http://www.cheap-heat.com WWE, TNA, ROH, NJPW - Blogs, Reviews, Top Lists, Indy News & Results Fri, 09 Oct 2015 01:32:33 +0000 en-US hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=4.3.1
http://www.cheap-heat.com/ross-retro-review-the-monday-night-war-january-1996-1-22-96/ http://www.cheap-heat.com/ross-retro-review-the-monday-night-war-january-1996-1-22-96/#comments Tue, 18 Aug 2015 12:12:30 +0000 Ross Gates Other Reviews Reviews ECW Extreme Championship Wrestling House Party 96 Monday Night RAW Monday Nitro Nitro RAW RAW is WAR WCW World Championship Wrestling World Wrestling Entertainment World Wrestling Federation WWE WWF http://www.cheap-heat.com/?p=13576 We press forward. Fresh off of WWF’s Royal Rumble 1996, we go straight into the Monday Night War (and ECW TV) with fallout from the Rumble on RAW, while Nitro is building towards The Clash of the Champions. В Former WCW World Champion VADER is making is WWF TV debut on RAW, as we start to […]
We press forward. Fresh off of WWF’s Royal Rumble 1996, we go straight into the Monday Night War (and ECW TV) with fallout from the Rumble on RAW, while Nitro is building towards The Clash of the Champions. В Former WCW World Champion VADER is making is WWF TV debut on RAW, as we start to see the beginning of the “talent acquisition” era.
-Our main event is WWF Champion vs. WWF IC Champion – Bret Hart against Goldust.
-Jim Cornette asks us what time it is after Savio Vega enters…and Vader makes his WWF RAW debut.
-Vega got annihilated. Vader attacks after the match, and hits another Vader Bomb on Vega. Vader then takes out the referee, and McMahon goes apeshit on commentary. Another referee comes in, and Vader takes him out too. Gorilla Monsoon gets in the ring and goes face to face with Vader. Vader calls for the microphone from the ring announcer (ugh, not Fink), and the announcement is made that Vader is indefinitely suspended.
-Vader shoves Cornette out of the way, gets in Monsoon’s face again, and then retreats. Cornette tries to get Vader to calm down, but Vader goes and taps Monsoon on the back while he’s checking on the official. Monsoon ignores him, so Vader chops Monsoon hard on the back. Monsoon stands up and hits three hard chops to Vader’s chest! Vader shoves Cornette away and hits a huge splash on Monsoon in the corner! Vader Bomb on Monsoon, and HBK/Razor hit the ring as Vader escapes. Vader goes over and gets in McMahon’s face, and officers/HBK/Razor are out checking on Monsoon. AWESOME ANGLE. Talk about getting Vader over in a MAJOR way.
-Why’d they write Vader off TV so quickly after his debut? That just seems like a strange choice. Real reason?
-Back from commercial as Monsoon is being stretchered out.
-Hunter Hearst Helmsley to the ring, with an escort for the first time – this one is Shae Marks, who is a former Playboy model. That tidbit wasn’t mentioned on RAW. Hunter’s facing Razor Ramon.
-1-2-3 Kid brings a baby bottle to ringside and squirts Razor in the face. Not sure what the point of that is..
-But Razor gives chase to Kid around the ring. Hunter wins via countout, and Razor comes back in to give the fans the Razor’s Edge, but HHH flips out of it.
-McMahon brings down Shawn Michaels for an interview. Michaels calls out Owen Hart to give him payback for having Owen running his mouth saying he took HBK out. Cornette comes out, says Owen is done with HBK. HBK says he’ll do anything to get his hands on Owen Hart…Cornette says put the title shot up against Owen, and they can talk business. HBK balks at first but then agrees.
-Goldust to the ring, and they reveal that Marlena…is named Marlena. Man…I REALLY had a thing for Marlena/Terri around this time. BIG TIME.
-Diesel against Bret Hart for the WWF Title at the next IYH, on 2.18.96.
-Bret Hart wins. Vince gets in the ring and screams “let’s talk about” and follows that with about 7 different statements.
-Konnan interrupts the announcers, and says it’s good to be in WCW, and that he’ll defend the Mexican Heavyweight Championship at COTC tomorrow night against Psichosis. So ECW loses another.
-Randy Savage brings a bunch of women to the ring…including WOMAN. So, geez, there’s another person who leaves. Did these people leave without any notice at all or what?
-Looks like we’re opening Nitro with the WCW World Heavyweight Title match…obviously Woman’s going to turn on Savage here.
-Bischoff reveals that Miss Elizabeth returns to Savage’s side tomorrow night. Yay for that!
-Woman slaps Flair.
-Remember when I asked where Road Warrior Animal was? He’s back tomorrow as well. Holy talent acquisition WCW. Wow.
-Hulk Hogan faces WCW U.S. Champion “One Man Gang” later on. Two questions – who the hell is that, and when did he beat Susake for the title?
-This is why nobody holds a candle to JR, and why WCW is annoying…this is a WCW World Title match, and all they’ve done is hype the rest of Nitro and the Clash.
-Anderson interferes, but accidentally clocks Flair…the ref SEES IT HAPPEN AND DOESN’T DISQUALIFY SAVAGE, Savage drops the elbow and regains the WCW World Title. Um…what?
