Wrestling With Wregret Season 5: OTL vs. TTL
I always love these smaller pieces for a couple reasons. First is they're a good bit of fun after a major update that focuses on one topic. The other is that they really let me get a chance to build more parts of the world as I look over each of the Z-Man's videos and the scope of wrestling overall. But now, onto the list.
Eddie Guerrero
I'm sorry, guys. I love you, but here's the Superkick of misery. Eddie Guerrero dies in a car crash on New Year's 1999, falling asleep at the wheel. The tragedy was all the greater as the NWA was about to put the World Title on him. In his place, Rey Misterio Jr. was pegged to be his replacement, winning the World Title after a five-star match against Chris Jericho and following up at SuperBrawl 1998, known as the Eddie Guerrero Tribute Show. As for this video, there isn't a major exploitation and Rey does get to be a champion under his own character rather than just promoing endlessly about Eddie.
Chavo also gets a respectable run with a few four-star matches against Misterio and a run as the US Champion. Chavo and Rey were very adamant on not exploiting Eddie for their own careers, but there has been talks of how they benefited from Eddie's death. I'm not sure yet how to tackle the subject of Benoit with this change.
The Jesse Ventura Story
Rather than a biopic, we get a documentary which is far less rage-inducing for Zane. It's a fairly good documentary, funded by the AWA and featuring a lot of talking heads from the company. The doc covers Ventura's childhood, time in the marines, the AWA, his retirement in the WWF, his Hollywood career and ending on his gubernatorial race.
Top 8 Worst Finishers
Probably about the same, though with how the wrestling world has changed, there's a good chance a few moves were butterflied out of wrestler's movesets.
More Bad Commercials
Altered due to the changed landscape of wrestling.
You Can't See Me
Butterflied away. I know it's a shame we don't get Bad, Bad Man but these are the things that we have to lose.
WWE Offseason
Offseasons in wrestling tend to vary depending on the promotion, so this video is either completely different or butterflied away.
Worse Champion: Chris Jericho or Rey Mysterio
Neither of these two were considered bad World Champions in their runs and were actually pushed very well (Rey still had to overcome his size, but he was able to perform admirably so while he might be considered one of the weaker World Champs overall, his run is still considered good.) Butterflied away.
Women of Wrestling Unleashed
Butterflied away as GLOW is still running with David McClane.
Top 8 Best/Worst of WWE in 2015
Maybe make these into WCW videos.
Rodman Down Under
Even with Dennis Rodman's less involved role in professional wrestling, this will probably still end up happening, though the video won't be a crossover with Phelous.
Top 8 Worst Dancing Wrestlers
This'll probably be an altered list from OTL, but let's have some fun and look at the entrants.
#8: Fandango
Johnny Curtis is a regular midcard tag guy in NWA-ECW with Derrick Bateman, no dancing gimmick.
#7: Jim Ross
Jim Ross has never and will never dance in a wrestling ring ITTL.
#6: Becky Lynch
For some time, Rebecca Knox would get a bit of heat with her Irish jig when she started in GLOW, but it wasn't a dominant part of her gimmick.
#5: DJ Gabriel
He's a a relatively unknown guy as Jack Gabriel in the UK wrestling scene. No dancing.
#4: Lance Storm
No.
#3: Big Dick Johnson
Chris DeJoseph has had a stable career writing for Wrestling Society X and AAA's
Lucha Underground program. He has never danced covered in oil.
#2: Victoria
Lisa Varon was a part of the 2000s era of GLOW, working alongside Trish Stratus, “Miss Congeniality” Amy Dumas and Nora “Molly Saxton” Greenwald. She didn't do much dancing as crazed heel Victoria Varon, so she's out.
#1: Tank Abbott
Tank Abbott did appearances for WCW as an enforcer for world title cage matches, he did not join Three Count and do any goofy dancing.
So, all counts are butterflied away, but I imagine there's still some dancing gimmicks out there (Disco Inferno will never leave us) and Brodus Clay is a stock monster working in NWA-ECW, working mainly as a bodyguard for Alex Riley.
Worst Second and Third Generation Wrestlers
Another in-depth look at a video.
David Sammartino
David did finally break free of his father's shadow, ironically by tagging with a fellow second-generation wrestler Greg Gagne and becoming a regular player in the AWA's tag division.
David Flair
David Flair didn't go into wrestling and instead became a North Carolina state trooper, so his career is butterflied away.
Curtis Axel
Joe Hennig has been a regular part of AWA's American Championship title picture since his debut. He's a solid babyface talent, but doesn't have his father's charisma to break through to the World title.
Manu
He's had a good career working in NWA FCW as a tag player.
Sim Snuka
Sim, and by extension Tamina, never went into wrestling due to the bad publicity that their family name carries in the wrestling business, butterflying their careers away.
Ted DiBiase Jr.
DiBiase Jr. is a staple of Mid-South, following in his father's footsteps, though they were never a major star due to DiBiase lacking the Million Dollar Man gimmick.
