Hall of Shame – WWE 2004

WWE 2004 – A Year of Shame:
To follow up 2002 & 2003 WWE Year of Shame, we will follow the year 2004 as it goes and add to the Shame as it happens.. The crap tends to come through and a quick pace so keep checking back for updates..

Corporate Bullying: The year started out with a series of “team meetings” before RAW & Smackdown! television tapings, with Vince McMahon giving long speeches about what he wants his wrestlers to be doing, even though he told them to do the exact opposite a few months ago. Vince stressed the importance of slowing down matches and adding more of a psychological element instead of just moving to the highspot right away. The funny thing is that request would never have been made if Triple H could perform at the same level he could in the year 2000. Triple H even stood up and said a few words to his fellow employees, which goes to show Triple H has won the political game. This was capped off by threats that they would be cutting back the roster soon by releasing some talent. The very next day WWE Corp posted a job ad for stating they were looking for new talent. What the?
Playboy Bitches: I’ve always hated cross promoting wrestling with porn (I love both, but not together).. I used to think Torrie Wilson was beautiful, but after seeing her naked, I changed my mind. But that’s beside the point. Heph wanted his blonde divas back for a photo shoot, so they decided to create a storyline over it. Stacy & Jackie wanted to pose for the magazine, but Torrie & Sable were chosen instead (even though the shoot had already happened).. Anyway it’s all setting up for an Evening Gown match at Wrestlemania XX, which is supposed to be the biggest event in the history of the WWE! They had a slutty catfight last year which was an embarassment to the Wrestlemania Legacy, this will be even worse!
No Lesnar, No More: Before Vince McMahon bought all his competition, he had balls, he made sure his wrestlers knew who was boss and that everyone, no matter how big, bad or tough, was expendable. The last few years, a crop of stubburn S.O.B.s have risen to the top of the WWE, some are justified in their demands, but some shouldn’t have a leg to stand on! Case in point, Brock Lesnar! Five days before Wrestlemania XX, the biggest night in WWE history, Brock Lesnar informed his boss and co-workers that he was quitting after Wrestlemania! As if being a 26 year old primadonna wasn’t embarassing enough, Brock went on to tell friends that he’s considering trying out for the NFL! I WAS a Brock Lesnar fan, but with less than two years experience under his belt, he has no right to act this way. If he couldn’t handle the schedule, fine, quit! But don’t do it five days before Wrestle-frickin-mania! Of course, rumors have circulated that this could just be a big worked angle, and I highly doubt it, but if it is, then it DEFNITLY BELONGS IN THE HALL OWW SHAME!
Brock Lesnar vs Bill Goldberg: As if their arrogant behavior backstage wasn’t enough, both Lesnar & Goldberg were scheduled to part ways with the WWE following Wrestlemania XX.. WWE still went along with it by hyping it up more than just about any match on the card. It was voted “Most Anticipated” on WWE.com before the PPV, and we all know those are rigged. So with all the hype, and the fact that it would be their last match, do you think they would have put forth an extra effort on the “grandest stage of them all” as a small ‘thank you’ to the company that made them famous, and rich.. No…. instead they went out and gave the most half assed performance in Wrestlemania history.
The Cruiserweight Gauntlet: In the weeks leading up to Wrestlemania XX, Chavo Guerrero whined and cried about being forced to defend his Cruiserweight title against 9 challengers. They made it seems like he would have to beat the odds, which were stacked against him 9-fold.. But the match comes, and it’s a random gauntlet, and Chavo gets to enter last. What? Not only does this not do anything for the champion, or the championship, but you bury the early participants like Ultimo Dragon, Shannon Moore, Nunzio & Funaki, who all had to do quick jobs. Boooooo! A free-for-all elimination (X-Division Style) would have been so much better! !
Victoria Does a Little Dance: Sorry, I don’t have a picture, if you have one send it in please. This past Monday on RAW marked the beginning of a somewhat repackaged Victoria. She had new cheesey entrance music, which was techno themed. She came out to the stage and did this horribly nerdy little dance! Somehow I doubt she’ll be allowed to do that again!