-Here comes Hogan bitching about wanting a title shot again. Savage tells him to earn it.
-Pillman against Malenko. Pillman wins. I’m barely paying attention here.
-Harlem Heat against Sting and Lex Luger. REALLY stupid question – are Stevie Ray and Booker T actually brothers?
-Sherri and Col. Parker get married tomorrow too. WHO CARES
-Sting and Luger win after Luger cheats, and win the WCW World Tag Team Titles. Yay.
-Apparently this One Man Gang dude is yet another member of the Dungeon of Doom. He looks pretty worthless.
-Hogan squashes him. Way to build up your US Champ! DOD follows with a beatdown. Yawn.
-STILL showing footage from House Party, as the show leads off with RVD’s debut.
-Raven and Stevie Richards face Tommy Dreamer and a mystery partner Saturday in NYC. Presumably they’ll show this
next week on ECW since it’s not a supercard.
-Hack Myers and Taz from House Party.
-Sabu/Richards from House Party. Styles recaps Sandman pinning Austin to regain the ECW World Title, “a title that cannot be bought for a million dollars”.
-Sandman against Konnan from House Party.
-Dreamer doing a promo at the end of the show, and Douglas comes in. He says he couldn’t get “that fat ass Cactus Jack” in the ring, so he’ll go one step further, to his mentor Raven, and be Dreamer’s partner – with the stipulation that the first to win a title between Dreamer and Douglas gives the other one a shot. Dreamer agrees. LOVE Shane Douglas promos.
http://www.cheap-heat.com/ross-retro-review-the-monday-night-war-january-1996-1-22-96/feed/ 0http://www.cheap-heat.com/ross-retro-review-the-monday-night-war-january-1996-1-15-96/ http://www.cheap-heat.com/ross-retro-review-the-monday-night-war-january-1996-1-15-96/#comments Sun, 16 Aug 2015 11:53:35 +0000 Ross Gates Other Reviews Reviews ECW Extreme Championship Wrestling Nitro RAW WCW World Championship Wrestling WWE WWF http://www.cheap-heat.com/?p=13475 We pick up where he last left off, and that is week #3 of the Monday Night War. And of course throw in ECW TV for a bonus, because well because I watched it. В So things are starting to get going, Raw was very… blah last week… with Nitro not doing a lot to really […]
We pick up where he last left off, and that is week #3 of the Monday Night War. And of course throw in ECW TV for a bonus, because well because I watched it. В So things are starting to get going, Raw was very… blah last week… with Nitro not doing a lot to really wow me either. So let’s see how everyone fares this week.
-We get the very first “viewer discretion is advised” clip to start RAW, complete with a shot of Sunny laying on a pool table and McMahon saying Sunny has “used her influence” on interim President Gorilla Monsoon.
-Marty Jannetty vs. Owen Hart kicking off RAW. Owen wins with a bridge.
-Ugh, Pettingill. I was hoping we’d keep having Jim Ross to hype the Rumble.
-Pettingill announces the debut of the FREE FOR ALL. I didn’t know this hadn’t happened before now.
-Two guys will face off during the free-for-all…the winner will get #30, and the loser #1.
-Austin comes to the ring, and they still have yet to call him by his name…but here’s his RAW debut.
-Sunny conducts what’s supposed to be a seductive promo while shooting pool. She only half-succeeds.
-Back to the ring, and Austin’s facing some jobber. Oh, it’s Matt Hardy.
-Austin hits the Stun Gun, and it looks like he’s using that as a setup move for the Million Dollar Dream now. Hardy loses.
-HBK video. Nothing to see here.
-The Smoking Gunns against…”The Spiders”. Who the fuck are these guys? Gunns win.
-McMahon in the ring to interview Goldust. This could be funny. Goldust challenges Razor Ramon for the Intercontinental Title at the Royal Rumble.
-ahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha….Goldust says to Vince, “Mr. Television Announcer, is that an extra microphone in your pants, or are you just happy to see me?” Vince puts on the most uncomfortable face ever, and Lawler laughs hysterically…as do I.
-WOW, Lawler…”Goldust is here, he may be queer, get used to it, he’s your next Intercontinental Champion!” ……..
-Yankem and the Undertaker here in the main event. BROTHER AGAINST BROTHER!
-Undertaker wins, not surprisingly.
-Hendrix interview Goldust backstage, and Razor attacks him, which was obviously going to happen. Big beatdown backstage.
WCW Monday Nitro – 1.15.96
-Awesome…this Nitro is in black and white. Did the NWO take over already?
-Ric Flair against Sting for the WCW Title. Talk about hot-shotting matches. Geez.
-Lex Luger’s music hits, and the color comes back! It’s like he’s got the power of the Undertaker!
-Luger’s facing Savage.
-Wow…Luger actually made Savage submit with the Torture Rack.
-Sullivan/Hugh Morris against Pillman and Anderson…The DOD music hits…and the entire DOD hits the ring, ALONG with the IV Horsemen trailing behind them. What? So of course we have to get Okerlund in there.
-Anderson bitches at Pillman for not dressing for a “business meeting”…yet doesn’t say anything to Flair, who’s in his robe.
