The WWE Forgotten Files - Bull Buchanan

[Dave]

Bull Buchanan, often known as Barry Buchanan, was not a big name in the WWE In fact, I would suspect that no one outside of myself and Lee will enjoy his work. However, he is a perfect candidate for the Forgotten Files treatment as we examine the WWF/E career of one part of The Right To Censor, perhaps one of the most annoying, yet eerily awesome stables in the history of the WWF/E.

After signing a developmental contract with the WWE, Bull Buchanan was sent to a developmental territory. In the USWA, Buchanan was a three-time tag team Champion and former a team known as The Truth Commission, something that would likely help him in the future. After being called up to the main WWE roster. In June 1997, Bull Buchanan made his debut in the World Wrestling Federation in a tag team, known as Armageddon, which would be very short-lived. However, soon after this Buchanan was sent back to Ohio Valley Wrestling as his skills needed some work. Whilst there, Buchanan again won the tag team Championships with his partner Mr. Black.

The flip-flopping continued in 2000 as Bull Buchanan made his second run in the WWF/E. Dressed head to toe in a swat uniform, Buchanan would seemingly help The Big Boss Man defeat Mideon. Seriously, I can barely even remember Mideon. A few months later, Bull Buchanan would split from his mentor on Raw, after beating the likes of The Godfather, D-Lo Brown and the APA. After a short run on his own, Bull Buchanan was brought into the Right To Censor.

The Right To Censor are probably one of my favourite WWE factions that I have ever seen. The fact that they could get under everyone’s skin seemed to be very enthralling and it was great to see how far a bunch of jobbers could go. The angle and faction was operated and booked perfectly with Steven Richards at the helm. For some reason, Richards seemed to have the skills and overall mindset to really run with this gimmick and it worked. The faction, consisting of Bull Buchanan, Steven Richards, The Goodfather, Ivory and Val Venis… I mean seriously! These guys had nothing to offer the top level of the WWE but were brilliantly successful considering who they were.

Ivory won the Women’s Championship but more importantly, Bull Buchanan managed to win the WWE Tag Team Championship with the Goodfather. This period was undoubtedly the biggest high of Bull Buchanan’s WWE career. After the split of the Right To Censor, Bull Buchanan seemed to be lost without a gimmick or a feud to work off of. That was until a man names John Cena came along. I always remember Bull Buchanan attacking Rikishi and me exclaiming “That’s Bull Buchanan!” to my friend. Surprisingly, The WWE hadn’t forgotten about Bull Buchanan yet and he would finish off Cena’s raps with his trademarked Boo-Yah! After being replaced at Cena’ side by Red Dogg, Bull Buchanan was eventually released from his WWE contract.

A man who had the right to censor and had a good time of it as a tag team wrestler, maybe had a little bit of promise. However, he was not long for the WWE and never really stuck to anything other than the Right To Censor. Even then, the faction wasn’t really about him and he was forgotten quickly by the WWE. So, with that being said, did Bull Buchanan deserve to go? Was he someone that had some potential to go on. Without ever really getting a chance to go on his own, did the WWE miss the boat on a powerhouse like Bull Buchanan? With a good gimmick and a good run, could something more have been made of the Bull?

 

[Ferbian]

While I have to admit I don't even remember Bull Buchanan, but from what I can assume his highlight with WWE was during the time of Right to Censor, sure it was a good group, but as you said yourself it didn't revolve around him, and therefore I don't think it really mattered if he was there or not.

I can't say whether it was deserving to let him go, but if he truly didn't do much outside of Right to Censor, I do not see the reason to keep a talent around, unless you can make him work in something else, Bull obviously didn't work out with anything else, and therefore was let go.

I will say that I think anybody has the potential to go on, as long as they're given the opportunity, so yes I think Bull had the potential to go on, and become somewhat of a mid-carder, none of the Right to Censor guys ever struck me as anywhere noteworthy of main eventers, therefore Bull would've stuck to the mid-card, but he would probably have been able to thrive there.

