KB Answers Wrestling Questions

[#MrScissorsKick]

A buddy of mine has some old tapes from Portland Wrestling or something like that. He told me that Piper was their World Champion. Is this true? Could you tell me a bit more of the promotion before I watch through them?

 

[Vincent Michaels]

Any idea what happened after In Your House: Buried Alive went off the air? It ended with Taker's hand rising out of the ground. Did it just sorta stay there while the crowd filed out or...?

This is why I need to stop collecting old VHS tapes.

 

[klunderbunker]

A buddy of mine has some old tapes from Portland Wrestling or something like that. He told me that Piper was their World Champion. Is this true? Could you tell me a bit more of the promotion before I watch through them?

Indeed he was, though to call it a world title is misleading. It was the regional title which was the top title. That makes little sense if you've never heard of the territory system, which I hope you have beacuse that's a really detailed explanation.

It's officially called Pacific Northwest Wrestling and was run by a man named Don Owen, who was considered one of the best and most honest promoters ever. It was a solid territory that saw almost everyone go through at one point or another. Piper is the biggest star they ever produced, though they also had guys like the Grappler and Steve Doll. Doll was a big deal there, but nationwide he's only known for being in the match on Nitro when Hall jumped the guardrail. It's a fun promotion though and worth checking out.

Any idea what happened after In Your House: Buried Alive went off the air? It ended with Taker's hand rising out of the ground. Did it just sorta stay there while the crowd filed out or...?

This is why I need to stop collecting old VHS tapes.

My guess is nothing as that was an animatronic hand.

 

[Hard Hit Prince]

A lot of people tend to knock on Warrior's promos, but I for once thought they were very in par with his character. Do you think that promos should always be hand to hand with the character?

In the case of Warrior for instance, his style made the promo hard to figure out and understand - but at least I wouldn't want that in any other way.

 

[Awesome_Miz]

I just started watching NXT most recently. I would like to know your thoughts on Tyler Breeze.

 

[klunderbunker]

A lot of people tend to knock on Warrior's promos, but I for once thought they were very in par with his character. Do you think that promos should always be hand to hand with the character?

In the case of Warrior for instance, his style made the promo hard to figure out and understand - but at least I wouldn't want that in any other way.

Most of the time yes.

I just started watching NXT most recently. I would like to know your thoughts on Tyler Breeze.

Love the character and he's got a great spinwheel kick.

 

[Awesome_Miz]

I've recently found a good site that has some WWE DVDs up there, so I was wondering something. What are some of the WWE made DVDs you recommend? And what are some of the DVDs you recommend to stay the hell away from?

 

[klunderbunker]

Rise and Fall of ECW
Either Flair set
Mick Foley's Greatest Hits and Misses (extended edition if you can find it)
Any Shawn set
Any Bret set

Rise and Fall of WCW didn't do much for me.

 

[The Fabulous Rougeau's]

During Flair's initial run in the NWA/WCW before joining the WWF in 91 was he at any point a face while being a main eventer/champion?

 

[klunderbunker]

Yeah in 1984 and in 1989.

 

[Wolf Pac]

Whose catchphrases were better - Scott Hall or The Rock's?

 

[klunderbunker]

Rock's.

 

[The Fabulous Rougeau's]

Yeah in 1984 and in 1989.

Was their a big difference between heel and face Flair back than or was he pretty much the same character minus the cheating? Also, how was face Flair perceived back than? Was Flair like a Rock, Austin and Jericho meaning he was equally as good as a face or heel or was ge more like Edge and Orton, great top heel, and bad top face?

 

[klunderbunker]

He was similar in that he had the same matches but with more charisma, but his promos were much more serious instead of the insane ones he would cut as a heel.

Flair was good as a face but amazing as a heel, so similar to Jericho for the most part.

 

[The Fabulous Rougeau's]

Between Sting and Luger Sting ended up being the bigger star, but watching some late 80's NWA/WCW it seemed as though Luger was the guy they thought would be the bigger star back than.

