Greatest wrestling angle or storyline

[The Earl]

What do you think was the greatest wrestling angle/storyline/feud of the modern era? From the ground-breaking angles that changed the business, to the greatest fueds that put the wrestlers on the map.

I've got three right off the bat. And all three changed the business. I cant really say which one of them is on top.

Hogan vs. Andre
WWF was already on its way to being a national power by 1987. This storyline solidified their place on top, and marked the end of the territorial era. This even had an effect on the NWA, as Crockett started to consolidate most of the territories Vince had not bought out. A year later, most of the major territories were gone, the AWA was dying, and we were left with two national promotions.

The NWO
The origonal NWO, from Scott Hall walking on to Nitro, to Hogan's heel turn, and the Sting fued sparked the second golden age of wrestling. The business was on a big down swing in the early 90s, with both WCW and WWF going to more of a cartoonish approach. The NWo was groundbreakeing and got people who had stopped watching to tune back in. Plus, it catapulted the WCW as the top fed, and it wasnt even close for almost two years

Austin-McMahon
WWE Attitude was in full swing by early 98, but the was the one that put them on top for good.


A have a couple of honorable mentions. As far as shock value, I have to go with Ric Flair -Real World Champion in 1991. He jumped to the WWF, and Holy Crap he brough the NWA World Title with him!

Mankind Undertaker fued turned around the careers of both men. Taker was NOT a major player in the mid 90s. He was a superhero sort who vanquised guys like Yokozuna/Gorge Gonzalas/Bundy and other oddball charactors thrown at him. Mick Foley was a garbage wrestler who never came close to a main event. This fued brought both men to the main event level. Both have held titles since and both are future Hall of Famers.

Flair and Funk in 89 was just a good old school blood fued. Perfectly played out, with Funk coming out of retirement in a disrespect angle. We had hardcore before hardcore was cool, we had table spots, and it was blown off in one of the greatest matches of all time.

 

[jpfizzle]

You've covered so many already here! Mankind/ Undertaker was going to be the one I mentioned, like you said these two pretty much made one another on the fateful night of the Hell in a Cell... Mick Foley says "Asking me if I'd be remembered for hell in a cell is like asking Napoleon if he would be remebered for Waterloo." The violence in this match had people seriously questioning how far the WWF would go.


The Invasion angle, many people claim this is one of the most botched angles in wrestling history, whilst the fact they could have done this alot differently may be true no one can deny the importance of this angle, Vince had built WCW up to be a serious threat to the future of the WWF, many people tuned in to see what would happen.. And Aliance Austin was personally my faverite Austin of all time.

 

[simpsons_fanatic742]

I have to agree with you on the 3 angles you mentioned. I had gotten big into wrestling at around the attitude era and I watched alot of old wrestling that my family had on tape and all of these angles captured me in.

Another storyline that I loved and is probably my favourite is the Ministry of Darkness. I am a huge Undertaker fan and that stable was incredible. The stuff they got away with was crazy, a heel Undertaker was awesome, the fueds were great, the members all fit together and helped alot of them get elevated in the WWF. They were so evil and dark that it was compelling. Just a personal opinion here, but definitely the greatest storyline/angle to me was the Ministry of Darkness.

 

[The Dungeon]

Feuds:


Bret "The Hitman" Hart vs. "Stone Cold" Steve Austin---The feud that put Austin over as a star for good, and made Bret Hart into the heel we never imagined he could be. Big door opened for the "Attitude Era" with this one. Definitely one of the most important feuds in WWF history.

nWo vs. WCW---The world was watching, and loving it...at least until late '97.

Hulk Hogan vs. The Macho Man---After a 3 year buildup, the big money match fans were clamouring to see didn't dissapoint, the feud had everything you could ever want.

Ric Flair vs. Lex Luger----Not even being a fan of Lex, for some reason there feud, and there matches are one of my favourites, and made Luger into a star.

Bret vs. Owen----The fact they were really brothers, and were great performers, made this feud work to a T. Raw emotion at its best.

Hulk Hogan vs. Shawn Michaels---The politics, and the angles leading to this feud, were just crazy!