I don't think WWE missed a boat on a powerhouse in Bull, because WWE was debuting new power houses at that time, we had Batista debuting / on the verge of debuting during that period of time, a power house who truly went on to do great things, the same thing with John Cena, we still had Undertaker and Triple H going strong.

So really there were many power houses active, or ready to be activated in the WWE roster, and I think if they added Bull Buchanan, who doesn't strike me as anything but a large athlete (he had size, but not muscular size like Batista, John, Triple H, Undertaker) and would ultimately have ended up on the same spot in the roster, a mid-carder, or future endeavor.

A good gimmick and a good run can make anybody a good talent, as long as they can get over, so yes I think Bull could've benefited with something else than what he was given, anything else than what Right to Censor gave him, but it doesn't limit to him, because of the fact that anybody given the right time, the right ability inside and outside of the ring, and the right gimmick, can get over.

 

[Ducey13]

I have not forgotten Bull Buchanan aka Bling Bling Buchanan. I don't remember anything from him before he joined Right to Censor. Yet at the time I did know who he was when he originally joined. I HATED Right to Censor during their hayday, but looking back, they were a very effective group. If Right to Censor had taken place in the last couple of year then I probabily would have been a fan. I love the Straight Edge Society who has some of the qualityies of RTC. I also loved it when Regal turned out the light on Raw. It just great Heel Heat which I like and respect alot more now then I did back in the attitude Era.

Unfortunitally, while RTC did give its members something to do on TV for a weekly basis. It didn't elevate or get anyone over individually. Bull could have been the guy if they had wanted to go in that direction.

I remember Cena's early career very well. Nice face who had a good debut match against Kurt Angle. Did some other stuff on Smackdown getting alittle bit of momentum. Big win came when he beat Chris Jericho at a PPV very early on. After that the push stopped. Started up again in a Tag Team with Billy Kidman. Cena turns heel and doesn't have much to offer as a character. Then Halloween came which gave us the Vanilla Ice Cena which is what he has mostly stuck with. Cena was a big heel. But once he starting rapping I started cheering for the guy, way before it caught on with everyone else. Then enter the return of Bull Buchanan. Now going by Bling Bling Buchanan aka B2. They could have been an interesting duo, but for some reason Creative decided to scrap that. I feel like the Boo-Yah! was catching on some too. Why they fired B2 to replace him with a guy who had 3 names in 3 weeks (Redd Dog, Notorious D.O.G., and Rodney Mack) and then just move him to Raw was a strange move with little logic. When it comes down to it, I guess it was for the best because Cena emerged as the top guy in the company.

Could WWE have repackage Bull one more time? Sure, or course. They do it all the time. But it doesn't matter. I don't remember Bull being a great worker or talker so in the end what did he really have to offer other then size. WWE can always find another guy with some size and they usually all suck just as much as the other. John Heidenrich, Kevin Fertig, Gene Snitsky, Tyson Tomko, Nathan Jones, Luther Reigns, ect. Matt Morgan was an exception but WWE dropped the ball with that by giving him the stuttering gimmick. Umaga was probabily the most successful recently and I was personally a fan of Mike Knox. But there will always be big guys who can't work so they become very replacible. Bull was no exception.

In closing I would say that Remember Bull more for being apart of things bigger then himself like RTC or being that bodyguard for Cena. He never got pushed much as an individual, but if he had, I'm 99% sure he would have ended up like all those other guys I mentioned.

BOO-YAH!!!

 

[RodneyM420]

Ugh, i remember Bull kinda showed up as Bossman's partner, dressed the same and i thiiiink he even carried a night stick too.

Kinda dug him in his smallllll singles push he received at KOTR 2000. Didn't really have any type of gimmick going though, i remember J.R often said how "his mumma named him Barry and he was a great athelete" haha, i guess just trying to give him SOME kind of depth.

