then in to deliver the most
   effective offense, but a pumphandle into a powerslam makes him ripe for
   the pickings. Shane McMahon runs in to prevent the win. Test is about to
   make life miserable for Shane when Steve Blackman comes in. He's quickly
   followed by Ken Shamrock. Those two leave, and Test is left at the mercy
   of the four punks from Greenwich. Referees flood the ring, but the Posse
   members shrug them off. Stephanie then runs in. Shane, thinking she's
   another ref, drops her with a blind elbow shot! Ever hear 15,000 fans
   say "ooh!" at the same time? Shane, realizing his mistake, scoops up his
   sister and carries her to the back to be looked at.

 - Backstage, Blackman and Shamrock have continued fighting. Several scrub
   wrestlers appear to split them apart. Is that Flash Flanagan and Tracy
   Smothers I see?

 - Michael Cole with comments from the Undertaker. Kane stands by looking
   ominous.

 - A millennium countdown clock informs us something big is coming, on or
   about August 9th. Chris Jericho seems to be a safe guess.

 - UNDERTAKER/KANE vs. "STONE COLD" STEVE AUSTIN/"THE BIG SHOW" PAUL WIGHT
   Kane has what looks like a large wrench, which the "Big Show" used on
   him on Heat. Lots of brawling around the ring area. Is this even a
   match? Guess it is. Austin and the Undertaker wind up on the stage, off
   the stage, and fighting around the light stands and rear of the crowd.
   Bodies hit the steps, the ring barrier, the announce table ... too much
   action to call even if I had the time. Eventually they all wind up in
   the ring. Kane takes out Wight with that large wrench. Austin is then
   chokeslammed. Cover and two count. Wight is back up. Again the action
   spills to the floor. Back in the ring Austin loses his head bandage, and
   the Undertaker draws fresh blood from Austin's cut. Wight sends the
   Undertaker to the floor with a clothesline. Kane does the same to Wight.
   He then turns to meet the boot of Austin, and the Stone Cold Stunner. 1
   ... 2 ... 3. Austin and Wight win. Austin is left a bloody mess, staring
   at the Undertaker, who lets his eyes roll back ...

 - Next week: Nothing announced.

Comments:

As I noted at one point above, it's great when a couple different 
storylines come together, making for a match or a moment which is damn near 
perfect. This show had some elements of that. This was probably the best 
RAW in weeks. A fair amount of wrestling mixed with a strongly flowing 
show. The Rock and D-X coming together, as well as Austin and Wight, made 
for some exciting moments. This show played out like one of those PPV hype 
shows the Monday before a PPV, but generally more satisfying.

Austin's head cut seems to be setting up one of those deals where he can 
bleed very easily, making his chances to win the "First Blood Match" slim. 
I wonder if Austin will even the odds by giving the Undertaker one of his 
own next week? I figure Austin will lose, and the WWF will cook up some way 
next year to get him another shot at the title. Maybe a fan poll? (Remember 
when Randy Savage was "banned for life" from the WWF, and they gave the 
fans a chance to vote on reinstating him?)

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Bottom Line:

I don't think WCW gets it (and I'm not talking about the WWF's slogan). 
I've wracked my brain lately trying to put my finger on what exactly it is 
WCW isn't doing right. While WCW seems to have many problems, I finally 
figured it out watching this week's Nitro which one is probably the 
biggest.

There's little drama or emotion in WCW.

Pure wrestling fans give the WWF a bad rap for its emphasis on "sports 
entertainment". All that really means is the WWF focuses more on story than 
actual in-ring wrestling. It's this focus which has made the WWF so hot 
right now. Their fans are not only interested in virtually every wrestler 
on the WWF roster, they also have a vested interest in what happens to 
these wrestlers. They've developed emotional ties to them. The clearcut 
storylines have established directions and goals for many of the wrestlers, 
and the fans have been drawn in to rooting for or against them in achieving 
these goals. Look back over the last twenty or so years of wrestling and 
all the greatest angles and storylines have this in common.

There's very little of this in WCW right now.

