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When did WCW start declining? Starrcade 97?

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medicated space scourge upon the earth
  10/18/17
...
Idiotic 180 plaza
  10/18/17
as a fan, it was when the Vince Russo era started and he sta...
topaz aromatic rehab depressive
  10/18/17
I think Starrcade '97 is a good marker. The NWO and Stin...
cracking hilarious address
  10/19/17
cr analysis. I remember watching the Sting vs. Hogan match l...
medicated space scourge upon the earth
  10/19/17
You might be right though I truly think the ref just fucked ...
cracking hilarious address
  10/19/17
"He was apparently disliked by most of the other guys a...
canary up-to-no-good persian
  10/19/17
:)
cracking hilarious address
  10/19/17
They even brought in mentally ill warrior for the sole purpo...
Hyperventilating organic girlfriend pisswyrm
  10/19/17
...
Sadistic fortuitous meteor
  11/10/17
Spot-on write-up. I feel like there was some later stuff tha...
Hyperventilating organic girlfriend pisswyrm
  10/19/17
I was a huuuge steiner bros fan. The big poppa pump persona...
cracking hilarious address
  10/20/17
Steiner was awesome. Mama Bagwell seems more cr
Sadistic fortuitous meteor
  11/10/17
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Idiotic 180 plaza
  11/10/17
...
cracking hilarious address
  10/19/17
not sure i agree with your criticisms of how they built gold...
navy trailer park dog poop
  10/20/17
Fingerpoke of Doom, or that's when the really steep drop-off...
Frozen vermilion police squad useless brakes
  11/10/17
Respectfully, that was the nail in the coffin not the start ...
cracking hilarious address
  11/13/17
cr. that was the same night the Nitro team revealed that Man...
medicated space scourge upon the earth
  11/13/17
I personally feel it was all downhill after Arachnaman's ret...
concupiscible zippy liquid oxygen generalized bond
  11/13/17


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Date: October 18th, 2017 3:10 PM
Author: medicated space scourge upon the earth



(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3767805&forum_id=11#34472253)



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Date: October 18th, 2017 3:10 PM
Author: Idiotic 180 plaza



(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3767805&forum_id=11#34472267)



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Date: October 18th, 2017 3:13 PM
Author: topaz aromatic rehab depressive

as a fan, it was when the Vince Russo era started and he started being in every fucking main storyline. He sucked, his vision for WCW sucked IMO. I eventually switched to almost all WWF because of it.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3767805&forum_id=11#34472284)



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Date: October 19th, 2017 3:18 PM
Author: cracking hilarious address

I think Starrcade '97 is a good marker.

The NWO and Sting saga was can't miss TV. It was also unique. The idea that a group of wrestlers were somehow challenging WCW on their own program for control of it in a coup was revolutionary. Then Eric Bischoff reveals he is in the NWO and the storyline picks up steam really shocking viewers with Hogan's heel turn at Bash at the Beach in the summer of '96. This continues for a year and a half in dramatic fashion playing out weekly on Nitro and in other PPVs.

Meanwhile WCW's beloved franchise wrestler, Sting, hasn't been in an officially sanctioned match instead teasing the audience with his dramatic appearances in the rafters and taking on an almost invincible, supernatural type of persona (very different from his prior schtick).

So after a year and a half of building the tension between Sting and Hogan/NWO, it all culminates with the Main Event at Starrcade '97: Sting vs. Hogan. Now we all know that referee Nick Patrick royally fucked this up. He was supposed to give a fast 3 count in favor of Hogan but instead counted to 3 at a normal pace and it appeared that Hogan had unthinkably beaten Sting fair and square. Bret Hart comes out, insists the 3 count was fast and restarts the match. Sting wins. This was a really unsatisfying conclusion. Sting illegitimately beat Hogan. Even when the rest of the WcW wrestlers swarmed the ring to celebrate their liberation it wasn't the ending we deserved as viewers.