The RAW Diva Search: I’m not sure what the point of this contest is. Vince is getting tired of sexually harassing his current collection of divas. I think it’s extremely unproductive to hold another DivaSearch when the winner of the FIRST DivaSearch (Jaime Koeppe) hasn’t been seen or heard from since he first photo shoot! I think the revealing NUDE photoshoot that was found after her victory had a little something to do with her disappearance. Regardless, I thought Koeppe had great potential, but that might be my Canadian bias coming through. So what’s the point of this CONTEST? I have no idea. I guess they think guys like it, and they have fun getting portfolio submissions from so many flavours of wannabe divas.
The Xtreme Pregnancy: Why do they do it? Why do they do it again? Why don’t they realize that pregnancy angles NEVER work! Okay here’s the 411. Matt Hardy returns to raw, proposes to Lita but turns heel instead. Months later, Matt returns to Lita and all seems well. Kane enters picture. Kane forces himself on Lita. Lita gets pregnant. Matt Hardy assumes it’s his. Kane let’s the cat out of the bag. Lita cries. Matt goes bananas. Lita cries. Matt gives Lita the cold shoulder. Lita cries. Kane is proud. Lita delivers nut-shot to Kane. Kane tries to chokeslam her, but changes his mind. Okay, assuming you didn’t fall asleep while reading that enthusiastic rundown of what is happening then go take a nap, you deserve it!
Time For a Bathroom Break: If the DivaSearch idea wasn’t bad enough, they felt the need to waste our valuable time, not once, not twice, but often THREE times during every episode of Monday Night RAW to give exposure to the contest that nobody cares about. Meanwhile wrestlers are getting released, sitting at home, and are being wasted on HEAT. Why are you giving all this exposure to all these brainless chicks who all but one will not be with the company in a few weeks. Well, even the ONE that wins, I doubt you will see much of her. None of them have any thing positive to contribute to the sport of professionaly wrestling; Not athletic, not charismatic, not entertaining, not cool!
Carmella DeCesare – The Cream of the Crap: Okay, the DivaSearch was dumb. But what made it even more ridiculous is that the office was quietly pushing a specific contestant to win the whole thing. Even though she was clearly hated by the voting fans and fellow contestants, she ‘somehow’ managed to make it to the finals against Christy Hemme. This was a rather sour factor in an already sour situation, putting the legitimacy of the voting in question. But whatever. Carmella made it clear from the very beginning that she had ZERO charisma. Add to that the fact that every time she was out there she looked like she was embarassed to be associated with the product. Why the WWE would WANT this is beyond me, but thank got Hemme kicked her ass.
The Wedding From Hell: There has been much worse incidents in wrestling, but the attention to detail put into this was just ridiculous. They took the ring ropes down and decorated the ring and everything. 3/4 of the audience was cut off from view due to the elaborate set-up in the ring. Basically Lita was forced to marry Kane after Matt Hardy lost a match to Kane the week before on PPV. Kane had picked out a nice white wedding dress for Lita to wear, but she defied him by wearing a black dress. Trish came out wearing something so hot that it actually made the segment worth watching. Matt Hardy showed up to rescue Lita but was trapped by a wall of fire and then chokeslammed off the stage. Lita then reluctantly said her I DO. Within months, Kane turned face and feuded with Gene Snitsky — next.
Baby Killer: The “Xtreme Pregnancy” (see 4 pics above) led to the Wedding from Hell, so we’re on a roll, why stop there. WWE went on with the pregnancy angle, until a match between Kane & newcomer Gene Snitsky, where Lita got involved and accidentally squashed, and lost her baby in the process. This somehow made Snitsky a star, as fans began chanting “Baby Killer!” when he came out. Lita & Kane would be brought closer in the coming weeks by the loss of their child and the common goal of making Snitsky pay! Kane and Snitsky locked it up at Taboo Tuesday and Snitsky managed to win and put Kane on the shelf for a while. He continued to harass Lita on a weekly basis, even kicking a fake baby into the crowd to mess with her head. I think Snitsky’s great, but took a shameful route to the top.