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WRESTLING COLUMNS
Why Isn't the WWE Dangerous or Hardcore Anymore"
February 14, 2005 by Andy Mac
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In this column I hope to discuss the fact that the WWE is no longer as daring as of the 90s and the stunts they pull off are nowhere near as jaw-dropping as the match winning stunts we used to see from Mankind, Shane McMahon, Steve Blackman and Raven etc. Also I will discuss the now defunct Hardcore title.
When you think about crazy stunts you may think "oh they only happened in the hardcore matches", but think about when Mankind was thrown off the top of the Hell in the Cell and when Cactus Jack was pedigreed onto thumbtacks by HHH etc. I feel that when the Hardcore title was made defunct the dangerous stunts left the WWE not only because there were no hardcore matches anymore but also the title matches and other matches lost the danger etc. The number of TLC matches and special one off matches like Lions Den Weapons matches, Boiler Room Brawls, Streetfights, Strap matches, Buried Alive matches and Ambulance matches etc also diminished. I feel that this meant the WWE lost the slightly crazy or dangerous edge it had.
As all WWE fans know the hardcore title was made defunct in 2002 which was a disappointment to me, and I'm sure other fans feel the same.
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The Hardcore title was great, think of all the daring and dangerous stunts pulled off in the great hardcore matches of the time:
1.Shane McMahon elbow dropping Test from the top turnbuckle whilst he was lying on the announcers table in the Greenwich Streetfight in Summerslam 1999.
2.Shane McMahon climbing the Summerslam infrastructure with Steve Blackman pursuing with a kendo stick. On reaching the top Blackman beat Shane until he could no longer hold on and he fell what must have been 50ft through the floor at the bottom. Then Blackman climbed down a bit and dived off from about 30ft up to land on Shane and get the pin.
3.When Big Show threw Raven through a glass window at Wrestlemania.
These stunts captivated people and left them wanting more and pulled in thousands of viewers if
not for the extremeness but for the sheer violence.
When the hardcore title was in its prime and it was played 24/7, everyone was out to get it and people were getting pinned in their sleep etc. Every person thinkable won it from Viscera to Eric Bischoff and even one of Godfather's hoes!! Although this was rather corny and novelty I think it was a great storyline and even when this 24/7 period finished other great storylines were churned out by the WWE centred around the Hardcore title such as the ongoing feud between Al Snow and the Big Bossman.
In conclusion I feel that when the Hardcore title was lost so too were the daring and dangerous stunts.
by Andy Mac..
[Anonymous] wrote:
There is a reason why they retired the Hardcore Title. After a while it got old seeing six guys come down to the ring interupting a match to obtain the gold. Dont get me wrong i loved every minute of it but it had to stop at some point. The 24/7 rule just watered down the Hardcore Title after a while. In the begining it was exciting to see all the superstars try to get the title but eventually it had to come to an end. I say they should have kept the title but eliminate the 24/7 rule, but theres no use complaining about it. I dont like saying never around a business like WWE or wrestling in general but i doubt the Hardcore Title will ever return.
As for non title related hardcore gimmick matches, you can find them all the time. As most recent as Undertakers Casket match to JBL's Texas Bull Rope match(personal favorite of mine) to the Elimination Chamber. Its tru the WWE hasnt been has harcore as they use to be but sooner or later the company had to change with the times. Whining about it wont make it come back.
And another thing, it was Kane who threw Raven through the window at WrestleMania X-7 and as for Eric Bischoff holding the WWE Hardcore Title...WOW what the heck do i say to that. The Bischoff administration started on July 15th of 2002 and the Hardcore Title was abandoned in August of 2002. Check the record books...in that short a time Bischoff was to busy aquiring talent from smackdown to win the Hardcore Title. He did however win the WCW Hardcore Title from Terry Funk on June 5th 2000 on WCW television, but I'm sure you already knew that.
Erkka J�rvinen wrote:
Well i can already see at your column title that this column is bunch of crap.
There was more hardcore when you go 3-5 years back but who gives a crap. Well i
certainly dont because i have had enough of it. I dont wanna see a tables match
or TLC in every damn RAW. If you want to see only chairshots or suicide dives
then go watch old tapes of ECW. If i remember right, company name was World
WRESTLING Entertainment. People have forgot how important is to have guys like
Kurt Angle or Eddie Guerrero who can actually WRESTLE, without any weapons. WWE
havent forgot hardcore, i think that there is still some of it actually kind of
lot. Didnt you see HHH vs HBK in a hell in a cell" Or JBL vs The Undertaker at
No mercy" Or the steel cage match between JBL and Eddie Guerrero" Fatal 4 way
for the title at Armageddon" Those were all incredible matches and they had a
lot of hardcore in them. Of course there has been a lot of good title matches
without any hardcore such as Chris Benoit vs Kane at Bad Blood. Bottom line is
that hardcore can get old so you got to give it a little bit at the time.
Sometimes i like to see an old school slobber knocker but not too often. Another
person again who complains about today's WWE, if you cant stand that times
change and things get different then stop watching!