The Undertaker vs. Kane---I'm mainly talking about the buildup towards Wrestlemania XIV.

Bruno Sammartino vs. Larry Zybysko---Through the magic of video tape, I really enjoyed this feud, and set the mark for all Mentor vs. Protoge feuds to come. I still can't think of one that has topped it.

Ric Flair vs. Harley Race---There battles over the NWA belt, and lead in, to the first Starrcade, were amazing. Just straightforward hatred.

The Freebirds vs. The Von Erichs---Wow...is all I can say! Listening to the crowds in this feud, is just mind blowing.

"Stone Cold" Steve Austin vs. Vince McMahon---Last and most certainly not least. Brought wrestling to a level nobody thought it would be at again.



Favourite Angles/Storylines:

-When Macho Man got bit by Jake's snake, it was the most terrifying thing, at 8 years old, that I had ever seen! I still remember that segment, nearly shot for shot, to this day.

-Pillman's XXX Files. Something that would've been seen as hokey if someone else did it, Brian Pillman, as always made it work!

-Shawn turns on Marty! The shot through the Barber Glass window, is just one of those memories that you never can forget even if you try. It changed Shawn's career forever. Still the best Tag Team split of all time.

-Hogan turns heel! When he joined the nWo, the promo he cut afterward is the greatest heel promo I've ever heard, to this day.

-Jericho vs. Goldberg! I thought this was something great WCW had on a sliver platter, but they ruined it!

-Jericho and Stinko Malenko! Really made Jericho into a hated heel, and Malenko over like he never had been before. Sadly, hardly anything was done with either of them afterward.

-Hogan/Warrior: Respect! The promos they cut, and the stuff they did leading into Wrestlemania VI made for some greaet TV.

-The Mega Powers...form! The formation of the Mega Powers on the Oct.3.1987 edition of SNME, is one of those moments where you saw pure history made.

-Michael Hayes slams the Cage Door SHUT! Shutting that door on Kerry Von Erich's head, made for one of the greatest and most heated feuds in wrestling history!

-The Beer Truck! Pretty much summed up who Austin was in just one angle!

-The Love Triangle! HHH/Steph/Kurt! One of my favourite times to be watching "Raw" was in the Summer of 2000, and this was the big reason.

-Brothers in Cahoots? The whole buildup of 'Taker & Kane's partnership, plus the buildup to the Summerslam '98 match between 'Taker & Austin, was also a huge angle for the "Attitude" era.

-BROTHER BROTHER BROTHER! Shawn Michaels' Hogan parody was something that shouldnt've been funny at all, but it was!

-Bleed Morton BLEED! The 4 Horsemen attacking the Rock N' Roll Express and grinding Ricky Morton's face in the floor, and busting him open! Quite nasty at the time!

 

[Dead Kennedy]

I think I'm the only one who liked the WCW/ECW Invasion angle. Sure, WCW and ECW got buried most of the time (also known as all of the time), but I guess Shane's surprise announcement just made the angle for me. It's not the greatest wrestling angle, but thought I'd give it a few props.

My favorite feud of all time has got to be Bret Hart vs. Shawn Michaels. Two of the WWF's greatest workers of all time had so many great matches and although it's a bit sad admitting it, the real life situation between the two just made the angle seem real. I can't remember a series of matches I've been more into.

 

[coonerty1]

IMO i think the invasion angle was the greatest angle of all time. It was just interesting to tune in every week and find out if anyone was jumping ship to the alliance. The ultimate angle was seeing Austin return and turn on the wwe which was awsome. Started the Vince Vs Austin angle again. I just wish there were storylines around like that these days.

 

[Father:_Polley]

I disagree...the Invasion could have been the best angle ever, but WWE failed to handle it the way it could have been. as an idea, it was outstanding, but it was cheapened by WWEs poor use of the stars it had inherited.