Brooke Hogan
Well, given that Hogan pretty much is gone from wrestling, we can safely say her career in wrestling (and Horace's by extension) is gone.
Lightning Round
With most of the careers being slightly better overall or outright butterflied, this might make up most of the video in place.
Barry O
Stays in.
Shawn Stasiak
One of the 2000s guys, pretty solid power dude but otherwise forgettable. Stays in.
Scott Putski
Stays in.
DJ Pringle
Stays in.
Erik Watts
Bill really tried to push his son hard in Mid-South, but when it became clear just how bad he was, Erik went on to become a referee and has stayed there for years. But that dropkick, tho.
Kevin Kleinrock Interview
The interview exists, but covers his tenure in WSX rather than just the whole of the promotion. Special mention is how there were plans for an invasion angle after the PWG purchase until they realized that most of the PWG roster worked for WSX already. This did result in a great series of promos between the WSX Tag Champions, The Young Bucks, and the PWG Tag Champions... The Young Bucks. Both parts stay.
Top 8 Worst Gimmick Matches
There are probably a few of these still ITTL, ones created pre-POD.
Top 8 Worst Debuts
Changed by the wrestling landscape. Let's have a look at these.
#8: Ringmaster Steve Austin
Austin is well known as “Lone Star” Steve Austin (though he might change over to the Stone Cold gimmick) and never does the Ringmaster gimmick.
#7: Glacier
Glacier is a player in the mid-90s UWF with feuds against David Blackheart. His debut doesn't get delayed, though he is still seen as a goofy character even for the California promotion.
#6: KISS Demon
One of the bigger fumbles of the UWF, Eric Bischoff had brought in KISS for a live performance, paying good money and featuring a wrestler of their creation, the KISS Demon. I say fumble because while the concert did draw in numbers, the money would get eaten up by KISS' paychecks and the Demon's feud with Glacier wasn't a game-changer by any means. It just added up to more damage that UWF didn't need in the late 90s.
#5: The Yeti
Ron Reese is a fairly forgettable big man who worked for the UWF as Big Ron Studd, which was seen as tasteless with Minton's own death. But he doesn't become the toilet paper mummy.
#4: Phantasio
A guy who would end up feuding with Glacier in UWF. Herb Abrams had some not great ideas.
#3: Seven
Dustin Rhodes did some midcard work in WCW before jumping to World Class after his dad bought it from the Von Erichs, where he got a harder push. While he mostly got regarded poorly whenever he was in the World Title picture, his work as Texas Heavyweight Champion has been top marked. He never did the Goldust gimmick, so he never became Seven. Butterflied away.
#2: The Shockmaster
Butterflied away. Fred Ottman is still known for his run as Typhoon as part of the Natural Disasters, the big man tag team.
Honorable Mentions
Tensai
Matt Bloom did eventually become Giant Bernard and enjoyed a good run in New Japan and at smaller territories before retiring. He never did the Lord Tensai gimmick.
Trytan
He probably did this gimmick in CWA, feuding with Brian Christopher or with Monty Brown in Mid-South.
Fake Diesel and Fake Razor
Well, there wasn't a real Diesel or Razor, so there couldn't be fakes. Glenn Jacobs went to Hollywood and Rick Bognar mostly worked Japan. Butterflied.
The ECW Zombie
Butterflied.
#1: The Gobbledy Gooker
Yeah, this is gone. Not sure what WrestleCrap's gonna do for their worst of wrestling award. The Golden Toilet?
Wrestling Food Taste Test
Probably not as many, but a few promotions offer special branded cereals and the like.
The UWF: Part 1
Yep, we're doing this video here instead of later on, for a very important reason. The first part of the video covers the greater history of the UWF; Its beginning under Vince McMahon and Herb Abrams, the effects of the steroid scandal, the hiring of Eric Bischoff, Herb Abrams' death and Bischoff taking the helm and the final years as Bischoff's efforts to run the company began to fall apart. As the video comes to an end, Zane is interrupted... by Adam Blampied.
UWF Heroes of Wrestling (ft. Adam Blampied)
This video covers the last major UWF PPV, Heroes of Wrestling, which was a desperate gasp for air by Eric Bischoff who was struggling with ailing ratings and buyrates as people began to grow sick of any form of sports entertainment, be it Vince's classical style or Eric's edgier variant. The show itself used basically a lot of over-the-hill veterans who were just there to gather a paycheck. The only good thing going for this show was that Bischoff was able to book it for the MGM Grand in Vegas rather than Casino Magic, though they only get 4,600 in attendance. Bischoff and Dutch Mantel do a good enough job on commentary, as for the card...
The Sheepherders d. The Iron Sheik/Nikolai Volkoff
Yep, this becomes the opener and sucks just as much as OTL.
UWF Light Heavyweight: 2 Cold Scorpio d. Julio Fantastico
One of the better matches on the card, a solid high-flying match that gets the crowd wild after the utter dud of the opener. Builds up the hopes of Brian and Adam, but that doesn't last long.
