The Giant, in more ways that one, stood apart from the rest of the WCW roster.
Listen to the September 1995 WCW podcast, reviewing the first Nitro in full along with Fall Brawl.
Subscribe to the podcast via: iTunes | RSS Feed | Email Newsletter
Subscribe to the podcast via: iTunes | RSS Feed | Email Newsletter
1995 continues to drag its heels both in WWF and WCW. A Giant is running amok in Atlanta while a pirate is one of few highlights in New York. ECW continues to be the most consistent product by a country mile and Cactus Jack makes it appear so easy, it's almost insulting.
There's rumblings of at least two title changes coming in the next while, a teasing of the greatest babyface of all time having a dark side and the debut of a live Monday night wrestling show.
Let's see what this all means for the Power Rankings:
Honourable mentions:
Eric Bischoff - Easy E couldn't have asked for a much better start to his Monday night run. Decent ratings, shock arrivals, good wrestling, great TV, actual competition for WWF... The 80's are back.
Shawn Michaels - Perhaps a tentative link for HBK, but one of very few highlights for a lukewarm month in the WWF. Still plenty head-shake moments for Michaels, but the star still rises more & more.
Jean-Pierre LaFitte - A gimmick wrestler in the match of the month. But, JPL is far more than just a cartoon pirate. The veteran went the whole nine yards with Bret Hart. Fair play, old fella. Yaaaar.
The Rankings:
10 - Brian Pillman - The former Hollywood Blond appeared in another show-stealing match this month, on a PPV that had a Ric Flair-Arn Anderson match, no-less. Brilliant bad guy story telling throughout.
9 - Sabu - This is how you do a debut. Different to a new audience to get them invested, but same to an old audience to hold their attention. A genuinely exciting, innovative performer. Hallelujah!
8 - Jim Cornette - Smoky Mountain may be no more, but if it gets James E more national TV talking time, that's enough of a silver lining. Great to see the Louisville Slugger get much more airplay.
7 - Pitbulls - A genuine match of the year candidate with a rampant crowd for their tag team title win. All this without the aid of Jason, the sexiest man in the world. Not bad for the nameless BDSM act...
6 - Bret Hart - Match of the Month nominations are no unusual happening for the Hitman, but in a match with a make-believe pirate, his MVP status must be all the more lauded. Great in-ring shake-up, too.
5 - Mikey Whipwreck - He's a loser, he's a kid, he's the ultimate underdog - but young Mikey is undoubtedly riding the crest of a wave right now. A world title run is actually not too far fetched...
4 - Steve Austin - You can't help but feel WCW dropped the ball with this one. Yes, there's injuries. Yes, there's an above-average pay-packet; but Austin must be seen as a fairly untapped resource.
3 - Lex Luger - One of thebest debuts in recent memory, a shock swap from north to south and straight into a world title match with the biggest name in wrestling in his first match with the company.
2 - The Giant - The biggest guy going around right now and arguably the biggest push to go with it. Built to heights only Paul Wight could match, a shot at Hogan next month, and he's Andrè's son...
1 - Cactus Jack - Talker of the year's a certainty, worker of the year's a decent shout... Unbelieveable run of promo's for Jack. Add it to a genuinely exciting heel turn and in-ring style change... Epic.
Far from a stellar month nationally, but Cactus Jack is simply in a league of his own right now. We still have the same three world champions, but for just how long...
There's rumblings of at least two title changes coming in the next while, a teasing of the greatest babyface of all time having a dark side and the debut of a live Monday night wrestling show.
Let's see what this all means for the Power Rankings:
Honourable mentions:
Eric Bischoff - Easy E couldn't have asked for a much better start to his Monday night run. Decent ratings, shock arrivals, good wrestling, great TV, actual competition for WWF... The 80's are back.
Shawn Michaels - Perhaps a tentative link for HBK, but one of very few highlights for a lukewarm month in the WWF. Still plenty head-shake moments for Michaels, but the star still rises more & more.
Jean-Pierre LaFitte - A gimmick wrestler in the match of the month. But, JPL is far more than just a cartoon pirate. The veteran went the whole nine yards with Bret Hart. Fair play, old fella. Yaaaar.
The Rankings:
10 - Brian Pillman - The former Hollywood Blond appeared in another show-stealing match this month, on a PPV that had a Ric Flair-Arn Anderson match, no-less. Brilliant bad guy story telling throughout.
9 - Sabu - This is how you do a debut. Different to a new audience to get them invested, but same to an old audience to hold their attention. A genuinely exciting, innovative performer. Hallelujah!
8 - Jim Cornette - Smoky Mountain may be no more, but if it gets James E more national TV talking time, that's enough of a silver lining. Great to see the Louisville Slugger get much more airplay.
7 - Pitbulls - A genuine match of the year candidate with a rampant crowd for their tag team title win. All this without the aid of Jason, the sexiest man in the world. Not bad for the nameless BDSM act...
6 - Bret Hart - Match of the Month nominations are no unusual happening for the Hitman, but in a match with a make-believe pirate, his MVP status must be all the more lauded. Great in-ring shake-up, too.
5 - Mikey Whipwreck - He's a loser, he's a kid, he's the ultimate underdog - but young Mikey is undoubtedly riding the crest of a wave right now. A world title run is actually not too far fetched...
4 - Steve Austin - You can't help but feel WCW dropped the ball with this one. Yes, there's injuries. Yes, there's an above-average pay-packet; but Austin must be seen as a fairly untapped resource.
3 - Lex Luger - One of thebest debuts in recent memory, a shock swap from north to south and straight into a world title match with the biggest name in wrestling in his first match with the company.
2 - The Giant - The biggest guy going around right now and arguably the biggest push to go with it. Built to heights only Paul Wight could match, a shot at Hogan next month, and he's Andrè's son...
1 - Cactus Jack - Talker of the year's a certainty, worker of the year's a decent shout... Unbelieveable run of promo's for Jack. Add it to a genuinely exciting heel turn and in-ring style change... Epic.
Far from a stellar month nationally, but Cactus Jack is simply in a league of his own right now. We still have the same three world champions, but for just how long...
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