For me the best angle was the Ministry. It was when I got into wrestling, and was at the time I was totally drawn in by the mystery of it. I remember it making me feel the hate they wanted...even if i did think the Brood were cool

 

[jmt225]

Raven vs. Tommy Dreamer tops my list, easily. I have every single thing these guys ever did together on DVD, and it's fantastic. The story these guys told, the matches they put on, nothing has and most likely never will top it. If I just didn't write all that shit on Shawn Michaels in the nineties thread, I would go into much greater detail about this, but all I'm going to say that it's the best "Soap Opera" ever told in pro wrestling, and the matches added such a great action element to it. It’s always awesome to relive that stuff every now and again. I haven’t come across many angles where every match, promo and segment is worth watching more than once, but that entire storyline is filled with tons of them.

Sting vs. the nWo comes in second though, easily. While the ending to it was extremely disappointing, the anticipation and build to it can't be matched. I mean, I marked hard every single time Sting decided to come from those raptors. It was a special time to be a fan of his, because he was literally the only "Hero" left in wrestling at that time, and the nWo was such an evil empire that had never been seen in pro wrestling before. It was a great feud.

 

[BigDaddyKewl]

Who ran over Austin? This was the best who dunnit angle in wrestling history. This made for some good promos and backstage segments. It ended up being Rikishi which lead to no holds barred match. Austin was going to crash into a un conscious Rikishi until the cops showed up. This was a great story line and way to bring Austin back from but they could of picked someone better than Rikishi. He didnt get over with his heel push.

 

[therockyfan316]

for me its definitely the Ministry of Darkness/crucification angle where it was Austin vs Taker. nothing will probably ever match my feeling as a kid watching austin repeatedly take on the entire ministry and especially that time he ran down to the ring and saved stephanie. or that time taker tried to tie austin to the crucifix but instead austin got taker tied to it and flipped him the bird (priceless). even tho i knew it wasnt real, to me the ministry was creepy as shit. and this ties in to what is one of my all-time favorite matches: Fully Loaded '99 First Blood Match Austin vs Taker. i recently watched the buildup video package again on youtube and was still astounded at how well it was done. every raw leading up to the match they would make each other bleed with vince even signing the contract with austin's blood (i also wrote this down under the thread "What Was the Best Use of Blood?"). and the match itself was dramatic as hell, and to me it was really intense. wrestling will probably never get that intense in wwe ever again, but at least we had that angle.

 

[Davi323]

I am gonna have to go with the original three that The Earl mentions. Clearly, Hulk Hogan vs. Andre the Giant changed the wrestling world in a major way. It passed the torch to Hogan as the biggest wrestler in the world, but, as the main event of Wrestlemania III, it ushered in the current success wrestling has had with PPV. (WM I and II were only available via closed circuit TV, a precursor to PPV) Without the interest drawn to that event because of the main event, who knows if PPV would have ever taken off as a viable source of revenue stream for wrestling, boxing, and later MMA. The interest in that main event led to the success of PPVs. That is one of the most significant events in the history of wrestling.

The nWo as well, was one of those angles/storylines that also changed the way wrestling did business. Prior to this, the wrestling world had been very slow in transitioning from solid, black and white characters, who were good and evil, with no inbetween, to the current wrestling world, where everyone is various shades of gray. We hated Nash and Hall, yet we also liked them. We completely hated Hollywood Hogan, and booed every time he showed up, but, at least for Nash and Hall, they were the villains that we secretly (or not so secretly) cheered for anyways. They weren't the anti-hero SCSA was (get to that in a minute) The nWo's success financially for WCW is patently obvious. Between the ratings Nitro got and the merchandising, the nWo's success cannot be questioned. But, I am talking about more than just that, I am talking about changing the entire landscape of wrestling, and changing fan's perspectives over what is okay to cheer for.

Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. Vince McMahon is also very important, because Stone Cold represented what we all wished we could be. The guy that gets paid to kick the crap out of his boss. We all wish we could do that, Austin got to do it. It also for all intents and purposes, created the character of "Mister McMahon". Remember, back the 80s, early 90s, Vince McMahon was behind the scenes, and only on camera when he was interviewing someone or doing some commentating for matches. While we knew he was the owner of the WWF, they never made it a point to acknowledge that on TV. We had figureheads in charge, like Jack Tunney, who supposedly made all the decisions. But...all of that disappeared. Vince McMahon was a face, who was morphing into the villain, but, when Austin stunned him for the first time, as he was being presented with a new belt, Mister McMahon, as a character, was born in earnest. His Corporation deal was, in my opinion, a test run of Mister McMahon, evil genius. His feud with Austin was the confirmation. The feud was obviously incredibly successful financially, just like the nWo was, with ratings and merchandise, and all that...but, this feud to me was all about breaking down the boundaries between wrestling and real life. To put it simply, Austin and McMahon seemed to break kayfabe in their feud, as the feud didn't limit itself to just WWF programming. They took it to MTV, with a Celebrity Deathmatch and other "non-wrestling" formats. The end result was absolutely golden.