Tully Blanchard d. Stan Lane
The match ends clean rather than the Dusty finish and gets favorable responses from Brian and Adam.
UWF Tag Team: The Samoan SWAT Team (Samu/Fatu) d. Marty Jannetty/Jim Neidhart
The improv tag team of the former Rocker and the Anvil meet the champs, getting destroyed in a solid enough match. So far the show hasn't been so bad, huh? Well, that's about to change.
UWF Hardcore: Abdullah the Butcher d. One Man Gang
A plodding match from two older, fatter players that ends in a disgusting double-color that ends with Abdullah retaining his hardcore title. It's the match that sends things down. And it only gets worse.
UWF American: Greg Valentine d. Bob Orton Jr.
Yes, at one point Greg Valentine had a singles belt in the late 90s. And he defended against Bob Orton. The UWF was in dire straits at this point. How dire? Well, I got a question for you guys.
You wanna play 21?
UWF World: Great Kokina d. Jake Roberts
The third member of the SST, Great Kokina (Yokozuna in OTL) is the UWF World Champion. Sounds fine, right? Except this was 1999 Great Kokina, and while he was only 389 pounds as opposed to OTL's 589 pounds, he was still 389 lbs. He was not a mobile man and had just been fired from NWA-FCW because he was unwilling to lose the excess weight. He still retains in a squash against Jake Roberts, just as drunk as before. Bundy comes out to challenge Great Kokina for the belt. Kokina accepts and we get our SECOND main event.
UWF World: Great Kokina d. King Kong Bundy
Truly the biggest main event in wrestling history in terms of pure BMI and the crowd could not hate it enough. The match would read on a speedometer going at 5 MPH and ends with Great Kokina hitting a Bonsai Drop on Bundy to the delight of no one. This match is the breaking point for the Z-Man and Plumpy. We get James Mitchell appearing as the Devil talking about how he wanted to craft the worst wrestling show in the world and he succeeded. And this show was the death knell for the UWF, who shut down in 2000.
Top 8 Worst Things About the WrestleMania Rage Party/Top 8 Best WrestleManias
Butterflied away for obvious reasons.
100000 Subscriber Q & A
Stays in.
Sting: Moment of Truth
Replaces the Million Dollar Tough Enough video and talks more favorably about the documentary that this became ITTL.
Donald Trump in WWE
Butterflied away, Trump had more of a connection with UWF/WBF, with PPVs being held at Trump Plaza.
Why We'll Never See Another Monday Night War
I doubt that WCW and UWF would really so much have a war as they would have an utter beatdown when Nitro does start up.
See No Evil (ft. The Horror Guru)
The movie ITTL is written and directed by Adam Green, with a tone much more similar to the Hatchet films. The plot focuses on a group of teenagers helping with the running of the Moody Manor, an old mansion being converted into an inn, as part of community service. They meet the Margaret Moody (Cecily Polson) who tells them stories of the curse of Moody Manor.
The curse, of course, is really her son Jacob (Glenn Jacobs.) Jacob spends the whole movie killing off the teens, gouging out their eyes as a calling card, with only Mary (Danielle Harris) making the last stand against the combined efforts of Jacob and his mother, learning that she's Jacob's half-sister from another marriage, and eventually burning Moody Manor to the ground. The movie would be followed up by
See No Evil 2: Hear No Evil in 2008 and
See No Evil 3: Speak No Evil in 2010, a trilogy built on the rising scream queen Harris going against the new slasher icon Jacobs.
The movies are well regarded among horror fans, but are mostly unnoticed by wrestling fans since Jacobs wasn't a major name. The crossovers are mainly on Guru's channel as a result and come around each Halloween.
Why New Japan Can't Compete With WWE
Butterflied. New Japan has been in a longstanding working relationship with WCW, trading talent between the two.
No Holds Barred (100th Episode!)
Not only would this not be the 100th episode (I think we've barely cracked 50 so far. I wanna say that the UWF video was the 50th episode, which is a pretty good milestone) but it'd be straight up butterflied thanks to Hogan never doing this movie.
So, let's look at the list.
- The Jesse Ventura Story
- Top 8 Worst Finishers
- More Bad Commercials
- Top 8 Best of WCW in 2015
- Top 8 Worst of WCW in 2015
- Rodman Down Under
- Top 8 Worst Dancing Wrestlers
- Worst Second and Third Generation Wrestlers
- Kevin Kleinrock Interview (Part 1)
- Kevin Kleinrock Inerview (Part 2)
- Top 8 Worst Gimmick Matches
- Top 8 Worst Debuts
- Wrestling Food Taste Tests
- The UWF Part 1 (50th Episode)
- The UWF Part 2: Heroes of Wrestling
- 100000 Subscriber Q & A
- Sting: Moment of Truth
Hoo boy, sorry I sat on this one for too long. Got very busy with Too Sweet, but decided to pop back inand bring you guys a new update.