WWE in 2003- A perspective

[AegonTargaryen]

I was watching a WCW promo from Nitro after BATB 2000 with Booker T as the new champion. Obviously, the major players referenced during that promo and in that year were Goldberg, Scott Steiner, and Jeff Jarrett. It got me thinking about Steiner in particular and I vaguely glimpsed through the eyes of memory, a SD segment featuring Stephanie trying to tempt big poppa pump into signing with SD. We all know that he was chosen to be a Raw performer in his short tenure with the WWE, though.

Two consecutive losses to HHH, no WM, and a few months of storyline/partnership with Test, followed by a dismissal was what Fate had ordained for Scott Steiner in the WWE. But then, was that the sole reason why he was brought to Raw to begin with? To gratify Vince Mcmahon's view of WCW as inferior, and HHH as an emblem of the superior promotion? First Scott. Then Booker T. Then Kevin Nash. After Nash, there were no more top-tier ex WCW performers left to be put against and defeated by HHH. They didn't do the same with Goldberg, since they saw in him a merchandise-selling money-maker lower-rate Austin/Rock.

Had the WWE/Vince Mcmahon chosen to do something more with Steiner, by placing him in the SD roster instead, could he have been more?

Even though largely a musclehead(and blockhead, some would say), I would believe that SD was oversaturated with Angle-Show-Lesnar-Taker championship storylines, and Scott vs Brock, Scott vs Angle, Scott vs Chris Benoit, to name a few, would've been good matches to compensate for the unrelieved Lesnar/Angle/Taker state of affairs. Scott didn't need to be on Raw because he had already faced/beaten Booker T, Goldberg, Kevin Nash in WCW. But it appears that he was primarily brought to be embarrassed by two consecutive losses to HHH, a tag team stint, followed by obscurity and dismissal.

Thoughts?

 

[Goldie]

Steiner was one of the best things going as the end of WCW. He looked fearsome, he acted fearsome (in real life too) and cut some killer shoot promos.

By the time Vince signed him in late 2002, Scott was 40 years old.... and the injury problems were mounting up. He came in at the top, with a fued against Triple H... but was reduced to mid card fodder almost right away. I think he didn't even feature on TV for the past 6 months of his contract... paid to stay at home whilst WWE creative didn't have anything for him.

His 2nd WWE tenure could be regarded as a flop.... but as least he wasn't truly embarassed like DDP was in 2001. I'm not sure if Vince deliberately set out to humiliate him... however there were younger guys on the roster... some of which had his heavily built look (Brock Lesnar)... and maybe Scott didn't get over as much as Vince expected. It just didn't work out.... and Steiner no doubt wouldn't have had the freedom to cut his shoot promos in WWE.... one of the reasons he got over as a solo star in WCW

 

[Wald]

2003 for me will always be the year my interest in WWE died a little and I have always held a bit of animosity towards Triple H because of it. This was the year that everyone should point at when talking about HHH being self serving to the detriment of the entire company. Everything about this year was as bad as Dusty booking himself to win titles, Nash booking himself to beat Goldberg or whatever other nonsense booking decisions guys have made down through the years. It's a blotch on Triple H's career and a stain on Vince's career as well.

Top of the ridiculousness was Triple H beating black people at Wrestlemania. I mean really, he literally said black people don't belong in the main event and then he went out proved himself right by easily beating the black wrestler in the title match. Offensive doesn't even begin to cover it.

Then he cooled Goldberg's heat to the point that the guy only had a one year run in him. He obviously destroyed Steiner's run in the first few months of 2003 as well. If the guy was pulling in buys and ratings for the Raw brand about this time it could be some way forgiveable but business tanked thanks to him to the extent that I still don't think WWE has fully recovered from it.

 

[Cats Pajamas]

I paid for the Rumble in 2003 and I've never let go of the grudge that resulted. Go ahead and try to sit through Triple H versus Scott "Pink Thong" Steiner, it was ridiculously bad. I know Hazza Huge Honker takes a lot of grief for his supposed golden shovel, but burying Steiner would be considered an act of mercy. Steiner is an ******** anyway, look at how he runs his fat mouth whenever he get done with a company. Good riddance to bad rubbish.