 

[SFC]

I remember the Bull. He had a great appearance of a bad-ass, but like you said, there was no way to market him.

I remember how much I HATED the RTC, but that's what made them great. "Steven" Richards was such a great ring-leader. That was undoubtedly the high of Bull's career, so no I do not believe they could have really marketed him any better.

 

[Tougie]

Bull Buchanan was extremely underated. His first gimmick, as Bossman's backup was his best. He went out there and took care of buisness. The RTC and B2 gimmicks were pathetic and thats why he didnt succeed. WWE just wouldnt settle on a gimmick.

And Bull, well watch his match at WM2000. He has great athleticism for a guy his size. In that match he leaps to the top rope, and springs back for a clothesline. His finisher, was a guillotine legdrop. Really good ability, but his after Bossman gimmicks killed him.

 

[JDavis328]

I always loved his in ring work. He was one of those big and fast guys that could actually have amazing athletic abilitly. He had some awesome matchs. I bummed the ball was dropped there or whatever happened that lead to him being a forgotten superstar of past. I know he was competing in Japan,I think Pro Wrestling NOAH in fact. Teamed with Dlo Brown quite a bit. Idk if he still is in japan or not

 

[mister_b1LL]

When I look back at the Right To Censor, they were a pretty freaking awesome tag team. But it took the picture of him that's on this thread to make me remember that he was a part of the RTC. If you think about the other members of RTC, you had Steven Richards at the helm, you had Val Venis who originally was a pornstar, you had the Goodfather who originally was a pimp, and you had ivory who originally pretty much wore the same risque attire most Divas were wearing at the time. The thing about these guys (save for the ringleader Richards) all had to shuffle off their old ways to become a member of RTC. I don't think Buchanan did. If anything he joined willingly and didn't have to qualify for anything. Buchanan was a former SWAT guy like the Big Boss Man and so technically he was a clean living guy that joined a clean living group. I think it's this thing that made Buchanan fade away into the obscurity of RTC and later the WWE in general.

 

[Lee]

While I have to admit I don't even remember Bull Buchanan, but from what I can assume his highlight with WWE was during the time of Right to Censor, sure it was a good group, but as you said yourself it didn't revolve around him, and therefore I don't think it really mattered if he was there or not.

Sorry I had to nitpick here, a few people have mentioned this too. In retrospect, yes Bull seemed like he didn't belong in RTC but at the time it made perfect sense. Before Bull joined Steven Richards, Richards was seen as a complete fruit loop who wouldn't get anything done. Then you have Bull come in, what was his first match in RTC? It was defeating the Godfather to stop pimpin ho's, the week after the Goodfather was born. That knock on effect lead to the group being cemented in September when Val join and then eventually Ivory.

In retrospect yes he wasn't really needed in the group but at the time it was he who defeated Godfather and caused and RTC expansion.

 

[Ferbian]

Sorry I had to nitpick here, a few people have mentioned this too. In retrospect, yes Bull seemed like he didn't belong in RTC but at the time it made perfect sense. Before Bull joined Steven Richards, Richards was seen as a complete fruit loop who wouldn't get anything done. Then you have Bull come in, what was his first match in RTC? It was defeating the Godfather to stop pimpin ho's, the week after the Goodfather was born. That knock on effect lead to the group being cemented in September when Val join and then eventually Ivory.

In retrospect yes he wasn't really needed in the group but at the time it was he who defeated Godfather and caused and RTC expansion.

Yeah my bad, I'm not really THAT strong about RTC, I've watched some video's of the period of time where Eddie Guerrero had his anger problems around Chyna and was feuding with RTC, that's the only thing I know of them, and then Bull didn't really stand out to me as much as Steven and Val Venis did, who really came off as the "leaders" of the group if I may say so.

But yes I won't deny that he did things for RTC, but that's about it, he didn't accomplish much, or anything as far as I recall outside of RTC, which would leave him to be forgotten either way, unless WWE had actually given him something to do, which they didn't.