-Sullivan and Anderson call a peace treaty, and Sullivan says the Horsemen can borrow the Giant at the Clash. Not really sure why.
-Sullivan praises each of the Horsemen, and then trashes Pillman. Pillman starts screaming at Sullivan, and Anderson slaps the SHIT out of Pillman, and says to keep his mouth shut.
-Pillman is LIVID, but isn’t saying a word.
-Christ, ALREADY??? Public Enemy. Sigh. Apparently they were supposed to debut last week and were snowed in in New York.
-I do like how ECW billed TPE from South Central L.A., and WCW is billing TPE from South Philly. They’re facing the American Males.
-TPE wins, and they hit the Drive-By on Bagwell through TWO tables. So WCW was ok with this, but not with Sabu? What?
-Sting/Flair for the WCW Title. Somehow, Hogan against a DOD scrub is the main event, and not this.
-I love how WCW is hyping that the Clash is free, and that “you don’t have to call someone to pay for it”. As if they don’t run 10 fucking PPVs a year right now.
-Luger runs down as Jimmy Hart is on the ring apron, and Luger yanks the megaphone away from Hart – and right into Sting’s face. So….by accident? Nobody knows for sure. Luger hits the ring to take out Flair, but Hogan/Savage hit the ring and send Luger/Flair flying.
-Hogan/Savage explain to Sting (and Mean Gene!) that Luger hit him, and Sting goes back to confront Luger. Hogan bitches at Savage because he has a title shot last week and Hogan still doesn’t have one. Savage tells him to back the fuck up.
-Apparently Savage/Hogan vs. Giant/Flair is the main event at the Clash.
-Hogan and Meng in the main event. Awful.
-Amazingly, Hogan wins clean. Not amazing because of Hogan, but because it’s a Nitro main event.
ECW – 1.16.96
-More House Party 96 footage.
-Joey Styles talks about Shane Douglas going to the WWF due to the lack of hardcore style, due to injuries to his back. He said Douglas is back in ECW, but it’s unclear if he can be in the ring.
-Rey Mysterio Jr. does an interview backstage in Spanish, and Dances with Dudley’s interrupts and cuts a bunch of jibberish. Rey Rey wants no part of it.
-They close with Dreamer and Beulah in a hotel room. Beulah says she wants to feel Dreamer’s pain, and Dreamer tells the cameraman “Go”. Awful.
http://www.cheap-heat.com/ross-retro-review-the-monday-night-war-january-1996-1-15-96/feed/ 0http://www.cheap-heat.com/what-if-monday-night-wars-2-0/ http://www.cheap-heat.com/what-if-monday-night-wars-2-0/#comments Tue, 27 Jan 2015 18:49:37 +0000 Bill Wright Blogs Other Blogs AJ Lee AJ Styles Bash at the Beach Daniel Bryan Fall Brawl Goldberg Gunner HHH Kharma Lucha Underground Nitro NXT Paige RAW Ring of Honor ROH Roman Reigns Smackdown Starrcade Stephanie McMahon Sting Triple H Vince McMahon WCW World War 3 WWE WWE Network http://www.cheap-heat.com/?p=9305 For my second entry into the series of “What If?” I am going to explore a possible future that WWE could persue anytime they wanted to apply this unusual but exciting business plan. You see the lack of competition has given WWE no pressure to run on for innovation and aggressive change.В When people are […]
For my second entry into the series of “What If?” I am going to explore a possible future that WWE could persue anytime they wanted to apply this unusual but exciting business plan.
You see the lack of competition has given WWE no pressure to run on for innovation and aggressive change.В When people are your business, and you advertise the with out us there is no you, then how can you afford to ignore us?
Two year in a row you don’t give the fans the man they want, and you don’t even keep Bryan in the ring for a solid length of time.В So now the chosen Reigns gets boos and momentum changes. В Just another shining example of how WWE is losing steam due to over a decade with out a serious competitor.
So what if WWE allows itself to become its own competitor?В What if Vince allows Triple H or someone he trusts to run a competing brand such as WCW? В You see nXt should remain development territory, but if WWE was to use the Network to show alternatives to the main brand, you create an internal competition.
Let me show you what I mean.
Triple H and Stephanie McMahon become enraged with Vince on Raw and vow to put him out of business.В Announcing that they will be putting on their own show
on Monday
Nights to compete with Raw, but the new WCW Nitro will only show on the WWE Network.
Nitro will relaunch WCW as a Network exclusive highlighting new talent and new championships completely removed from Raw and Smackdown.
Now we have two feds competing for fans attention and putting dynamic differences in creative and presentation.
A bonus being that Nitro would give fans another reason to own the Network for new wrestling not just historical rehash (which we all do love).
WCW would focus on the Wrestling and pull itself as a contrast to the promoriffic sketch based sports entertainment.В WCW would also bring in new talent to fill the shallow roster with cheap hungry marketable talent that Impact, ROH, Lucha Underground and the indies is swelling with.
I would bring back the WCW Title for your main guy, steal the US Title back for Nitro, and crown Cruiserweight Tag Team Championships to round the roster out.В In time your can also bring in a Womens champisonship when the ladies flesh the rest of the roster out.
The cruiserweights made Nitro so bringing back the tag title exclusive to that decisions will keep the titles very different and exciting.
