Shining a Spotlight 9.18.08: Framing Fame

The Megapowers form: In 1987, Hulk Hogan was at the height of his popularity as WWF champion. Only months before, Randy Savage had been among the most hated men in the sport but had softened a bit while going for the IC title against the Honky Tonk Man. During a match against HTM on “Saturday Night’s Main Event,” Savage was attacked by the Hart Foundation with Honky getting his guitar out. Elizabeth ran in to stand before Savage and try to stop him but (in a move rather brutal for the time), Honky just shoved her aside. Elizabeth left in tears as Honky smashed Savage with the guitar but moments later, Elizabeth brought out a confused Hogan. Hogan went on the attack as Savage recovered, the two clearing house before bumping into each other. They seemed ready to fight but Elizabeth interceded and after a few tense moments, the two shook hands to the crowd’s delight as the Megapowers were formed. We all knew it’d blow up in the end but for now, seeing two major stars together was a huge moment for fans.

Worst victory ever: Throughout 1989, the series of matches between Ric Flair and Ricky Steamboat were considered among the best ever seen by fans. Steamboat beat Flair in February to win the NWA title and held strong in rematches. Among them was their amazing hour-long battle at a Clash of the Champions card which ended in controversy when Flair was pinned despite having a foot on the rope. The final battle was set for WrestleWar and was considered the best of the trio with Flair finally reversing a body slam into a small package to win his sixth NWA World title. After Steamboat shook his hand and left, Flair was interviewed by Jim Ross when Terry Funk, one of a trio of special judges on hand in case the match went to a draw, entered. Funk congratulated Flair and then issued a challenge, Flair turning him down as Funk had been out of wrestling for a while. Funk insisted he was kidding only to attack Flair brutally. It was wonderfully done with the idea of Flair being tired out from the long match and without allies as Funk pounded him about, threw him outside and piledrived Flair through the judge’s table. It was a stunning moment for fans, heralding a wild new feud and putting Flair, long a hated heel, in the hearts of the fans.

A Macho Reunion: When Savage cost the Ultimate Warrior the WWF title at the 1991 Royal Rumble, a match at Wrestlemania VII was inevitable. But to make it more exciting, a “loser must retire” stipulation was added and it seemed to invigorate both men as Savage wrestled like a man five years younger and Warrior became more focused (his promos actually made sense). Right before the match, Bobby Heenan, doing commentary with Gorilla Monsoon, pointed out what the cameras soon caught, that Elizabeth was in the stands watching the match. The battle was a brutal and exciting affair, possibly the best of the Warrior’s life as he withstood four flying elbows to finally pin Savage. After the Warrior left, Sensation Sherri, showing incredibly ingratitude, attacked the fallen Savage, smashing his face into the canvas and kicking him. That was too much for Elizabeth to take as she ran into the ring, grabbed Sherri by the hair and dragged her out. Savage recovered and there was doubt as Sherri tried to make him think Elizabeth had attacked him as she was dragged out by officials. Elizabeth was pleading, Savage pulling away as the events of the last few minutes washed over him. Finally, Savage took the tearful Elizabeth in his arms as the crowd roared at the reunion. Savage held her on his shoulder like old times and when Elizabeth tried to hold the ropes open for him, he shook his head and held them open for her. He then took a final curtain call before the crowd before the two left together. It wasn’t the end of Savage of course but if it had been, it would have been a damn good way to go out with such an emotional high.

Jailhouse Rock: Some matches are made memorable less by the in-ring action than what happens afterward. This is a great example. The Mountie and the Big Bossman had been feuding for a while in various ways and were set for a match at SummerSlam where the loser would have to spend a night in a Manhattan jail. The match was rather rough, only about seven minutes with the Bossman getting the pin after reversing a piledriver into a slam. But the post-match antics were unspeakably brilliant as police officers handcuffed the Mountie and dragged him off. The camera followed as the Bossman accompanied them through the halls, backstage, all the way to the parking lot where a paddy wagon was waiting. Throughout the rest of the show, the camera would cut back to the police station as the Mountie was dragged out, fingerprinted, photographed and put in a jail cell. What made it even better was Jacque Rogeau’s performance as he just wailed and howled every step of the way, giving fans a great comeuppance to enjoy.