It's not just enough to create a character that the fans are interested in. 
You also have to make them *do things* that hold the fans' interest. This 
has been one of the greatest failings of Kevin Nash's recent run as champ. 
Trying to take a cue from the WWF, Nash put himself over as a hip, mellow, 
anti-establishment kind of guy. In some ways similar to "Stone Cold" Steve 
Austin, but far more laid back, and without the swearing. Nash let Savage 
do all the swearing, as he was built up to be a monster heel. They then 
engaged in a few "Stone Cold" inspired encounters involving vehicles and 
raw sewage, brought in Sid Vicious as Savage's partner in crime, and sat 
back, waiting for the big ratings to roll in. So why didn't it work?

Because the fans had very little reason to care about either man. Why was 
Savage going after Nash in the first place? What was the link between 
Savage and Sid, and what did Sid hope to gain by helping Savage? Who was 
the Hummer driver? On whose side was Torrie and Gorgeous George? Was this a 
feud about the World Title, or was it personal? None of these questioned 
were answered quick enough or well enough to suit the fans. The whole feud 
came out of nowhere, developed into a personal rivalry, then really fell 
all apart once Sting was added to the mix, raising even more questions for 
the fans to deal with.

WCW's woes didn't start with this feud, though. To understand where WCW is 
today, you have to go back to the night where Kevin Nash beat Goldberg for 
the title. That marked a definite turning point for WCW. The company had 
been doing reasonably well up to that point, only lacking a bit of 
direction following the disastrous Ultimate Warrior stint, and a feud 
between Ric Flair and Eric Bischoff which received little fan interest. The 
WWF had revitalized itself, and was nipping at WCW's heels in the ratings 
war. WCW's problems had actually begun several months before that, as the 
company decided to put Goldberg over Hulk Hogan as champ in a Monday night 
ratings ploy, in front of a large crowd at the Georgia Dome. It was a 
hugely successful move, but one which had the added downside of pushing 
Goldberg to his peak too soon. With no real credible heels for Goldberg to 
feud with, the win left Goldberg without all that much to do. (It also 
ruined any future Goldberg/Hogan match on PPV, because they'd already given 
away the most dramatic, emotional, best possible outcome.) In short, 
Goldberg had nowhere to go but down.

Goldberg hit bottom, so to speak, late in December, when he lost the title 
to Kevin Nash, who was the best opponent WCW could come up with for him at 
the time. Nash was cast in the role of a heel, but not really wanting to be 
booed by fans, Nash played the role as a babyface. As a result the fans 
were lukewarm to him winning the belt, unable to cheer for him because he 
was the "bad guy", but also unwilling to boo him because of his "hip" 
demeanor. Things then got even worse when Nash essentially handed the belt 
over to "Hollywood" Hogan a week later. Hogan was seriously disliked by the 
fans, but not in the good way which the wrestling business looks for. To 
put in bluntly, fans were sick of Hogan. They were so tired of him they 
couldn't even care enough to boo him. Things were again made worse by 
Hogan, like Nash, deciding he didn't really want to be booed either. He too 
sought to play himself as more of a "good guy", and as a result fan apathy 
reigned. Hogan would eventually announce he was going to run for President 
of the United States, and hinted at a return to his old "Yellow & Red" 
babyface character. Everyone quickly glossed over the fact that Hogan 
didn't deserve the title belt that he was wearing.

Of course the so-called "smart" fans saw the whole World Title situation as 
being highly political in nature, as Goldberg, who was done a huge favor by 
Hogan in letting him win the title, refused to return the favor. Goldberg 
instead dropped the belt to Nash, who passed it on to Hogan. This probably 
explains a lot of the shots Hogan has taken at Goldberg in recent 
interviews. It was also the start of a six month streak of the WCW Title 
changing hands in similar, politically inspired situations.

Hogan lost the title in March to Ric Flair, in a match which saw numerous 
people assist Flair in getting the win. As usual, Hogan needed the claim of 
"he didn't win fair!" as a crutch (a familiar theme to most of his World 
Title losses in both WCW and the WWF). Hogan would soon after remove 
himself from WCW television, using a real knee injury as an excuse (said 
injury attributed to Diamond Dallas Page in storyline terms), in an effort 
to distance himself from WCW's plummeting TV ratings.

