WCW 1996: intro to the nWo

[e-moose]

At the time, I didn't have a TV and barely caught any wrestling. I wuz suprized when a young man filled me in about WCW being bigger than WWF and about Hogan turning heel. Well, it's taken until just this past week for me to actually take a good close look at the WCW programming from that era which began in May 1996.

First off, I wuz surprized and super impressed at all thingz non-nWo-related that were going on through the summer of '96. In fact, I dare say that Hall, Nash & Hogan were three of the lamest participants in the programming. The only thing they had going for them wuz the element of surprize, the fact that people never really know what to expect or when to expect it, which doez not require a whole lot of "quality entertaining" on their part. All they really needed to do iz cauze some problem on cue for a minute or two.

What the Hall & Nash unpredictablity and Hogan hell turn did, requiring barely any effort from them, wuz got wrestling fanz talking and brought a whole lot of new eyez to WCW programming. In my opinion, the real impressive stuff wuz all the other great fuedz that were in progress in WCW at the time, which I had no idea about. The Horsemen (Flair, Anderson, Benoit, McMichael, Elizabeth, Woman, Debra), the Dungeon of Doom (Jimmy Hart, Sullivan, The Giant, Big Bubba Rogers, Meng, Barbarian, Morrus), Harlem Heat w/ Sherrie, Nasty Boys, Rock & Roll Express, Fire & Ice, Sting, Luger, Savage... theze guyz all rocked during this era, az did all the mixed up and intertwined storylinez and feudz between them. I believe that although the nWo stuff may have brought a whole lot of eyez to WCW programming, it wuz all theze other playerz and excellent booking and writing that held the audience to it. Most of thoze I've mentioned were given the task of playing tweener rolez, and they all pulled it off seamlessly.

Biggest highlights for me: any promo from Savage or Anderson. Thoze 2 guyz shone like gold on the mic in that era, I mean it wuz like their pinnacle of their career mic work. In ring, a team I had never given any thought to, the Faces of Fear (Meng & Barbarian) pleazantly surprized the shit outta me with their quick and diverse hard-hitting offence. Their matchez kept my eyez on the screen. Until checking it all out, I had no idea that the Horsemen, Sting, Luger or Savage were that active in the programming, az I remember seeing a lot of WCW from 1 year later, when they were barely, if at all, on TV.

I watched the programming through to nWo Souled Out (January 1997). It wuz clear to me that by this time, the TV magic that wuz there in the summer wuz already long gone. I can remember the very first thing that made me cringe and say to myself "This looks like the beginning of the end" wuz the revelation of the "Macho Monster Truck" at one of the fall PPVz. For WCW'z premier PPV, Starcade (December 1996), the main event wuz a non-title match between Hogan and Roddy Piper, who had just entered WCW recently and stolen the spotlight from all the brilliant folks I had previously mentioned. So much focus wuz put on Hogan and Piper leading up to this (oh yes, and Bischoff himself for turning nWo), that it seemed like the entire rest of the roster did not even exist.

WCW wuz already pretty much gone to shit going into 1997. It's the summer of 1996 when it wuz absolutely brilliant.

[badnewzxl]

I too look very fondly upon those days. Didn't remember the RnR Express being there then, but all the rest of the guys were pretty cool and a lot of them had something cool they did in the ring.

For me, the Luchadores proved that what everyone believes nowadays (esp fans who think WWE's model is the best in all ways) that guys can't get over without mic time. I'm pretty sure I never heard a word from Parka, Psicosis, Juvi, Ultimo, and many others before they got over (and I DO believe they got over bc my friends who all stopped watching in 2001 still remember guys like this). They provided something entertaining that others couldn't provide; they carved their own niche. WCW in 96 was loaded with guys like that.

Great read, e-moose

[Big Red Machine]

Great read, but I can't believe you didn't think Hall and Nash's promos were great! Good points about the tweeners. I think Luger especially kicked ass in this role.

[e-moose]

2 teamz I forgot to mention... Steiner Brothers and Public Enemy were in there too.

I think it wuzn't until '97 that the luchadorez began to get a lot more expozure, which iz definitely great in-ring entertainment.

OK perhaps I'm being too hard on Hall and Nash, especially Scott Hall, in the promoz department. It probably has to do with expectation. Going in, I wuz expecting all thingz nWo to be the drawing factor of the era. Little did I know of the HUGE role of all the other playerz in making that period super entertaining. Therefore it iz them who I really took notice of, since it wuz unexpected.

Oh yes and to add more clarification to the Piper Starcade build-up thing: It wuz kinda like this: "OK remember all thoze semi-warring factionz trying half-assed to come together in oppozition to the nWo? K forget all that. It doez not exist. None of that happened. Here'z Roddy Piper instead. He'z gonna take on the entire nWo all by himself. Now buy our PPV. Thanx." They threw away so much in the way of interesting drama between all the locker room just for Piper. Lame.

[badnewzxl]

2 teamz I forgot to mention... Steiner Brothers and Public Enemy were in there too.

I absolutely LOATHED PE, lol. Their ppv streetfight against the Nasty Boys is prolly my all time least favorite tag team match EVER

[badnewzxl]

I will say this tho: It was one of the ppvs in WCW during the spring or summer bc they were outside, but Public Enemy v. the Dancing Fools (Disco Inferno, Alex Wright, and MAGNUM TOKYO!) is one of my fav tag team matches from WCW's lower card

[cero2k]

For me, the Luchadores proved that what everyone believes nowadays (esp fans who think WWE's model is the best in all ways) that guys can't get over without mic time. I'm pretty sure I never heard a word from Parka, Psicosis, Juvi, Ultimo, and many others before they got over (and I DO believe they got over bc my friends who all stopped watching in 2001 still remember guys like this). They provided something entertaining that others couldn't provide; they carved their own niche. WCW in 96 was loaded with guys like that.

i agree with this, but i also think a big factor the cruiserweights got soo over was that while you had these guys doing awesome wrestling, you also had guys like Eddie and Jericho doing the mic work to give some substance to the division.