Dropping the Ball: Sting vs. WCW
The common position asserted is that WCW mismanagement of Sting's return and its immediate aftermath dissipated all the heat built up in 1997 for Sting. I would contend that Sting did more to torpedo himself than WCW did to fuck him up. I have no idea if Sting was trying to reinvent his wrestling style to match his new darker, edgier persona or if he legitimately just could not give two fucks about wrestling, but he absolutely shit the bed in every match I have seen him in during this time period. The only thing could save him was DDP's safety net of pre-planning his matches and DDP's ridiculous work ethic to drag him to a good Nitro main event. Even then, he was clearly the worse of the two wrestlers. I know this will sound counter-intuitive to most wrestling fans, but it is not like his opponents were dogging him. Hogan at SuperBrawl clearly had his game face on and was constantly moving the action forward. It was Sting's shitty staggered selling and bored movements that were dragging the match down. Hogan looked like a man ready to compete to keep his top spot and Sting looked like he rather be anywhere else. There was one point where Sting just stopped selling like it was not even a no-sell spot. He just stood up straight and nothing happened. It was like what the fuck, dude. There is just no way a promotion can survive with that type of performance from their champion.
WCW's hotshot booking did Sting no favors. He was shoehorned into the NWO Civil War fighting Savage in his first televised match since the Hogan/Sting rematch when it really did not revolve around him. Sting should be the catalyst for the NWO Civil War because he has taken the title not in these throwaway main events. It seems all of Hogan's focus is on the Macho Man and the NWO dissension. It would have be a simple plot device to have Hogan and Savage gunning for Sting to prove to the rest of the NWO, who the top dog is by defeating the Stinger. In this scenario, Sting becomes important because he is a measuring stick for greatness rather than taking a backseat to Hoagn and Savage. It only gets worse in March when Hogan/Savage main event over him and Hall. Hogan & Savage was clearly the bigger match, but Sting/Hall felt more like an upper midcard match rather than a co-main event and was wrestled like a comedy match (that was Hall's prerogative not Sting's, still Hall's schtick was way more entertaining than Sting's general shittiness). Having Sting play second fiddle to Hogan/Savage does no favors for Sting, but his performances are as much to blame as the bad booking. In the next month, I will argue in favor of WCW's booking decision to relieve him of the title so soon because he was clearly flopping in the ring.
 |
| Uncool |
The MEGAPOWERS EXPLODE~! Ten Year Later
I would have executed this story a little differently, but overall I like the fact there is a direction and it feels important. Hogan has his major main event aura that carries any program he is involved in and Savage is so unpredictable and dangerous that really creates a buzz when he is in the ring. It is funny Savage is known for his heavily pre-planned matches because almost everything he does feels organic and wild. The problem stems from the fact that story never advances in a meaningful fashion. Hogan/Savage keep going back and forth as friend and foe. I know, I know they are wrestling's ultimate frenemies, but at some point the story has to advance and they actually have to break up. The Uncensored cage match should have been that point of no return, but the next night on Nitro they are teaming against Sting and Luger. Do not get me started on the fact that Uncensored Cage Match just ended without a pinfall or submission. It was just a standoff and Savage decking Sting. I get they wanted to set up Savage and Sting for the next PPV, but that was so ham-fisted. This was when I first thought WCW's egos and mismanagement was harming the company. The direction had become muddied. Sting was bombing as champion and Hogan/Savage was having trouble moving forward. They could not decide if the NWO was falling apart or regrouping. Hogan/Savage should have been the catalyst for something bigger, but it really never amounted to anything. At the end of March, WCW feels a little stale and confused, but with potential Hogan/Hart and Hogan/Nash matches very much salvageable.
Bret Hart Is In WCW...Doing Nothing
Starting a new job usually means a week or two of just not doing a whole lot in my estimation. Yes, there is some training, but everybody is so busy, you sort of fall through the cracks. Well, Bret Hart has been in WCW for a couple months and they just do not have anything for him. Really Crush turns on him in Nitro! He would go out and call out Hogan and the consequence is that he is top on the NWO B-Team's hit list? The fucking B-Team? He is wrestling a washed up Curt Hennig, are you shitting me. It would only get worse for Bret once WCW made him actually you know do stuff, namely be Hogan's lackey. Don't worry Bret, Ric Flair and Lex Luger are also doing nothing.
The greatest problem plaguing WCW in 1998 was the lack of direction in the main event, which is already evident as everyone is taking a backseat to Hogan/Savage and even that feud is having a hard time moving forward. It will only get worse. In 1997, Hogan/Sting was the overarching story, but you had compelling main event feuds like Hogan/Luger, Savage/DDP and Outsiders/Flair&Piper that kept the viewer constantly hooked and provided direction. Instead, now if your name is not Hogan or Savage you are left to twist in the wind.
 |
| There are incredible number of pictures of Bischoff acting as Hogan's mic stand on the internet |
Recommended Match: WCW World Champion Sting vs WCW US Champion DDP - Nitro 3/24/98
Stupid Angle: Ending of Hollywood Hogan/Randy Savage Uncensored Cage Match.