Ric Flair had been having his own problems up to this point. 1998 was a 
miserable year for him, as a legal dispute between he and WCW kept him off 
TV for most of the year. Given a chance to come back one last time and say 
goodbye to the fans, WCW was pleasantly surprised to see that Flair could 
pop a good rating. They quickly settled their dispute, and brought Flair 
back into the fold with a feud against WCW President Eric Bischoff, in a 
storyline inspired by the WWF feud between Steve Austin and Vince McMahon. 
WCW's take on the storyline fizzled, however, as Bischoff wasn't as 
credible or as interesting a villain as Vince McMahon, and Flair wasn't 
given a truly definitive victory over Bischoff. He did manage to wrest 
control of WCW, in storyline terms, from Bischoff, by becoming the new 
President. Not seeing much of a return from this storyline investment, WCW 
decided to turn Flair heel, accusing him of "abuse of power" to satisfy his 
own means. The fans, who wanted to cheer Flair more than they wanted to boo 
him, were slow to come on board. WCW made things worse by having Flair go 
"insane", which turned off the fans even more.

Flair would go on to lose the title to Diamond Dallas Page, a perennial 
mid-carder with close personal ties to Eric Bischoff. Randy Savage also 
made a return to the company, playing a role in said title switch. The fans 
almost immediately rejected DDP as a main eventer, and as World Champion 
caliber material. Rather than try much to build him up, WCW almost as 
quickly turned DDP heel. With WCW now losing the Monday night ratings war 
regularly, they seldom gave things more than two or three weeks to prove 
themselves. The lukewarm positive reaction for DDP turned into a lukewarm 
negative reaction for him. Savage, meanwhile, puzzled fans by his 
subsequent actions, which almost seemed random. One moment he was a good 
guy, the next he was a heel. No one knew quite what to make of it, and most 
fans seemed to give up trying.

"Where is Goldberg?" the fans seemed to be asking. Goldberg was out with a 
"knee injury", which soon enough turned into a contract dispute.

Sting, who had been absent for some time for reasons not made all that 
clear by WCW, made a surprise return to WCW and did a quick title 
switcheroo with DDP. Sting's Nitro title win electrified the fans--the 
first truly positive and emotional thing they'd been able to latch onto in 
months. The feeling was short lived, however, as Sting lost the belt back 
to DDP later in the evening. "Smart" fans wrote it off as a ratings ploy.

With Goldberg and Hogan gone, and Ric Flair having been demoted to his own 
little circle of Hell, and Sting once again being held out of the 
spotlight, that just left Kevin Nash as an opponent for Page. Nash regained 
the title at the May PPV, in a match which saw Eric Bischoff affecting the 
outcome in a way which WCW was never able to credibly explain. This 
contributed to a climate in which Nash was liked well enough by the fans, 
but he wasn't exactly their first pick as to who they wanted to hold the 
belt (that honor was reserved for the sill absent Goldberg).

... which pretty much brings us to where we are today. Goldberg and Hogan 
were still gone, while Ric Flair and Diamond Dallas Page were "proven 
failures" as champ. Desperately needing a monster heel to put up against 
Nash, they elevated Randy savage into the role, turning him into a foul 
mouthed woman abuser. No one in the world wanted to see him with the title, 
but with so much invested in him, WCW had to give him the belt.

For one night.

Out of the shadows comes "Hollywood" Hogan, ready to collect on a few 
favors, and take a shot at proving himself as the "ratings saviour" of WCW. 
The live crowd was electrified by his "surprise appearance" (Internet fans 
knew throughout the day leading up to the show that Hogan would be there). 
Hogan put an end to Savage's one day reign of terror as champion, with 
everyone now eagerly waiting to see how it affected the ratings. Once again 
the "smart" fans couldn't help but call the move yet another ratings ploy, 
and also couldn't overlook the fact that Nash managed to use Savage as a 
transitional champ to lose the belt to Hogan without having to do the job 
himself. (Rumors leading up to the show were that Nash was actually going 
to be the one to beat Savage on Nitro, then loses the title to Hogan at the 
next PPV. Seems as if head WCW booker Nash decided he didn't want to lose 
to Hogan in that way. Hogan will probably still beat Nash at the next PPV, 
but Nash will at least be able to say he didn't loose the belt to Hogan. 
Look for some kind of screwy, non-decisive finish.)