Harts tear apart: Through the last weeks of 1993, tensions seemed to be rising between Bret and Owen Hart, although they claimed to have settled things over the holidays. As if to prove it, the duo were set to take on the Quebecers for the WWF tag titles at the 1994 Royal Rumble. The match was a quick-paced one with Bret seemingly injured in the leg but refusing to tag Owen. Finally, the ref declared Bret was too injured to continue and called the match for the champs. Owen faced off against Bret, yelling at him and then kicking Bret right in the injured leg. As Bret was tended to by officials, Owen did an interview, cutting a scatching promo on his brother for being so selfish and tired of living in Bret’s shadow. Instantly, Owen was one of the biggest heels around and the stage was set for the epic feud that would make 1994 a banner year for WWF.

Shane gives birth to Extreme: One of the biggest moments ever, of course, one that most modern fans really can’t fully grasp the importance of. For fifty years, the NWA was the most famous and influential promotion around, its name synomous with wrestling. While its power had faded greatly when Jim Crockett sold to Turner, the name of the NWA still held some weight in wrestling circles, a sign of power and history. So it was a big deal when the NWA teamed with the growing Eastern Championship Wrestling for a tournament to crown a new champion. Shane Douglas defeated Too Cold Scorpio in the finals to win it. Afterward, handed the belt, a tearful Douglas thanked his late father and ran down the list of wrestlers he was joining as champion, of Flair, Rhodes, Race, Steamboat “And they…can all…kiss…my…ass!” With that, Douglas threw down the vaunted NWA world title belt and launched into the infamous tirade of how he refused to be the bearer of a promotion that was a ghost of its former shelf. As the crowd stared in amazement, Douglas picked up the ECW title belt, declared himself its world champion and set the stage for Extreme Championship Wrestling’s official birth. It was the boldest gamble of Paul Heyman’s life as he blatantly double-crossed the NWA with the unplanned moment and it paid off to change wrestling forever.

The rise of Stone Cold: It wasn’t supposed to be him. The plan was always for Hunter Hearst Helmsley to win the 1996 King of the Ring. But when the infamous Madison Square Garden “curtain call” hugging of the Clique happened, someone had to pay and HHH was left holding the bag. So, the powers that be turned to a rising heel by the name of Steve Austin who had ditched his “Million Dollar Champ” gimmick to become “Stone Cold.” Tending to a cut lip in between matches, Austin heard his opponent in the finals, Jake Roberts, do an interview quoting the Bible and was struck by pure brilliant inspiration. After easily defeating Roberts, Austin refused to crown and cape of the King to launch into the single most famous and important promo in the history of the business: “You talk about your psalms, you talk about John 3:16…AUSTIN 3:16 says I just whipped your ass!” In one instant, Austin was a major name for fans and the birth of the era that would lead WWF to absolute domination was set.

A new Order is born: While we all know how badly it turned out, the way the New World Order was introduced was nothing short of pure brilliance. When Scott Hall and Kevin Nash appeared on WCW programming, most casual fans had no idea the duo’s contracts with WWF had run out (remember, the Internet was still in its infancy) and honestly believed this was a WWF invasion of their competitor. Even when the truth became known, seeing two major WWF stars doing their thing on WCW was a huge sight as they promised a key new member against Sting, Randy Savage and Lex Luger at the upcoming Bash at the Beach. Only Hall and Nash started as the battle became a wild brawl, Sting soon out with Savage taking it to these Outsiders. With Savage down, Hulk Hogan came out to a nice pop as everyone prepared for him to save the day as usual. Instead, Hogan dropped a leg on Savage, embraced Hall and Nash and turned heel. Hogan solidified it with a post-ring promo where, as garbage filled the ring, he berated the fans for “turning” on him after all he’d done for wrestling and that it was time to take charge and do what he wanted. Hall and Nash were one thing but to have the patron saint of faces turning bad and leading them made the newly named New World Order a true force to reckon with, even more than fans imagined.