And Divas are Raw, on WCW we want women who can wrestle like AJ Lee and Paige, so bring back Kharma and get this division the most competitive in wrestling for the fairer sex.
WCW would start with four very unique PPVs remaining different than WWE but still adding to the need to pay your $9.99.
Fall Brawl: War Games would bring in team warfare in two cages of complete chaos.
World War 3: would make the sixty man three ring madness return, often hiring one night only and indy guests to earn a spot on the permenant programming.
Bash at the Beach: would bring us to the beach for classic outdoor summer fun!
STARRCADE: would return with Battle Bowl giving fans an amazing combination tag team battle royal for the belt!
There are endless names here but this is my top five picks to jump start a new WWE network exclusive WCW.
AJ Styles: The consumate cruiserweight. The perfect guy to make this new cruiser division mean as much as a heavyweight title.В A man fans anticipate to see in the WWE someday and this is a great way to bring him in
Gunner: He has the look and the skills to be a WWE champion, but what a great way to bring him in and keep WCW fresh!
Samoa Joe: Fans love to chant “Joes gonna kill you” and many dream of his run in WWE, so start him with WCW and let his Impact on the WWE universe begin!
Goldberg: Gonna gamble, then gamble big and bring the Phenom in for a year to jumpstart the new Network exclusive program and sell out your live arenas with thia marquee name. A year undefeated in new WCW while Ryback build his on Raw and Smackdown, then you have your mania match!
Sting: Just a presence alone will sell tickets to see where his justice will land. Even if he only made impact appearances it would put a solid corneratone of your relaunched brand.
Recap: WCW nestalgia, a roster that allowed new talent to get exposure.В A WWE network exclusive and a chance to really compete with yourself seems like it is full of wins.
Yes next we will do ECW, but first let your voice be heard.
Would you like WWE Network to relaunch WCW, and if so who and what would you like to see?!
http://www.cheap-heat.com/what-if-monday-night-wars-2-0/feed/ 1http://www.cheap-heat.com/lucky-thirteen-2-top-13-years-of-the-past-2-decades/ http://www.cheap-heat.com/lucky-thirteen-2-top-13-years-of-the-past-2-decades/#comments Tue, 13 Jan 2015 02:16:40 +0000 Mark Adam Haggerty Blogs Other Blogs Top Lists 2 Cold Scorpio Adrian Neville AJ Styles Austin Aries Batista Bill Goldberg Bobby Lashley Booker T Bret Hart British Bulldog Bryan Danielson Chris Benoit Chris Jericho Christian Christian Cage Christopher Daniels CM Punk CZW Daniel Bryan Darren Young Dave Batista Davey Boy Smith Davey Richards David Arquette Dean Malenko Degeneration X Dwayne Johnson Eastern Championship Wrestling ECW Eddie Guerrero Edge Elimination Chamber Eric Bischoff Extreme Championship Wrestling Four Horsemen Goldberg Hell in a Cell HHH Hollywood Hogan Impact Jake Roberts Jeff Jarrett Jerry Lawler Kane Ken Shamrock Kevin Nash King Booker King of the Ring Kurt Angle Latino Heat Mankind Matt Sydal Mick Foley Money in the Bank Montreal Screwjob Mr. Perfect New World Order Nigel McGuinness Nitro NJPW NWA NXT One Night Stand Owen Hart Paul Bearer Paul Heyman Perry Saturn Phil Brooks Psycho Sid Radicalz RAW Razor Ramon Ready 2 Rumble Rey Mysterio RF Video Ric Flair Ring of Honor Rob Feinstein Rocky Maivia Roddy Piper ROH Royal Rumble Ryback Sami Zayn Samoa Joe Scott Steiner Sean Waltman Shane Douglas Shane McMahon Shawn Michaels Smackdown Starrcade Stephanie McMahon Steve Austin Stone Cold SummerSlam Survivor Series TAKA Michinoku Ted DiBiase The Alliance The Rock TNA Todd Gordon Total Nonstop Action Triple H UFC Ultimate Warrior Undertaker Vampiro Vince McMahon Vince Russo Wade Barrett WCW Wolfpac Wrestlemania Wrestling Society X WSX WWE WWF XFL http://www.cheap-heat.com/?p=8812 Lucky Thirteen #2 Top 13 Years of the Past 2 Decades Written by Mark Adam Haggerty I can’t remember back to a time before I was a wrestling fan. I can recall being six-years-old and thumbing through my parents modest little library of movies, suddenly stumbling upon a set of black Disney-like big boxes that […]
Lucky Thirteen #2
Top 13 Years of the Past 2 Decades
Written by Mark Adam Haggerty
I can’t remember back to a time before I was a wrestling fan. I can recall being six-years-old and thumbing through my parents modest little library of movies, suddenly stumbling upon a set of black Disney-like big boxes that contained the first five Wrestlemanias. From that day I was hooked. I began tuning into WWF Superstars and WCW Saturday Night every single week, and by the spring of 1993 I was begging my parents to order Wrestlemania 9 on pay-per-view. Over the past 20 years I’ve had my share of favorite moments, but I often ask myself, what was the best year in professional wrestling? Maybe not best, but how about the most influential? Most impactful? Okay here it is: What was the Most Important Year since I Became a Fan? When other sites limit their lists to Top Ten, we take it a Step Further with the Lucky Thirteen—counting down the Top Years of the Past 2 Decades.