Randy Savage vs Lex Luger - SuperBrawl VIII
I was actually pretty excited for this coming off Souled Out and Luger had his ribs taped so I was expecting a nice wrinkle. These guys have great chemistry, but this is not as fun as the Souled Out match. I like Luger establishing early that his ribs are injured and he can't do a basic press slam. That is how you establish a hook to a match. Savage cheapshots and works the ribs while being his usual wildman character. Luger makes his inevitable comeback and as the NWO swarms the ring. Luger and Savage fight them off together. Hogan leaves Savage for dead as he gets racked. This would come back to bite Hogan. This was pretty much the end of Luger's status as a major player in WCW until late 1999 as he stuck in the dead end Steiner vs Steiner feud and then in the Wolfpac and finally injured. It was a decent match, but I enjoyed the Souled Out match more.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hollywood Hogan vs Sting - WCW Superbrawl VIII
Vacant WCW World Heavyweight Championship
Sting looked like and wrestled like a sad mime. it was one of the most pitiful performances on a grand stage I think I have ever seen. Sure some wind had been taken out of his sails because they botched Starrcade '97, but still they put him over at Souled Out. Booking or not, when you are out in front of those fans, you control your destiny. He just did not want it. He did not look like gave one single fuck. Hogan on other hand was on his A-game. I was shocked at the amount of effort he was putting into this match. He was working a ton of great heel tactics. He was constantly moving and there was a sense of urgency. You got the impression the belt meant everything to Hogan. At first, he was not taking any chances. He was going to whip Sting with the belt and he was going to cheat like a muthafucka. You felt his desperation. Like any egomaniac, his hubris seemed to be his downfall, he would begin to toy with Sting and Sting would get a hope spot and he would quickly cut off as if it was a wake up call. On top of that you got the sense of entitlement from when Nick Patrick came in. "Do you know who I am, I am Hollywood". The egomania, the entitlement, the desperation, the cowardice all was a perfect confluence of a heel. Hogan has his limitations, he can't bump at all and his offense is pretty straightforward. It was never really all that boring because he was always moving and always coming up with a new way to cheat. Sting looked like all his charisma has been sucked out by a vacuum. His selling was awful. Standing around and staggering a bit is not selling. Get fucking pissed that this asshole is treating you like shit. Let the crowd know you are in pain. Anything besides what ever the hell that was. Maybe the problem was he was trying to get over a new gimmick he was not suited for. Sting the overgrown child hopped up on sugar in the ring suited him so well that this solemn and somber character was just hard for him to really execute. He needed to be a badass and he just felt like a sad mime. The finish sucked so hard. Savage clearly should have fended off the NWO members while Sting made Hogan tap to the Scorpion Deathlock. Having Savage scoop up Sting's heat and just have Sting pin Hogan right after the spray paint can shot was so lame.
I don't really feel bad for Sting. I don't think he deserved the title after that performance. Did Hogan gobble him up at the outset? He sure did, but Sting could have done things to make that worthwhile. He could have called for more hope spots, he could have shown more fire, more pain, more anything really, but we got apathy. Hogan wrestled like his career was on the line and did a great job. Sting needed to carry his weight. I do not fault them one iota to going back to Hogan to transition to Goldberg. Sting blew it.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 |
| Look at Hennig's friggin arm! WOW! |
Bret "Hitman" Hart vs Curt Hennig w/Rick Rude - WCW Uncensored 1998
Of all the stars of yesteryear that I have seen in 1998, Curt Hennig has been the absolute worse for wear. I felt so bad for him because he could not do any of his famous bumps. At one point he tries to do his spin out bump, but looks like shit. He gets pissed. You can't tell if it is because he is selling being outwrestled by Hart or if he is pissed that he is not able to perform at his old level. During Hart's comeback, they tried to wrestle their usual sequences but Hennig was taking all his bumps so awkwardly to avoid landing on his back that I was worried he was going to hurt himself. In actually, reminded me of Rude in 93, who would contort himself in such weird ways to avoid back bumps. On top of that, he was working extra light and just not very convincing. From what I saw, Rude should have been the one in the match. He looked great cheapshotting Hart, moved well and even took a bump off the apron. Hell after the match he did a Rude Awakening coming down right on his back. Rude looked great and was doing his best to add heat to the match. Bret wrestled his standard stuff, but due to Hennig's limitations there was just not much he could do. When it came to selling Bret did the best he could to make Hennig's stuff look credible, but there was just no heat. Hart wins with the Sharpshooter, but is left laying by Hennig and Rude. The angle going in is that NWO has a target on Hart's back. We saw that play out a little during the match with Hennig & Rude targeting the knee, but would have liked to see something more violent. This is not a good match at all and it is depressing to see Hennig in that condition.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WCW World Heavyweight Champion Sting vs Scott Hall - WCW Uncensored 1998