In any event, it wasn't an immediate sharp decline in quality I suppose but more the beginning of the end. The storyline got stale, the NWO fractured into the Wolfpack and regular NWO and it lost its appeal. WCW desperately wanted Goldberg to be a huge megastar but his push was really mishandled. Every week he would spear and jackhammer someone and look invincible but he never really crafted a compelling schtick. So you have him undefeated after like 200 matches and annihilating top guys. It wasn't believable and it creates a situation where he almost can't lose lest his star power be destroyed. Incidentally, the cruiserweight division continued putting on incredible matches every week. WCW never realized the potential these guys had and didn't roll them into the main storylines enough. They tried later with Rey Mysterio's "Giant Killer" shtick but I think it was too late at that point. Then they unmasked him and Juventud, which I think was not only a mistake but down right disrespectful.

As this was playing out on WCW simultaneously the WWF attitude era was really taking off as another historically significant and in many ways superior era of professional wrestling.



(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3767805&forum_id=11#34480704)



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Date: October 19th, 2017 4:54 PM
Author: medicated space scourge upon the earth

cr analysis. I remember watching the Sting vs. Hogan match live and pissed how they fucked that up so bad, after 18 months of buildup. I blame Hogan for this, probably had too much power with creative, for Sting to go over Hogan clean

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3767805&forum_id=11#34481340)



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Date: October 19th, 2017 9:29 PM
Author: cracking hilarious address

You might be right though I truly think the ref just fucked up the count. Either way, of course there would be controversy and Hogan wouldnt just agree to lose clean. He was apparently disliked by most of the other guys and notorious for never letting anyone get over on him. The 3-5 min shoot interviews with former wrestlers are gold if you like hearing about behind the scenes shit.



(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3767805&forum_id=11#34483323)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 19th, 2017 9:44 PM
Author: canary up-to-no-good persian

"He was apparently disliked by most of the other guys and notorious for never letting anyone get over on him."

LOL you don't say

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3767805&forum_id=11#34483437)



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Date: October 19th, 2017 9:53 PM
Author: cracking hilarious address

:)

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3767805&forum_id=11#34483494)



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Date: October 19th, 2017 11:54 PM
Author: Hyperventilating organic girlfriend pisswyrm

They even brought in mentally ill warrior for the sole purpose of letting Hogan get his win back from their WWF days

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3767805&forum_id=11#34484438)



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Date: November 10th, 2017 10:15 PM
Author: Sadistic fortuitous meteor



(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3767805&forum_id=11#34659007)



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Date: October 19th, 2017 11:53 PM
Author: Hyperventilating organic girlfriend pisswyrm

Spot-on write-up. I feel like there was some later stuff that doesn't get enough credit though. Particularly any fucking time Scott Steiner was on a live mic.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3767805&forum_id=11#34484430)



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Date: October 20th, 2017 9:23 AM
Author: cracking hilarious address

I was a huuuge steiner bros fan. The big poppa pump persona was pretty cr.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3767805&forum_id=11#34485826)



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Date: November 10th, 2017 10:15 PM
Author: Sadistic fortuitous meteor

Steiner was awesome. Mama Bagwell seems more cr

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3767805&forum_id=11#34659010)



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Date: November 10th, 2017 10:17 PM
Author: Idiotic 180 plaza



(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3767805&forum_id=11#34659020)



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Date: October 19th, 2017 4:47 PM
Author: cracking hilarious address



(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3767805&forum_id=11#34481284)



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Date: October 20th, 2017 12:05 AM
Author: navy trailer park dog poop

not sure i agree with your criticisms of how they built goldberg. he was the best thing they did in a sea of deep decline. they ended up fucking it up pretty bad with how he lost to nash tho.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3767805&forum_id=11#34484519)



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Date: November 10th, 2017 10:19 PM
Author: Frozen vermilion police squad useless brakes

Fingerpoke of Doom, or that's when the really steep drop-off began



(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3767805&forum_id=11#34659039)



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Date: November 13th, 2017 12:04 PM
Author: cracking hilarious address

Respectfully, that was the nail in the coffin not the start of the decline.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3767805&forum_id=11#34675515)



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Date: November 13th, 2017 12:05 PM
Author: medicated space scourge upon the earth

cr. that was the same night the Nitro team revealed that Mankind was going to win the championship. everyone tuned in to Raw to watch it

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3767805&forum_id=11#34675529)



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Date: November 13th, 2017 12:14 PM
Author: concupiscible zippy liquid oxygen generalized bond

I personally feel it was all downhill after Arachnaman's retirement.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3767805&forum_id=11#34675600)