 

[blkscrpn5]

The Evolution of Sting from the weeks before Wargames 96 when he was accused of being nwo to the giving his screw WCW speech days after the pay per view, to his mindgames to his actual fued with hogan. If the didnt have a fucked up ending to their match then i think it would have been the greatest ever. It would be hard to get fans to be behind an angle for that long.

 

[klunderbunker]

I'm going to go with the Corporate Ministry and the Higher Power. This story turned out to be an angle within an angle. The Corporate Ministry angle went on for months and in the end it turned out to all be a part of the Austin McMahon story. That always amazed me. It really showed the extent that Vince would go through to screw over Stone Cold. It also includes one of my favorite moments: The Black Wedding. Seeing Austin running in like the cavalry to stop everything at the last second always makes me freak out. This angle was good because it encompassed the whole company but eventually advanced the main storyline as well. Love it.

 

[RATEDRKO4LIFE]

Ive sooo many fav storylines over the years but it has to be the Invasion
WWE VS WCW/ECW
It was xciting everyweek to see who would screw over who. but it was shit that Angle deflected again. The Rock should've gone over Austin in that match.

 

[TheGreatSPAMbino]

Ive sooo many fav storylines over the years but it has to be the Invasion
WWE VS WCW/ECW
It was xciting everyweek to see who would screw over who. but it was shit that Angle deflected again. The Rock should've gone over Austin in that match.

You think the invasion is the best angle ever. Are you fucking joking. Thats a ******ed staement. The invasion was a fucking disaster of a storyline WWE botched the shit out of it. It had so much potential to be great but was the biggest disappointment of all time.

Anyways, the real best angle of all time is probabaly Austin vs. McMahon. It is a very close battle between Austin vs. McMahon and the NWO angle but i think the austin one just beats it out. Both of these angles were revolutionary and carried their companys to incredible success.

 

[Mustang Sally]

Y'know, I'm tempted to say that NWO was the best simply because it created such excitement and seemed to open up so many possibilities.

But then, I retract the nomination because the whole beginning was based on a lie. When Scott Hall showed up on Nitro and issued his challenge ("Your three best guys against our three best guys"), he was speaking in his "Razor Ramon" voice and I, not knowing he had resigned from WWE, thought that this was the beginning of a joint effort between the two wrestling companies.

Yes, I quickly learned how foolish I was, but I must admit that the initial possibilities were enticing.

*************

Instead, I'll go with the Stone Cold-Vince McMahon angle, which changed the face of wrestling and started the process that allowed WWE to kill off their major competition (although WCW obviously had a big hand in causing it's own demise).

 

[JerryvonKramer]

For me it's Hogan vs. Andre from before WM3, which later became Hogan vs. Andre & DiBiase when the Million Dollar Man paid the "evil twin" referee and tried to buy the belt, which later turned into the tournament at WM4, which led to the Mega Powers vs. The Mega Bucks at SS88 and the the "Mega Powers Explode" angle in the run up to WM5.

I see that whole thing as one big angle.

The only two things that come close for me is the NWO angle, which jumped the shark pretty quick as (as per usual) WCW dropped the ball on it by going OTT and involving the entire roster. And the other was McMahon vs. Austin, which was a year of brilliant wrestling tv.

Of course, we all know that the acquisition of WCW in 2001 SHOULD have led to the greatest angle of all time, but the Fed totally got that one all wrong. The Invation angle is one of the most disappointing, worst booked angles ever.

 

[TwistofRKO]

I really liked the whole Taker-Kane rivalry when they initially brought Kane up. I know this isn't the best, I just can't really add anything to what people have said on the nWo.