Crow Sting is just a shitty wrestler. The Avenging Angel character is wicked cool and a really genius idea, but fuck Sting just sucked at this point of his career. Hall was pretty damn funny with all his stooging and falling outside of the ring on his ass. I was always a mark for his staggered Giant walk after a chokeslam. Sting could not fucking sell cheap central heat to Eskimos. The Sting falling face first into Hall's junk was also pretty funny. Should they really be having a comedy match with Sting and the World Title? No, they shouldn't but it was the best part of the match by far because Sting could not work anyways. There is interference, a ref bump, Dusty Rhodes drops an elbow, but Sting hits the Slop Drop to win. Nothing match. If Hall was wrestling in the midcard and doing this schtick, it would have been awesome. If Sting were not wrestling at all, it would be even more awesome.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hollywood Hogan vs Randy Savage - WCW Uncensored 1998
Worst match ever? No. For instance, I thought their Halloween Havoc 1996 match was much worse than this. Once again, Hogan looked game to have a good match and was very energetic. I really don't understand the complaints of the match plodding. They were cutting a good pace and Hogan never really rested once. I don't know if Savage's knee is already hurt, but they go into Savage babyface match mode, which means he gets the shit beat out of him for most the match. The big difference between this and Sting match is that Savage is selling incredibly well. You really feel like he is hurt and a bit discombobulated by all of Hogan's offense. Hogan whipped him pretty good with belt and wish Savage whipped back a bit harder. I liked the first Hogan cutoff sending Savage into the cage hard on a backdrop, which is the only spot to get universal praise from the reviews I read. If WCW were a bunch of pansies and let use see the double juice, I think this could be more entertaining. I am surprised how dead the crowd was for this because everything I saw was pretty decent and given the personalities I thought that would magnify the reaction. Savage hitting the double axe handle from the top of the cage was a crazy spot that woke the crowd up. The ref just letting them out of the cage to do some basic brawling and then head right back into the cage was lame. The finish was fucking atrocious with Savage & Sting standing off against Hogan & Disciple for an eternity only for Savage to deck Sting. Maybe the reason why Sting did not give a flying fuck was because he was booked like a dope. Stupid shit aside, this is not the worst match of all time. I think the cage inhibited them more than anything else because could have been helped by more brawling around the ring. It is a pretty average match, but Hogan and Savage both seem to have some gas in the tank.
 |
| The Song Remains The Same |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WCW World Heavyweight Champion Sting vs WCW US Champion Diamond Dallas Page WCW Nitro 3/23/30
DDP is in that period of being a super hot midcard act like Austin in 97 or Rock in 98 that is useful to creating some really dynamic booking and fun matches. What I love from a guy like DDP in this spot is that he has a enough natural buzz and charisma that he generates a lot of interest and heat going up against one of the top dog in spite of the fact he is most likely going to lose. He still gains plenty of momentum from just being shown as an equal to the World Champion and there is no booking anxiety stemming from his jobbing.
DDP does a great job throughout the match expressing through his body language and actions how important this match is. He is focused and determined to prove that not only he belong with Sting that he was a very credible threat to being World Champion. The intense lock up and just his posture made you believe he was taking this match very seriously/ Larry Z added a ton to this match by commenting that DDP may have jacked himself up too much and that the calmer, more experienced Sting may be able to take advantage of this. You see just that as Sting almost hooks the Scorpion Deathlock on a overzealous Page. Page sells how quickly it all could have been taking away. He doubles down and goes for the Diamond Cutter, but is thrown off. They hook each other in chinlocks and I am not too enamored with either of them going for it. I did not think either one needed to use the chinlock. Sting has looked the best he during this stretch because he looks to be trying harder on offense and also wrestling he did before the Crow gimmick. I think he was just more comfortable with that level of energy, facebusters and the out of control splash. Not everyone can reinvent themselves in the ring and once he got back to doing what brought him to the dance, he felt more natural and interesting. His selling still left a lot to be desired. I liked DPP getting the knees up on the out of control splash and he goes for the Diamond Cutter out of the corner, But Sting reverses into the Scorpion Death Drop to a huge pop. I loved the beginning and the finish. They definitely would go on to build off this foundation to have an all-time great WCW match the following year on Nitro. ***
-----------------------------------------------
In March of 1998, the Austin Era officially had gotten underway and with a little help from Mike Tyson, WWF was poised to reclaim its throne. WCW may have had a weak two months, but a reset to Hogan as champion is certainly building to one of two major marquee matchups: Hogan vs Hart or Hogan vs Nash, right? Right? Still in the wings you have the People's Champion and blue collar Diamond Dallas Page and the monster Goldberg surging up the card to inject life. Will WCW rebound with a newfound direction in spring?
No comments:
Post a Comment