13. 2003
The list had to start somewhere and after cutting away seven years of nonsense I thought, what better place to begin than with 2003. Looking back I feel as though the year felt much bigger than it really was. Momentous occasions like Wrestlemania XIX and Stone Cold's retirement drew considerable attention but it's hard to isolate many other memorable moments. By this point Total Nonstop Action Wrestling and Ring of Honor were both open and doing business, although nowhere near the level of success that they'd each see within a few short years. WCW had been closed since 2001, so WWE was slowly filtering out the Turner-holdovers and rebranding wrestlers like Booker T and Rey Mysterio as WWE Superstars. Twenty-oh-Three was the year Bill Goldberg made his long-awaited debut on Monday Night Raw where he famously told Dwayne Johnson, "You're next Rock!" In addition to a handful of interesting gimmicks and storylines scattered across the calendar, 2003 featured must-see-TV for anyone curious as to what lurked beneath the red and black mask of "The Devil's Favorite Demon" Kane. While it may appear dull in hindsight, 2003 was a fun time featuring the sex and violence of the Attitude Era, mixed with the incredible in-ring action so many of us value today.
12. 2010
Twenty-Ten proved to be an auspicious time for all wrestling organizations. Wrestlemania 26 featured the final match in the venerable career of "The Heartbreak Kid" Shawn Michaels when he failed to defeat The Undertaker in Glendale. But as one man's career ended, eight more were just getting started; the initial NXT program was a far cry from the extraordinary show we see each week on the WWE Network, but it did introduce the WWE Universe to Superstars such as Ryback, Wade Barrett, Darren Young, and even the future WWE World Heavyweight Champion Daniel Bryan. Twenty-Ten was the year in which the unimaginable happened when Bret "The Hitman" Hart made his return to WWE television after a thirteen year hiatus. But 2010 was big for the competition as well. Not only were independent promotions the world-over hitting their stride due to the added exposure brought-on by social media, but TNA was enjoying one of its most visible years to date thanks to signing Hulk Hogan, Eric Bischoff and a number of other established talents. In addition to inflating their roster, TNA made several changes to their product; they would begin to implement a traditional four-sided ring, and even attempted to compete live on Monday's with WWE Raw. The year 2010 was an exciting time for wrestling fans across the planet, and is the most modern year on my countdown.
11. 2007
It’s true that 2007 can hardly be considered a great year for professional wrestling, let alone the WWE. For a while it seemed that active wrestlers appeared on Nancy Grace more than they ever did on Raw or Smackdown. But if I'm here to countdown the most important years in wrestling, this certainly had its share of newsworthy events. In the summer of 2007, the WWE suspended more than half of its active roster in response to a litany of wellness violations for a variety of substances, most notably Human Growth Hormone. This year was historic for being the official end of "The Ruthless Aggression Era"—a period of time significant for exposing younger talent and transitioning the product out of the overtly controversial Attitude Era. In 2007 TNA expanded its flagship show IMPACT to two hours and embarked on what would be a defining age for the promotion. One of my favorite events in history happened in 2007, "The King of Europe Cup." The �Cup was a one-off event that took place over a two day period in the United Kingdom. A must-watch event that is readily available on YouTube and features well-known workers such as Adrian Neville, Sami Zayn, Matt Sydal, Davey Richards and a man who won the ROH World title in 2007—Nigel McGuinness. Sadly it's safe to say the most infamous moments of 2007 occurred between June 22nd and June 25th as the world became aware of the chilling circumstances surrounding Nancy, Daniel, and of course "The Crippler" Chris Benoit. Unfortunately for all of the positives, 2007 will forever be marred by the heinous actions of a troubled man that led to irreparable changes across the industry and what has been dubbed, "The PG Era."
10. 2006
It would appear as though 2006 was the last year representing any semblance of what was once regarded as a pop culture phenomenon. The ECW One Night Stand pay-per-view the previous year was such a success that WWE officials opted to resurrect Extreme Championship Wrestling complete with a one-hour timeslot on the Sci-Fi Channel. Edge and Rey Mysterio each made history in 2006 by becoming world champion; first Edge at New Years' Revolution and then Rey at Wrestlemania 22 in Chicago. Poised to be a contributing factor in the �New ECW', former champion Kurt Angle shocked the world in 2006 when he signed with TNA Wrestling. This year was famous for launching the career of current TNA Champion Bobby Lashley, as well as helping to define that of former Ring of Honor World Champion CM Punk. There were over a dozen debuts throughout the year due to ECW on Sci-Fi and Smackdown's "New Superstar Initiative." In Ring of Honor, the world title picture was dominated by Bryan Danielson who secured his spot atop the card from September 2005 until December 2006. In addition to WWE and TNA, MTV delivered an over the top unreal wrestling experience known as "Wrestling Society X." WSX only lasted one short season but familiarized fans with future names such as Matt Sydal and reintroduced established stars like Sean Waltman and Vampiro. Twenty-oh-Six was a great year for good storytelling that included Vince McMahon's rivalry with Shawn Michaels, Booker T becoming King Booker, and the continuing drama between Edge and John Cena. Rounding out the top ten, 2006 was an enjoyable year without much in the way of defining moments but never short on excitement.