Sting takes action: By March of 1997, the New World Order had run complete roughshod over all of WCW. They did show some cracks in the armor with guys like Ed Leslie coming in but they were still at the height of their power with seemingly no one able to stop them. The one man WCW fans thought they could count on, Sting, had turned his back when no one believed his claims of not joining the group and taken on his black and white “Crow” look. In the build-up to “Uncensored,” Sting appeared to be siding with the NWO as they prepared for a big three-way battle against WCW and Roddy Piper’s forces. The NWO won thanks to the aid of Dennis Rodman but as they filed out in celebration, Sting rappelled down from the ceiling with baseball bat in hand. Scott Hall charged at him, Sting ducking and hitting Hall in the gut with the bat, causing a massive eruption from the crowd. Sting proceeded to lay absolute waste to Hall, Kevin Nash and Randy Savage with bat strikes and Scorpion Death Drops before pointing the bat at Hogan. After a few moments, Hogan entered, acting calm and sure as he pointed at Sting. Sting met him with a few punches and then a Death Drop, finally striking at the NWO. The fans loved to finally see the group get their comeuppance and the idea WCW could wait months for the big showdown was as unbelievable as the idea they would end up blowing it in the end.

Harts reunited: For months in early 1997, WWF had hinted at a split of the tag team champions, Owen Hart and Davey Boy Smith. It was heightened when the Bulldog beat Owen to win the newly created European title. The two finally had it out one-on-one on an April RAW, an up and down battle that was starting to turn ugly when suddenly Bret Hart rushed into the ring. At first, he seemed to be helping Owen but then pushed his brother aside, keeping them apart. Grabbing a mic, Bret yelled that this was exactly what all the American fans wanted, to see the Harts tear themselves apart like this. He told them they’d been at odds far too often, that they were family and that was more important than anything, urging them to forget the last few years of fighting and unite together. It seemed to get through as a tearful Owen embraced his big brother and Davey Boy joined in. Despite the fact all three were supposed to be heels, you couldn’t help but feel some happiness at the family reunion.

An Extreme farewell: Even by ECW standards, this was a wild night. In June of 1997, Raven had announced he was going to jump ship to WCW. Naturally, Paul Heyman booked a final battle between Raven and sworn enemy Tommy Dreamer, who had never gotten a clean win over Raven over the previous two years. With fans yelling “you sold out!” Raven battled Dreamer in a wild and bloody brawl with Dreamer finally hitting Raven with a DDT to pin him at last. But before he could celebrate, the lights went out and when they came back on Jerry Lawler was in the ring with Rob Van Dam and Bill Alfonso, all attacking Dreamer. Sabu joined the assault with Lawler getting on the mic to berate ECW and its fans. The Sandman and the Gangstas tried to intervene but were beaten back when Tazz came in to clear the ring. Tazz then demanded a rematch with Sabu, the two fighting for several minutes with Sabu getting the win. Shane Douglas, who had watched the whole mess from his private place in the stands but refused to help, yelled at Tazz to leave “his” ring. Tazz fired back for Douglas to make him and they soon had a challenge, Tazz agreeing to leave the company for 60 days if he couldn’t beat Doulgas in five minutes and Doulgas threw in his TV title as the topper. After only three minutes, Tazz avoided a leap by Douglas, slapped on the Tazzmission and made Douglas tap out to win the TV title. It was another example of the wild booking that made ECW so memorable as the loss of a key performer and a beat-down of one of their biggest stars was saved by the triumph of another and a title change, giving fans reason to be happy at the end.

