BurningBeard Posted September 8, 2014 Share Posted September 8, 2014 Say, here's a good What IF, and I dunno if this is a Scott Keith Rumour™ but I remember reading about it somewhere - what if Tony Schiavone had taken over the running of WCW instead of Bischoff in 93? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Petey Posted September 8, 2014 Share Posted September 8, 2014 I like to imagine that he would have had Flair as booker and 1994 WCW pre-Hogan would have just been WCW for good. I don't think Tony ever goes after Hulk and is probably content to center the company around Flair, Sting and Vader while transitioning into Dustin and Austin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BurningBeard Posted September 8, 2014 Share Posted September 8, 2014 *sigh* that would've been great hahaha. Would you sacrifice Stone Cold/Attitude era for that though? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Petey Posted September 8, 2014 Share Posted September 8, 2014 I don't know. I think I'd need to be able to visit the alternate universe where that happened and watched the whole thing. I grew up with the Attitude Era stuff and it was by far my favorite time to be a wrestling fan, so even though it doesn't hold up nearly as well now as it did 15+ years ago, it still holds a special place in my heart. But I'm also of the belief that I believe that in a way, the Monday Night War and Attitude Era were long term detriments to the business. Not just because it resulted in fewer places for talent to work, but because the whole main eventers wrestling for free every week, often in main event matches, kinda destroyed long term storytelling. I do wonder though, if Austin never went to the WWF, if the Attitude Era still happens but differently. Vince was clearly trying all sorts of different things to get business booming again and with ECW on the rise (possibly even rising faster if there's no Monday Night War because their talent may not have been poached so frequently or quickly), he might have tried to go down the adult/risque route anyway. It just might not have happened during the same time frame as the actual Attitude Era. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buy Me a Burrito Posted September 8, 2014 Share Posted September 8, 2014 Really the biggest long-term detriment to the business in the last few years was WWE going public. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spritenaut 32 Posted September 8, 2014 Share Posted September 8, 2014 *sigh* that would've been great hahaha. Would you sacrifice Stone Cold/Attitude era for that though? You almost can't "rationally" vote to sacrifice the Attitude Era because it was so good for business, and for WWE's long term health. As a fan, though, I'd sacrifice the Attitude Era for a two-liter bottle of RC Cola if it meant we got a financially viable WCW putting on basically the same product as they did in 1991-93. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HumanChessgame Posted September 8, 2014 Share Posted September 8, 2014 The Attitude Era was influenced as much by ECW and the general cultural climate of the time as it was by WCW. I think with WCW remaining pretty regional and Austin never coming over we'd still get the AE, though it wouldn't have been as much of a thing. It does make me wonder if DX would have actually happened, as in such a reality Hall and Nash likely wouldn't have jumped over. Would the resulting stable have been some sort of DX/Clique style stable? It also makes me wonder what would have become of ECW in that timeline. Without WCW there to hire away Malenko, Benoit, Rey, and all the others would ECW have stayed in business longer, or would Vince have ever taken interest in those guys/crusierweights in general? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Petey Posted September 9, 2014 Share Posted September 9, 2014 Really the biggest long-term detriment to the business in the last few years was WWE going public. At its core, this is pretty accurate. I think Vince's obsession with being accepted in the mainstream has turned into a big issue. Stuff like letting the folks over at E! push for a Bella's split because it would be good for their ratings just seems ridiculous. Hiring ex-writers of failed sitcoms to write/produce/book professional wrestling is just as ridiculous. If Vince accepted that the one thing he's good at-- promoting wrestling-- is where he should put his focus and not on stuff like bodybuilding leagues, football leagues and movie studios, we'd all be happier. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spritenaut 32 Posted September 9, 2014 Share Posted September 9, 2014 Really the biggest long-term detriment to the business in the last few years was WWE going public. At its core, this is pretty accurate. I think Vince's obsession with being accepted in the mainstream has turned into a big issue. Stuff like letting the folks over at E! push for a Bella's split because it would be good for their ratings just seems ridiculous. Hiring ex-writers of failed sitcoms to write/produce/book professional wrestling is just as ridiculous. If Vince accepted that the one thing he's good at-- promoting wrestling-- is where he should put his focus and not on stuff like bodybuilding leagues, football leagues and movie studios, we'd all be happier. You're going to regret saying that when the WBF Network takes off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Nature Boy Posted September 9, 2014 Share Posted September 9, 2014 Really the biggest long-term detriment to the business in the last few years was WWE going public. At its core, this is pretty accurate. I think Vince's obsession with being accepted in the mainstream has turned into a big issue. Stuff like letting the folks over at E! push for a Bella's split because it would be good for their ratings just seems ridiculous. Hiring ex-writers of failed sitcoms to write/produce/book professional wrestling is just as ridiculous. If Vince accepted that the one thing he's good at-- promoting wrestling-- is where he should put his focus and not on stuff like bodybuilding leagues, football leagues and movie studios, we'd all be happier. You're going to regret saying that when the WBF Network takes off. Will it be sponsored by ICOPRO? Speaking of Vince's failed ventures, I want the entire season of the XFL on the Network. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twiztor Posted September 9, 2014 Share Posted September 9, 2014 Speaking of Vince's failed ventures, I want the entire season of the XFL on the Network. i've said this before too. i have a set of DVDs, but i want everything in full. no TiVo over the commercials, no cutting from game to game, just each individual game available to watch at my pleasure. edit: i have no idea if you were being joking or not, but i was being serious. for the record. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TerjeRUN Posted September 9, 2014 Share Posted September 9, 2014 Speaking of Vince's failed ventures, I want the entire season of the XFL on the Network. i've said this before too. i have a set of DVDs, but i want everything in full. no TiVo over the commercials, no cutting from game to game, just each individual game available to watch at my pleasure. edit: i have no idea if you were being joking or not, but i was being serious. for the record. Oddly, I'd rather watch the WBF than the XFL (I've seen neither to date). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kuetsar Posted September 10, 2014 Share Posted September 10, 2014 *sigh* that would've been great hahaha. Would you sacrifice Stone Cold/Attitude era for that though? You almost can't "rationally" vote to sacrifice the Attitude Era because it was so good for business, and for WWE's long term health. As a fan, though, I'd sacrifice the Attitude Era for a two-liter bottle of RC Cola if it meant we got a financially viable WCW putting on basically the same product as they did in 1991-93. In that scenerio we have to have Turner not merge with either TIme Warner or Aol. Which means we'd still have goofy comedy movies starting at five after the hour, which I am totally okay with. ALSO: no rizzoli and isles and whatever piece of shit show Zach from saved by the bell is on. . . YES! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nice Guy Eddie Posted September 10, 2014 Share Posted September 10, 2014 Speaking of Vince's failed ventures, I want the entire season of the XFL on the Network. i've said this before too. i have a set of DVDs, but i want everything in full. no TiVo over the commercials, no cutting from game to game, just each individual game available to watch at my pleasure.edit: i have no idea if you were being joking or not, but i was being serious. for the record. Oddly, I'd rather watch the WBF than the XFL (I've seen neither to date). If there's a hell, the XFL and WBF will be played on an endless loop while Satan's minions skullfuck you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phantom Lord Posted September 11, 2014 Share Posted September 11, 2014 I could live with a wrestling world where Stone Cold never happened. Stunning Steve Austin would have been a great mid 90's WCW World Champion. Plus if he stayed in WCW odds are he would never got dumped on his head by Owen and he would have wrestled well into the 2000's. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Green Meanie Posted September 11, 2014 Share Posted September 11, 2014 Random one: What if Bob Backlund went along with Vince's proposal to turn heel back in 1984? Would we have gotten crazy cross-face chicken wing Bob circa 1995 a decade early? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Nature Boy Posted September 11, 2014 Share Posted September 11, 2014 Speaking of Vince's failed ventures, I want the entire season of the XFL on the Network. i've said this before too. i have a set of DVDs, but i want everything in full. no TiVo over the commercials, no cutting from game to game, just each individual game available to watch at my pleasure. edit: i have no idea if you were being joking or not, but i was being serious. for the record. I was being serious. I would love to go back and watch the games 13 years later to see how they hold up and if the football is actually as bad as I remember. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muhammedboehm Posted September 11, 2014 Share Posted September 11, 2014 The answer is yes 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buy Me a Burrito Posted September 11, 2014 Share Posted September 11, 2014 I know that Stunning Steve was a favorite, but the early days of Stone Cold and the Bret Hart feud are so good. I'll take that. Plus I love the dude's podcast. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thee Reverend Axl Future Posted September 12, 2014 Share Posted September 12, 2014 I don't think that Austin would have broken out of the pack into the mainstream if he remained Stunning. Stone Cold was the right gimmick at the right time and if he wasn't such a savvy worker he could not have gone as far with it. - RAF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DukeCaesar Posted September 12, 2014 Share Posted September 12, 2014 If Dr. Death doesn't get injured in the Brawl for All tournament, does his rumored main event program with Austin ever come to fruition? At the time, it didn't seem like he "fit" aesthetically in 98 WWF. Also, JR as a heel mouth piece always seem ill conceived when the Fed tried it. I just don't see the flood of new Attitude era fans, at the time, buying Williams as a monster that would be a threat to bulldoze Austin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Petey Posted September 12, 2014 Share Posted September 12, 2014 From my own experience, I had no idea who Dr. Death was until he debuted in the WWF. I think he would have needed more than just the Brawl For All win in order to successfully catapult himself into a feud with Austin. I also don't know how well his physical style would have worked with Austin, considering his neck issues and all that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt D Posted September 12, 2014 Share Posted September 12, 2014 I wonder if we wouldn't have gotten Russo-tastic promos about how Austin was really Steve Williams. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Babylonianfrost Posted September 12, 2014 Share Posted September 12, 2014 Random one: What if Bob Backlund went along with Vince's proposal to turn heel back in 1984? Would we have gotten crazy cross-face chicken wing Bob circa 1995 a decade early? I think it would have been a bit closer to just a random turn than anything that glorious. 1984 WWF on the heel side had Piper, Schultz, Orton, Valentine, Orndorff, Studd and Muraco (albeit on the way down from his I-C title heights)...I'm not sure that Backlund could have stood out in that crowd, even if he was the best legitimate wrestler of any of them. To have the kind of impact that he had in 1994, he would have had to channel Spiros Arion or something, turn on Hogan in a tag match ("I brought you back to the WWF and then you stole away my chance to win back the title that I held for six years!" etc. etc.) and then get fed to him so Vince could perhaps further legitimize Hogan's reign by having him compete against the only former champion (Sheik notwithstanding) that he could actually wrestle within the fed. Probably a decent payday (especially in New York), but not that long-term of a run. I'm not sure that he would have been any more important to the federation by 1985 than, say, the aforementioned Iron Sheik because I'm also not sure that crazy, bitter Backlund would have worked - or even been considered - as a character at the point. Plus, the timing necessary for an angle like that would have probably completely thrown the Hogan/Piper/Lauper/MTV rock & wrestling connection off the rails. Still, those "face" promos he cut on the Pro Wrestling USA shows were odd enough that one can imagine crazy Backlund being not-too-far beneath the surface. I can almost see some sort of "delusional heel who thinks he's a face" gimmick (like a more serious and disturbing Bo Dallas, perhaps) being something to marvel at in that timeframe. I think I'm actually curious where Backlund might have gone if he had chosen to stay active in 1984 and not taken the break (PWUSA notwithstanding). Verne loved legitimate credentials and I can imagine him forcing a Backlund title run on the AWA fans in place of Martel, or perhaps Eddie Graham convincing him to return to the CWF for one last shot at keeping the Florida territory strong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phantom Lord Posted September 12, 2014 Share Posted September 12, 2014 Just thinking about it, Backlund having the feud Martel had with Hansen in 85 would have been all kinds of awesome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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