9. 2000
When the new millennium dawned on the world of professional wrestling, so too did a number of landmark milestones and controversial occurrences. WCW released the unsuccessful "Ready 2 Rumble," starring a variety of World Championship Wrestling athletes and the man who would soon become WCW Champion—David Arquette. Not only was 2000 the year all WCW titles would be stripped and reassigned, it was also the year in which the World Championship was devalued and strapped to a B-list Hollywood celebrity. But not all was bad in the world of sports and entertainment as 2000 marked the first time Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson hosted Saturday Night Live, which he did to rave reviews. While Eric Bischoff returned to WCW, a new set of "Radicalz" debuted in the WWF; Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero, Perry Saturn and Dean Malenko all jumped ship and began appearing on WWF TV in the early months of the new millennium. The Year Two-Thousand was a defining era for the Undertaker who chose this year to swap his demonic demeanor for the apparel of the "American Badass." Hulk Hogan would say his final goodbye to his WCW fans thanks to a scenario gone wrong involving the Hulkster, Jeff Jarrett, and head-writer Vince Russo. An exciting year for wrestling of course with Kurt Angle capturing his first of many world titles, but perhaps the biggest thing to happen in 2000 was the debut of Vince McMahon's now defunct football league—The XFL. Whether you're a football fan or an admirer of the "Scream" film franchise, 2000 had something for everybody to get excited about.
8. 2005
If ever a year signaled things to come it was 2005. For fans of the WWE, 2005 was the year Monday Night Raw returned home to the USA Network after a five year run on Spike TV. Two first-time world champions were crowned at Wrestlemania—John Cena and Dave Batista. But TNA had its own share of successes in 2005: the company made its highly anticipated debut on Spike TV; Christopher Daniels, AJ Styles, and Samoa Joe had the only 5-Star Triple Threat Match in history; and Christian Cage signed a deal, opening the gates to a deluge of ex-WWE Superstars. ECW was in the midst of a resurrection that would culminate in 2006, but 2005 was the year the WWE hosted the first "ECW One Night Stand," in New York City. On the independent scene, a former backyard wrestler named Phil Brooks won the ROH World Heavyweight Championship from the highly decorated Austin Aries, thus placing CM Punk on WWE's radar. Later that year another future WWE Champion would capture the ROH World Title and hold it for over four hundred days—"The American Dragon" Bryan Danielson. Back in the WWE, six daring individuals were getting ready to introduce the world to "Money in the Bank," and later that year Shawn Michaels faced Hulk Hogan for the first time ever at Summerslam. Chris Jericho was fired by Eric Bischoff and then Bischoff himself was released resulting in Eric leaving the arena in the back of a garbage truck. But even in the silliest of times, sadness rears its ugly head and it was in 2005 that the world was forced to say goodbye to the former WWE Champion, "Latino Heat" Eddie Guerrero. From the highs to the lows, 2005 was an important year that no one will ever forget.
7. 1994
Not such an enormous year for the industry-leading WWF, but a landmark time period for much of the competition. Having survived his battle with the US Government, Vince McMahon was back in full control of his company; 1994 was the year of Wrestlemania X and the infamous bout between Razor Ramon and Shawn Michaels that would set the bar for ladder matches to come. The Undertaker mysteriously disappeared at the Royal Rumble and come Summerslam, the WWF fans were privy to not one—but TWO Undertakers! Of course this was the year that the Hart Family rivalry between Bret and Owen kicked into high gear, including a match of the year contender at Wrestlemania and a championship cage match at Summerslam. But outside the confines of the WWF, events began to take place that would lay the foundation for the Attitude Era. The NWA was the longstanding governing body of professional wrestling in the United States and Japan for several decades. In 1994 the NWA title was to be decided in Philadelphia at Todd Gordon's Eastern Championship Wrestling, with Shane Douglas set to win the gold. Instead Douglas disregarded the title, disgracing the NWA in the process by claiming he would not represent a company that, "died, R.I.P. seven years ago!" ECW broke away from the NWA and declared themselves Extreme Championship Wrestling with "The Franchise" as their champion. Down in WCW, Eric Bischoff was moving ahead by leaps and bounds thanks to an array of positive changes in production, including the debut of WCW Saturday Night at Disney's MGM Studios in Orlando. But perhaps there was nothing in '94 as monumental as when WCW signed Hulk Hogan. Bischoff wasted no time in booking the dream contest WWF refused to feature at Wrestlemania VIII two years earlier. In his debut match alongside Mr. T and Shaquille O'Neil, Hulk Hogan defeated "The Nature Boy" Ric Flair for the WCW Title. Who's to say if things had gone differently in �94, the industry of today might be something else entirely.