The Showster: In April of 2000, Kurt Angle was starting to take off in WWF but not quite mega-star status. He was skilled, had held both the European and IC belts and over on the mic but hadn’t quite gotten main-event status as he was preparing to take on the Big Show. At the time, Show was undergoing a character idea where he would impersonate other wrestlers to varying degrees of success. As “Backlash” was being held in Washington DC, Angle came out on the mic to berate the town and Marion Berry. As good as that was, the Big Show would one-up him to infinity and beyond as “Real American” began playing and Show came out in a balding yellow skullcap, yellow trunks, boots and bandanna and a fake mustache. The crowd was already laughing but truly took off when Show grabbed the mic and proceeded into a hilarious, dead-on impression of Hogan, using “brother” about ten times as he threatened Angle. The match was a dud but was livened up as Show “hulked up” right away to hit Angle with a boot and legdrop but didn’t get the pin. When Angle managed to get the upper hand, the crowd chanted “Hogan” to show they were in on the joke as Show hit Angle with a choke-slam to win but his incredibly impression is what remains in fans’ minds today.

One Night Madness: The very first “One Night Stand” in 2005 truly was a night for the ECW faithful. In a crowded Hammerstein Ballroom, some of the biggest ECW stars came back together for a great card of matches in the old ECW style. Nowhere was that more evident than the goings-on around the main event, Tommy Dreamer and Sandman against the Dudley Boyz. First, the Sandman came through a crowd that sang every lyric of “Enter Sandman” while pouring beer on some beauties. Then, just as the bell was about to ring, the Blue World Order came out to thrill the crowd and attack everyone. Kid Kash ran in and was dumped as Balls Mahoney and Axl Rotten rushed in with chairs. As everyone brawled outside, Kash leapt off the referee, onto the top and moonsaulted onto the whole bunch. After the wild and bloody brawl with multiple run-ins won by the Dudleyz, the glass shattered to announce Steve Austin’s arrival. Austin toasted Sandman with a beer before having the entire ECW locker room pile into the ring. They then challenged the contingent of WWE wrestlers who had “invaded” the place to join in. As the two sides faced off, a loud beeping went out to announce Tazz, resulting in a tear-up brawl between the two sides. At the end, Mick Foley dragged Eric Bischoff to the ring to get a Benoit flying headbutt, a Mysterio 619 and 3D, giving the ECW faithful a terrific send-off to a night that brought back that magical time for them.

Christian Uncaged: Most of TNA’s memorable moments have occurred in the course of matches but this was a major exception. The key of 2005’s “Genesis” PPV was the debut of Christian Cage who had only weeks before been part of WWE. Cage began with a promo in which he took a few shots at his former company and urged that this was a place that focused on actual wrestling and he could succeed. The promo ended with Scott Damore coming down to offer Cage a “Team Canada” t-shirt and Cage seemed to accept it. The payoff came at the end of the wild main event with Rhino and Team 3D beating Jeff Jarrett and America’s Most Wanted in an amazing brawl. Cage came out, wearing the Team Canada shirt and seemed to be ready to join as he shook Damore’s hand. But then he yanked Damore in and gave him the Prettier and helped Team 3D put Jarrett through a table, tearing off his shirt to reveal a TNA one underneath. It was a great debut for Cage, setting up his nice TNA run and giving a great cap to the PPV.

I know, some more examples out there but these are ones that I think resonate greatly with many fans, examples of how the storyline framing a match can be bigger than the match itself. There are more moments about and more to come, which is a key reason so many of us still watch and enjoy doing so.

Also around 411mania:

Tim does his Take on TNA’s shoot match

The Wrestling Doctor asks for help

Piledriver Report coninutes its look at Shawn Michaels

Brooklyn Brawling looks at Bret’s WCW tenure

The Shimmy begins a Hardy report card

Julian changes Please Don’t Hate into Against the Grain with the debut column looking at Wrestlemania 19

Don’t forget Column of Honor, Triple Threat, 3 R’s, Fact or Fiction and the rest.