 

[DJrayray]

The one thing that impressed me about him was when he would jump up to the top rope from inside the ring and launch off with a back elbow. He definitely had some agility.

 

[Goliath Uterus]

Damn i miss Bull Buchannon, lately I've been watching a lot of Right To Censor stuff and really have been enjoying the group, especially Stevie Richards and Bull Buchannon. I always thought Bull was a great worker, had a good look, and when he was with RTC, could generate tons of heat, it was crazy seeing those lower-midcard/low card guys get over so well. I think the WWF should have pushed Right To Censor a little bit more and really given RTC (especially Richards/Bull) more TV time cause they had a lot of potential. I think, if given a chance Bull Buchannon could have been a mainstay in the tag team division and eventually a solid mid card guy, I cannot imagine him going any higher than that though. Overall he had a solid career, but I wish he could have done more in his run in the WWF.

 

[klunderbunker]

The guy is probably overrated as it is. He was the most generic guy I can remember off the top of my head. He's just a big power guy with nothing at all to set him apart from the other big power guys. He wasn't anything great in the ring, he wasn't a great talker, he didn't hve a great character and his look was average. There is nothing that stands out about this guy and he's not really remembered at all and rightfully so. He wasn't particularly bad or anything. He just had nothing at all to stand out about him.

 

[The Mark of Zur-En-Arrh]

Ahhhhh Bull Buchannon. Man did this guy get the short end of the straw with his gimmicks?

First he's lumped with the Bossman who at that point was an automatic heat magnet that no one actually wanted to watch wrestle anymore (sorry to any Bossman fans, but his ring work was lame. He was the 90's equivalent of JBL who'd get booed just for continuing to live.)

Then they split them up, made Bull look dominant yet easily outsmarted (he did lose to Crash Holly in the KOTR with a quick roll up after pounding Crash for 15 minutes after all), and was then put into RTC. Now originally he was like the Diesel to HBK when Richards and Bull first started wearing the shirts and ties, and then others came into the fray to expand the group. What was sad about it, was that only Richards was allowed to develop his character and the rest were relegated to dumb muscle because none of them ever spoke, rarely won without Richards intereferance, and when the faction split, none of them ever achieved anything again!

Val couldn't decide if he was Sean Morely or Val Venis.

Godfather went back to pimpin' but not on WWE TV.

Richards went back to jobbing until he was released, and then was rehired and repeated the last two steps a couple of times before finishing with the 'E' for good.

And Bull disappeared until he became Cena's homey, and was then replaced by Rodeny Mack (who should probably have a forgotten file purely to remind people he existed), and then Cena went solo and that was it! Bull was gone from the 'E' forever.

Considering that he was a big guy with a lot of agility and plenty of tag team experience, during a period where tag wrestling was at its hottest thanks to E+C, the Hardyz and the Dudleys, you'd think the 'E' would have tried to make better use of Bull than they did.

So yeah, i think he could have made a decent run with anything else they gave him to work with, but they didn't so sadly for both Bull and the fans, we'll never know.

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

I quite liked The Bull, i thought he was a really good athlete, and his top rope scissors kick was fantastic! He could definately have done more in the WWE than he did, but we will never know as i cannot see him ever being re-signed.

I think he was always better off in a tag-team but thats not bad thing

 

[Supernova]

I see him as the Luke Gallows of the RTC, kinda like Stevie Richards right hand man, the muscle of the group but he was pretty much interchangeable with any other guy his size.

 

[The Brain]

I liked Bull. I think he had a nice little run. He didn't have much charisma, but he was pretty good in the ring. He wasn't stand out great, but he had some nice moves and was very agile for a man his size. He's definitely better suited for tag team wrestling. He was never going to set the wrestling world on fire as a singles star, but I thought he did well in the role he was given. Not everyone can be the main event. Wrestling needs role players and Bull was a decent role player.