6. 1998
The Attitude Era might have started in �97, but 1998 was the year in which the world was introduced to the brand new World Wrestling Federation. WCW turned up the heat on the competition by introducing a brand new Thursday night program on TBS titled, "Thunder." This was the year that saw The Four Horsemen reunite on Monday Nitro including Ric Flair who had since left the company. The NWO was continuing to grow and would eventually split into two entities: NWO Hollywood with Hulk Hogan, and NWO Wolfpac lead by Kevin Nash. WCW cornered the video game market in �98 with one of the most prolific wrestling games in history—WCW/NWO Revenge for the Nintendo 64. Over in the �Federation, Superstars were beginning to get "hardcore" and a new title with a 24/7 stipulation was introduced on TV. Not only were the �falls' taking place backstage and in the audience, but from on top of the Hell in a Cell as Mick Foley was launched from the structure, and then drilled through it at the 1998 King of the Ring. WCW continued to beat the WWF in the Monday Night War due to a consistent strategy based on booking their top matches on cable, rather than pay-per-view. Bill Goldberg, who had already made a name for himself by maintaining an unprecedented winning streak made history when he became the WCW World Heavyweight Champion. But Bill was far from the only bald-headed badass to win gold in 1998. Earlier that year, Stone Cold Steve Austin captured his first world title after defeating Shawn Michaels at Wrestlemania XIV in Boston. It was a profitable year for all wrestling companies including ECW, but 1998 would be the last year WCW would succeed in dominating the WWF in the ratings.
5. 1996
Maybe it's because Shawn Michaels' boyhood dream came true at Wrestlemania XII; or the initial formation of the NWO at Bash at the Beach; even the insane rivalry between "The Excellence of Execution" and "The Texas Rattlesnake." Whatever it was, my personal favorite year in professional wrestling was 1996. The spring began with a bang as Scott Hall made his first appearance on Turner Television, joined just a few weeks later by Kevin Nash. In June of 1996, Stone Cold Steve Austin broke from Ted DiBiase and became the King of the Ring; during his royal coronation, Stone Cold uttered a phrase that would change his career forever—"Austin 3:16 says I just whipped your ass!" But just as heels began to turn face, so did longtime heroes turn to the dark side. Along with the debut of the New World Order was the introduction of the evil Hollywood Hogan, who won the WCW title in August 1996 and held it just six days shy of one year. The Survivor Series that fall was famous for memorable main event matches as well as a number of debuts including that of the first ever third generation WWF Superstar, Rocky Maivia. Paul Bearer made the turn on �Taker in favor of the far more deranged Mankind; The Ultimate Warrior and Jake Roberts returned for a short period, each feuding with Jerry Lawler; Roddy Piper was featured on both WWF Wrestlemania and WCW Starrcade; ECW was beginning to break out nationwide. But most importantly—the Monday Night War was just getting underway. WCW debuted Nitro on TNT in the autumn of �95, and it was in 1996 that WCW finally succeeded in stealing Vince McMahon's spotlight.
4. 2001
In terms of the industry changing forever, 2001 might have been the most cataclysmic year in wrestling history. It was this year that WCW fans became aware of what was to become of their preferred promotion. Although many familiar faces were involved in negotiating the resurrection of WCW, it was Vince McMahon who purchased his competition for a mere $2.2 million dollars—a price that included licensing, tape libraries, and the contracts belonging to twenty-two WCW performers. In addition to the end of World Championship Wrestling, Paul Heyman signed a deal with Vince McMahon in 2001 some months after ECW was unseated by the WWF as Spike TV's premier wrestling program. The World Wrestling Federation was the winner of the Monday Night War and the Attitude Era was at an end. The summer of 2001 was highlighted by the Invasion storyline featuring an enormity of former WCW and ECW talents rallying together against the WWF with Shane and Stephanie McMahon leading the charge. This would be the year that Stone Cold Steve Austin would turn heel twice, first by joining forces with Vince McMahon at Wrestlemania and then by turning on the WWF and joining the Alliance. Speaking of Wrestlemania, Houston hosted the Seventeenth annual extravaganza—an event like none other that included the highly revered TLC triple threat tag match won by Edge and Christian. On September 13th, Vince McMahon and the WWF Superstars set a national precedent by appearing in Texas just days removed from the World Trade Center attacks in what Vince called, "the largest public gathering of its size since the events of Tuesday." In December of 2001 the two world titles were unified in a competition that would see Chris Jericho beat The Rock as well as Steve Austin in the same night to become the first ever Undisputed WWF Champion in history. The year 2001 was a peculiar period for the wrestling industry as it was the only year in which the WWF was faced with no immediate competition.
3. 1999
With the Attitude Era in full swing, 1999 was an enormous year for the WWF both inside the squared circle as well as on Wall Street. The WWF became the first wrestling promotion in history to go public in 1999, and followed the success with a series of groundbreaking business decisions still in effect today. The company introduced Smackdown on the UPN Network on Thursday Nights as competition to WCW's Thunder on the TBS Superstation. The Rock was enjoying his inaugural championship title reign and would face Steve Austin for their first of three �Mania encounters at Wrestlemania XV in Philadelphia. Unfortunately the good can often be overshadowed by the tragic; on May 23, 1999 the world of professional wrestling lost one of its favorite stars when Owen Hart fell to his death in Kansas City, Missouri. Owen will never be forgotten as his passing was one of the most earth-shattering moments in history—wrestling or otherwise. Behind the scenes, longtime WWF head writer Vince Russo had become disenfranchised by the �Federation and jumped ship to rival WCW where Eric Bischoff was forcibly removed from his post as president. As WCW struggled during turbulent times, the WWF continued to prosper with the continuation of the McMahon/Austin saga, the further explored escapades of Degeneration X, and the debuts of The Big Show and Chris Jericho. The WWF would experience its first Monday night ratings victory since 1996 when Mick Foley defeated The Rock for the WWF Heavyweight Championship on a taped episode of Raw airing January 4th 1999. Titles changed hands that same night on TNT when Hollywood Hogan won the WCW title from Kevin Nash for a fifth time thanks to a booking misstep nicknamed "The Finger Poke of Doom." The Land of Extreme was also abuzz in �99 as this was the year ECW would debut on national cable television thanks to The Nashville Network, soon-to-be-known as Spike TV. The last year of the 20th Century was a period of growth for the WWF, but proved to be an unpredictable era for WCW, making it difficult to compete in the coming years of the new millennium.