Brian Weiss wrote:
Look kid I like to see the occasnial Match like Gimmick match like ladder matches with... Jeff hardy(...rember no Flaming) the TLC matches were great the X on a wire matchs are great but the reasons I think that wwe cut down is
1. to not premote Backyarder stuff like Shane style dives or hiting with multipal objects.
2. Its alreaty over killed by such promtions as CZW, FMW and what is left of it in IWA: Mid South and those are just the main stream promtions I could go on naming smaller ones...
If you want to see that stuff rent, buy w/e a tape from the promtions above... as the post above me stated we have people who know how to wrestle (altho. IMO wwe doesnt know what to do with them) but o well I still be prayen.
O and BTW stay the heck away from ROH needless to say.
ShaunCl wrote:
I agree with your article. Mayches like the Elimination chamber dont allow weapons etc. 2002 was the last great year of hardcore (With the exception of Orton VS Foley at Backlash last year). We dont get matches like the triple threat at Wrestlemania X7 (Great match!) or Shane Vs Blackman at Summerslam any more. Well a few.
M. Roach wrote:
I'll agree with Andy Mac. WWE is no where near as dangerous as it once was. ('97-'01) Sure, they have Elimination Chambers and cage matches, but I notice
that there aren't really any big bumps in those matches. The last really hardcore thing the WWE has done would have to be Randy Orton/Mick Foley at Backlash
2004. After to many injuries, they had to stop. I miss the Hardcore title to, but it just started to become a joke after a while. Entertaining, yes; but a serious title to win, no. I have an alternative though. The promotion located in Pennsylvania known as Combat Zone Wrestling is very hardcore and violent. I'll match up what bumps Andy Mac said with bumps from CZW.
1.Shane McMahon elbow dropping Test from the top turnbuckle whilst he was lying on the announcers table in the Greenwich Streetfight in Summerslam 1999.
What CZW has done like that: Ric Blade doing a Swanton Bomb from around 30 feet up onto a table or 2.
2.Shane McMahon climbing the Summerslam infrastructure with Steve Blackman pursuing with a kendo stick. On reaching the top Blackman beat Shane until he could no longer hold on and he fell what must have been 50ft through the floor at the bottom. Then Blackman climbed down a bit and dived off from about 30ft up to land on Shane and get the pin.
What CZW has done like that: Nick Mondo getting tossed off of a roof and landing on concrete, getting a gun-shot like wound in his back.
3.When Big Show (Kane) threw Raven through a glass window at Wrestlemania.
What CZW has done like that: Zandig power-bombing Nate Webb through a pane of glass.
If you don't like the current product WWE is presenting, I would reccomend getting some CZW. Just like to get my opinion across.
Daniel Foster wrote:
Although I agree that hardcore wrestling should stay alive, I have moved onto proper wrestling such as Ring of Honor. If you really want to watch people killing each other then watch Combatzone Wrestling and 3PW.
Jess wrote:
I'm a hardcore fan myself, but I rather watch wrestlers wrestle. Yes chair shots, buckets, cameras, tables, and ladders are fun to see, but it really does get boring after a while. We see enough chair shots today in normal matches, but.. we've always seen those. When you're always watching hardcore, it's easy to tell what's going to happen after a while and it is extremely hard to come up with new stuff to do to keep the crowd into it. Also, today there arn't many people you would think of as hardcore anymore. Former ECW wrestlers like Jericho, Rhyno, Tajiri, and Stevie Richards may not have a huge problem with it, but many fans today may not think of Jericho being a hardcore wrestler. To solve the problem, they should bring back the hardcore title and take off the 24/7 rule and make a hardcore division. Rhyno, stevie Richards, Tajiri, Heidenreich, Snitsky, and RVD (among others) could be good/great hardcore champions. As for sending the title back and forth from Smackdown/Raw, well, on the big PPVs like summerslam or WM when both brands are there together, they can do something like a hardcore rumble. This is my opinion and no one can change it.
Adam Verney wrote:
I agree but what about the barbed wire steel cage match tonight, Gene Snitsky vs Kane in a cage and the kane/shane macmahon feud"
Dave Lesby wrote:
i myself have enjoyed many hard core matches watching wrestling but it seems that at the moment the "hardcore" matches are all between the same people. Like everytime JBL defends the wwe title at smackdown pay per views or everytime snitsky and kane are on raw. And Abyss on TNA has been doing basically hardcore matches since the company started. I agree that it is boring now especially when it seems that every PPV Abyss is in a hardcore match and he is the worst wrestler i have ever seem in my lifetime after John Cena. It is good to see that some wrestlers arediverse and can do both hardcore and pure wrestling matches like RVD and maybe Jeff Hardy.
Kevin Coles wrote:
The WWE became more hardcore because they were trying to win a ratings war. Now that they have no serious competition its pointless risking injury to their top stars on a regular basis. I think a good idea for WWE would be to bring back ECW as a weekly show and put lots of their mid to lower card talent on the show, who they wouldnt mind taking a few risks with to push their careers.
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