Is that true?
If so when did they realize Sting was the better of the two and began pushing him as such?

 

[klunderbunker]

Absolutely. Luger was basically Superman in 1988.

Around 1990 when Luger became as lazy as you can possibly be while still breathing.

 

[Vincent Michaels]

What's your favorite wrestling memory (from any company) that you think is being harshly forgotten by fans as time goes by?

 

[Cereal Killer]

Is the reason for less focus in gimmicks (as opposed to guys from the 80's and 90's) because it gives the wrestlers an oppurtunity to cut a bigger range of promo styles?
For example, it would be harder for Hogan today to create a shoot promo or a personal promo (like Cena and Rock).

 

[klunderbunker]

What's your favorite wrestling memory (from any company) that you think is being harshly forgotten by fans as time goes by?

I don't know if I'd call it my favorite but how good Austin was before his neck injury. He was one of the best technical wrestlers in the world before Summerslam 1997 but he's only remembered as the brawler.

Is the reason for less focus in gimmicks (as opposed to guys from the 80's and 90's) because it gives the wrestlers an oppurtunity to cut a bigger range of promo styles?
For example, it would be harder for Hogan today to create a shoot promo or a personal promo (like Cena and Rock).

I'm not sure I understand what you're asking.

 

[Cereal Killer]

Is it OK if I PM you it? It's a difficult question to get across so I think it would be better like that.

 

[klunderbunker]

It's fine to ask it here.

 

[Cereal Killer]

Compared to the 80's and 90's, there is a smaller focus on gimmicks. Hogan would shout in his promos, Savage had the "Oooh Yeeeaahh" vibe, Warrior would sound like a caveman and Ramon was all "hey chico!" Stars from both generations also had a unique look that represented their characters.

What do you think is the reason for the less focus on characters? One reason I could pick up was because it gives the roster a chance to cut a variety of promos. You wouldn't expect one of the guys I mentioned to cut the kind of promos The Rock and John Cena were before their match. Is that why they've become less focused on characters? Even in the mid-card, you had Duke the Dumpster, Gobbeldy Gooker and Abe Schwartz.

 

[#MrScissorsKick]

Best and worst years in the 80's?

Will any wrestler come close to headlining MSG as much as Sammartino did? I'm skeptical because the company isn't centered in the northeast.

 

[klunderbunker]

Compared to the 80's and 90's, there is a smaller focus on gimmicks. Hogan would shout in his promos, Savage had the "Oooh Yeeeaahh" vibe, Warrior would sound like a caveman and Ramon was all "hey chico!" Stars from both generations also had a unique look that represented their characters.

What do you think is the reason for the less focus on characters? One reason I could pick up was because it gives the roster a chance to cut a variety of promos. You wouldn't expect one of the guys I mentioned to cut the kind of promos The Rock and John Cena were before their match. Is that why they've become less focused on characters? Even in the mid-card, you had Duke the Dumpster, Gobbeldy Gooker and Abe Schwartz.

It's partially that. Guys like Savage are better to focus on because there's not a defined idea of what he is. Look at someone like T.L. Hopper. He's a wrestling plumber. Where do you go with that gimmick? Nowhere, which is why it didn't last long. It's the difference between a character and a gimmick. The former is almost always better.

Best and worst years in the 80's?

Will any wrestler come close to headlining MSG as much as Sammartino did? I'm skeptical because the company isn't centered in the northeast.

Best: 85/87
Worst: 84.

Now? Not a chance. They head to MSG maybe three times a year. You would have to headline for 40+ years at that pace.

 

[Cereal Killer]

But if you compare Savage to the plumber. Savage was more marketable. I still don't understand completely why they decided to get rid of a heavy focus on characters. I understand why they moved off of Duke, T.L, Abe and all those others, but what about the upper card, or those characters that do bring in money like Savage's or Warrior's?