2. 2002
If 2001 was the end of an era, 2002 was the dawning of a new age across the varied landscape of professional wrestling. The WWF began by changing its name to World Wrestling Entertainment in light of a conflict regarding the World Wildlife Fund. The campaign was dubbed "Get the �F' Out" and would help introduce audiences to an entirely new breed of "Ruthless Aggression," in the now-WWE. Two new promotions would rise from the ashes of the fallen WCW and ECW. There was former WCW Champion Jeff Jarrett's Southern-based Total Nonstop Action Wrestling—a subsidiary of the National Wrestling Alliance. TNA was originally intended to be a pay-per-view only promotion hosting ten dollar events once a week. In 2002 they crowned their very first Heavyweight Champion, former UFC and WWF competitor "The World's Most Dangerous Man" Ken Shamrock. Meanwhile RF Video—a pro wrestling video distribution company, was looking for a new promotion now that ECW was gone. Rather than working with established groups such as CZW, RF owner Rob Feinstein founded Ring of Honor and ran their first event, "The Era of Honor Begins" in April 2002. Back in the WWE, the entire roster was split into two warring halves—one set for Smackdown and the other relegated to Raw. The year was infamous for the seemingly relentless parade of surprise appearances that lasted the entirety of 2002. Former Superstars like Mr. Perfect and Scott Steiner became part of the current roster once more; Eric Bischoff debuted as the new General Manager of Monday Night Raw; the NWO opened No Way Out; but perhaps most surprising of all was the return of Shawn Michaels after more than four years away from the ring. Michaels captured the World Heavyweight Championship in the first ever Elimination Chamber Match when he defeated five other superstars including Triple H. Maybe one of the greatest years in the past two decades, but not quite number one.
1. 1997
The Number One Year of the Past Two Decades is 1997, and it shouldn’t be hard to see why. This year was the official launch of The Attitude Era in the WWF, signifying Vince McMahon's intention to compete with WCW on a whole new level. The competition didn't waiver however, as World Championship Wrestling was eager to meet the demand of audiences across the world. The "New Generation" made way for D-Generation X, a heel group similar to the NWO featuring Shawn Michaels and Triple H at the forefront. It was DX at the center of one of the most scandalous nights in wrestling—"The Montreal Screwjob." WCW was having its best year since Eric Bischoff took control of the company and bested their direct competition every week thanks to compelling storylines and the introduction of a former Atlanta Falcon named Bill Goldberg. The NWO storyline had yet to run its course and was complimented by the slow-build and impending confrontation between Hollywood Hogan and Sting at Starrcade. The Undertaker would become the WWF Champion for the first time in nearly six years when he defeated Psycho Sid at Wrestlemania XIII in Chicago, the same night Bret Hart and Steve Austin would wrestle their Match of the Year to a stunning conclusion. Paul Heyman's third party promotion dubbed Extreme Championship Wrestling would present their first ever pay-per-view event Barely Legal thanks in part to the promotion they received during the ECW Invasion of Monday Night Raw. The WWF became far more innovative during this period and introduced audiences to the Hell in a Cell and by circumstance the demonic younger brother of the Dead Man, Kane. It was also in 1997 that a hapless play-by-play announcer named Vince McMahon became one of the most detestable villains in professional wrestling history. The WWF would also begin debuting a number of midcard titles including the European Championship first held by The British Bulldog, and the Light Heavyweight Championship won by Taka Michinoku. WCW continued to maintain their edge in the ratings due to quality in-ring performances as well as plot twists and surprise appearances from WWF Superstars-turned-WCW Big Boys. It's not really a question: when asked about the single most action-packed and influential year from the past two decades of wrestling, I don't hesitate when I say 1997.
Conclusion
This list is ripe for discussion and debate, just as any other countdown featured in The Lucky Thirteen. You might agree, you probably disagree, I may have even listed your favorite year toward the bottom. It’s nothing personal, I promise. This list lives outside of the WWE Universe, but is of course greatly influenced by it. In regards to not including 2014, I didn’t want to include a year that hadn't yet concluded when I began compiling my information. I will say however with NJPW, the birth of the WWE Network, the salvation of TNA, and the first ROH Classic PPV, 2014 is sure to climb higher than any other year of the “Reality Era.” Whatever your feelings may be, I hope to see you again next week for another exciting countdown exclusively at Cheap-Heat. My name is Mark Adam Haggerty and this has been—The Lucky Thirteen.