It amazes me TNA was able to get anything out of him.

 

[AegonTargaryen]

Top of the ridiculousness was Triple H beating black people at Wrestlemania. I mean really, he literally said black people don't belong in the main event and then he went out proved himself right by easily beating the black wrestler in the title match. Offensive doesn't even begin to cover it.

Then he cooled Goldberg's heat to the point that the guy only had a one year run in him. He obviously destroyed Steiner's run in the first few months of 2003 as well. If the guy was pulling in buys and ratings for the Raw brand about this time it could be some way forgiveable but business tanked thanks to him to the extent that I still don't think WWE has fully recovered from it.

He didn't exactly say that "Black" people don't deserve to challenge him/WHC, but he did use the phrase "People like you", which seemed to take on a very contemptuous and genuinely disparaging aspect as was reflected by HHH's usual sneering expression. I remember that promo very well and I remember Booker T's expression. It seemed as though he had no other choice but bear that indignity. One could say that had Booker T not been a superbly talented guy, a humble and compliant man having learnt life's lessons early on, they wouldn't even have used him to be Tag champ and IC/US champ for a good 4 yrs.

As far as HHH cooling Goldberg's heat, how did that happen? I can't discern that. As far as I remember, Goldberg beat him 2-0 at Survivor Series, dropped the belt at Armageddon in the triple threat, and that's when obscurity began to overhang him.

 

[FlairFan2003]

Goldberg was only on a one year deal, set limit of dates, he wasn't getting pushed to the moon, although he won most of his matches and pretty much beat everyone in Evolution, including winning the title from HHH. That wasn't a bad year, in fact you could day he had a better 2003 than a lot of other guys, including Edge & HBK.

As for Steiner, it was a mistake to bring him in as a face. His character was a heel and his charisma was a heel, he couldn't play a fan fave, he didn't have the talent, some guys do both very well, others mainly excel at one but not so much the other. Lesnar has never looked like a good face, Randy Orton struggles with that too, other guys play both roles very well.

Steiner also was not known as "team player" - he never hid his animosity for towards Vince for firing him before (probably should have been willing to make peace if he wanted a job) and everyone knows by now he spews vitrol towards Flair, Hogan, Bischoff, HHH, & HBK ad nauseum, all for different reasons. He wasn't particularly pleasant to work with in 2003 WWE with HHH as champ and Flair & Hogan basically treated as God Like Legends, not too mention Bischoff was working there at the time. He wasn't happy, he didn't conceal it, and worse he couldn't wrestle, the high flying moves that had made him famous years ago he was completely unable to do despite only being 40 years old, and he struggled to move with any speed or maintain a solid pace in matches that went past 10 minutes. His RR match vs HHH was terrible, he simply couldn't perform, years of excessive body training had betrayed him. It was a shame because at one point he had a terrific look & gimmick and at 40 should have been in his absolute prime as a performer. Instead he was finished, he looked worse in 2003 than Flair & Hogan did even though they each well into the 50s at that point. That's not good.

His attitude issues didn't help, I think if he hadn't been so historically difficult to work with they could found things to do to make him productive, even with his match work on the downside, I thought the tag team with Test was a great idea but the tag division was non existent outside the Champs and their #1 challengers but again, not only could he not wrestle he couldn't get along with half the roster.

WCW Guys weren't all treated poorly....despite leaving Hogan was hailed as conquering hero, Flair was proclaimed "The Greatest Wrestler Of All Time" every time he appeared on camera, DDP got short shrift but he was also injured early in his tenure and retired prematurely, Nash was treated well until injuries derailed him, Booker T (who really wasn't more than a tag team guy & mid carder in WCW) had a long career and was champ for several months on SmackDown, still working behind the scenes ( and occasionally on camera) today, Goldberg beat almost everyone he faced and won the World Title despite only signing on for short term deal.