All of this action involving the World Title has left out one thing: the 
fans. Only once were they given a switch they truly wanted to see, and that 
was the night Sting held the belt for two hours. Besides that, not once 
were the fans put into a position where someone they were solidly rooting 
for made a successful run at the title. Goldberg losing to Nash was 
depressing. Nash's turning it over to Hogan was even more depressing. Ric 
Flair's victory didn't do much to raise spirits. His turning heel depressed 
the fans even more, and that formula was repeated when DDP won the title. 
WCW seemingly ignored how excited the fans were over Sting winning the 
belt. WCW had dug such a deep hole karma-wise that Nash's run as champ 
didn't do much to improve the mood. Savage winning the belt put them back 
down into the hole. Now Hogan is the champion, and while some fans are 
excited by this, you can tell others are in a similar state of mind as when 
Nash won the title. It was exciting, but they haven't decided whether or 
not it was a *good thing*. Of course WCW, rather then let the fans bask in 
the glow of the moment, brought the fans back down by letting Kevin Nash 
stroll back onto the scene. Nash threw out his challenge, seriously hinting 
at a possible heel turn. Fans thrilled at the notion of seeing good back on 
top in WCW immediately had a bucket of cold water thrown on them, as they 
have to grapple with the notion of Nash possibly returning to the Dark 
Side.

WCW spares no time to allow drama and emotion to build. They rarely do 
things that will make their fans stand up and cheer. The anticipation in 
seeing Hogan win the title was only allowed three hours to grow. Compare 
that to the WWF, where they will spend as much as three MONTHS building to 
such a dramatic finish. It's the classic dynamic of "good versus evil". 
Some say there are no "good guys" in the WWF, but that's somewhat 
misleading. While you'd be hard pressed to call the likes of Steve Austin 
or the Rock role models, they are still put into definite "good guy" or 
"bad guy" roles. These roles are usually defined by their opponents, who, 
like Vince McMahon or the Undertaker, are clearly evil and playing the role 
of "bad guys". A conflict will arise, and the story between the two will 
build, spanning several weeks or months, with some kind of emotional payoff 
for the fans periodically taking place: Austin winning the title, earning 
control of the WWF, regaining the title, etc. Often the WWF will follow 
something that disappoints the fans with something pleasing which makes up 
for it. Whether it's a day, a week, or the next PPV, WWF fans know that the 
WWF is going to give them something which will make them very happy.

This is what WCW doesn't get. For most of this year the WCW World Title has 
bounced around in a manner which hasn't been very pleasing to the fans. On 
most occasions the wrestler they were rooting for came up short. And while 
all this was going on at the main event level, the undercard offered stuff 
of even less interest. WCW seems mainly concerned with pushing characters, 
making them interesting to the fans, but not giving them anything 
interesting to do.

Ernest Miller is a prime example of this. Even if you are truly amused by 
his "James Brown" gimmick, what has he done with it? The same can be 
said of Disco inferno, Lenny Lane & Lodi, Scotty Riggs, and numerous 
others.

Then there's the decent wrestlers such as Rey Mysterio, Kidman, Eddie 
Guerrero, Chris Benoit, Dean Malenko and Saturn. TV time for these guys is 
scarce, and when we do see them, nine times out of ten they're getting 
their faces stomped into the mat. Benoit and Saturn, for example, have been 
involved in the relatively high profile feuds with Ric Flair, and the New 
Jersey Triad. They've had few moments to celebrate, though. This past 
Sunday, at Bash at the Beach, everything was in place for WCW to give them 
and the fans a huge payoff by having them win the Tag Team Titles from the 
Triad. Didn't happen. Why? Who knows? Weeks of build-up evaporated, as WCW 
went for a finish we'd seen several times in recent weeks on TV.

Or how about the "Rap vs. Country" feud? The Rap Team is portrayed as the 
good guys, yet most WCW fans seem to hate rap. This gains the bad guys fan 
support in their "I Hate Rap" anthem. With fan support so evenly divided 
and watered down, in the end it doesn't matter which side wins. The Rap 
Team won at the PPV, but the next night on Nitro the Country Team went on 
as if nothing had happened. No drama. No emotion. No payoff for the fans.

I could go on, as the examples in WCW seem endless. Suffice it to say that 
underlying the many problems WCW has is their almost total inability to 
make the fans care all that much about what they do. When the fans don't 
care, they don't watch.

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"Slobberknocker Central" and "Monday Night Recap" are copyright 1999 by 
John Petrie, and all opinions expressed therein are his own, and not those 
of "USLink". Check the "Slobberknocker Central" main page for info on how 
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Volume One, Number 191 of the "Monday Night Recap", July 12th, 1999.