Shining the Spotlight 11.10.06: Eddie One Year Later

Posted by Michael Weyer on 11.10.2006

A look at the first anniversary of Eddie Guerrero's death and how the IWC should stop complaining about how his memory has been used. Plus, a look at the newest WWE book.

I know I missed out on the Roundtable for Cyber Sunday. Work was killer this week so it honestly slipped my mind. Then again, almost impossible to accurately predicate a card like that so probably best I skipped it.

Also, it may surprise some that I'm plugging Scott Keith but at his blog, Keith shares some thoughts on TNA's recent missteps at their latest tapings. Given my column on TNA last week, I thought I'd point it out as he makes some good observations. http://www.rspwfaq.com/?p=145#more-145

So, onto this week's column.


Five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes
Five hundred twenty-give thousand moments so dear
Five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes
How do you measure, measure a year?

"Seasons of Love" from Rent by Jonathan Larson



This week marks a sad anniversary for the wrestling world. November 13th will be the first anniversary of the death of Eddie Guerrero.

I'm sure almost every fan can remember what they were doing when they heard the news. The vast majority was like me, hearing about it online while preparing to check out TNA's "Genesis" PPV. Some were at the arena for the tapings where Eddie was expected to win the World Title that very night.

I can still remember the shock I felt at his death along with the bitter irony that it wouldn't have been that surprising a few years earlier. Had Eddie died in late 2001 or '02, it wouldn't have been as big a shock. At that time, Eddie was stuck in the throes of his alcoholism and drug addiction so dying then would have been tragic but, sadly, not that surprising.

But this was different. Eddie had cleaned up his act, put his life together and become a bigger star than ever before, reigning as WWE champion. He'd remained in top form, was getting back over with his feud with Rey Mysterio and with Batista needing time off for injuries, letting him have a run as the champ on Smackdown was a good move.

Naturally, his death let to a series of wonderful tributes on RAW and Smackdown. WWE really did do the right thing in matches with HHH and Shawn putting their egos aside to let Chris Benoit and Rey Mysterio beat them. Another good thing was Chavo dumping that stupid "Kerwin White" gimmick and beating JBL with some of Eddie's old tricks and moves. Overall, it was a wonderful tribute to a terrific athlete.

If it had ended right there and then, things probably would have been fine. However, as most of the IWC have moaned endlessly about over the last twelve months, WWE decided to push Eddie's memory on. The key of course was using it to give Rey Mysterio a huge push to the World title scene. Rey started to do one interview after another, putting over Rey's memory and how proud he'd be to win the World title. The first problems came with Randy Orton making his infamous "Eddie's in hell" remark and trashing Eddie's car.

This led to the three-way at Wrestlemania that was way too short considering the fighters but still ended well with Rey winning the World title. I covered in an earlier column how Rey simply was not right as a World champion due to his size and his lack of passion in interviews. However, many people have said the problem was that from the start, Rey was putting himself in Eddie's shadow with the interviews and pointing to the heavens. Many fans felt it rather disrespectful, despite the fact Rey was one of Eddie's best friends and thus had a bit of say in how Eddie might have felt.

We soon got to the part of the tale that's really gotten people going which is Chavo and Vickie. Now Chavo turning heel was one thing. It did bring up the idea that Rey wasn't worthy of carrying on in Eddie's memory and I actually saw it as taking some of the fan criticism over how things had been handled. Plus, Chavo makes a great heel and it added to some awesome matches with Rey.

Vickie was something different. After spending time with her family, Vickie came out, helping to support Rey in his World title quest. However, she soon turned on him to join Chavo, making the same comments about how Rey wasn't worthy of carrying on Eddie's name. She started to sex up her image a bit as she fought with Chavo against Rey, forcing Rey into retirement. Now, they seem to be setting their sights on Chris Benoit and his US Title.

As most of you reading this know, the online opinion of this whole thing is less than positive to say the least. In fact, the vast majority of fans have called this whole thing utterly tasteless and disrespectful to the extreme, that WWE is cashing in on Eddie's memory as much as they can. Many have noted the irony that Eddie is getting more of a push in death than he received in most of his life. The involvement of Vickie is making it seem more horrible, that Eddie's own wife should surely know better than to push his memory down like this. Some have even gone so far as to theorize that WWE is making Vickie do this by holding up the royalties the company owes Eddie.

My reaction to all this is pretty simple. Chill out and get some perspective.

As I mentioned in that earlier column, Eddie Guererro was a showman, a man who loved the sport dearly. As such, he knew you had to go a bit far sometimes in order to get the heat going. Let's not forget, Eddie took a huge risk early in his career in Mexico by not only jumping ship to a rival promotion but showing up and publicly unmasking. That may not sound too big but believe me, to Mexican fans this was a huge deal that went against long-standing traditions. So Eddie knew you had to push boundaries to get the fans going, as with the feud with Rey last year involving Dominick.

I can't say with one hundred percent certainty that Eddie would support what WWE has done with his name. But by the same token, people can't say with certainty they know Eddie would be rolling in his grave over it. Money or not, I think if Vickie believed this to be disrespectful, she wouldn't be taking part in it. She was married to the man, after all, and thus is a better judge of what he would and would not have liked than most others. Ditto for the rest of his family for taking part in it as well.

Now people moan over Chavo getting into a program with Chris Benoit, despite how excellent both are in the ring and Chavo does have some heat going for him after the Rey feud. Again, Benoit was one of Eddie's closest friends so he'd also have a say on how to push his name into things. It probably won't be as prominent as it was with Rey and does promise to be a good feud to fuel the mid-card. Yet people ignore all that to push the "spitting on Eddie's grave" mentality again. It reminds me more and more of the attitude Scott Keith has to the Owen Hart tribute RAW, that people who never met Eddie Guerrero think they know better how to keep his memory than those who worked with Eddie every day.

I admit WWE may have gone a bit too far at times with all this. But if Vickie and Chavo and the rest of the family felt it was getting far too disrespectful, they would have put a stop to it, money or no. Let's not forget that Vince liked Eddie, firing him to get his act together and then accepting him back and pushing him to the title. At the very least, Eddie's memory has been kept alive for the last year, which is longer than some wrestlers have. Eddie really touched a lot of lives and perhaps the writers simply intended to honor them and it got a bit out of control.

Eddie Guerrero was a great athlete and worker taken far too soon. I honestly believe he would not be reacting to the treatment of his memory with the same venom as fans have. While I'm making my feelings on the subject known now, the real point of this column is not to bring up this huge debate all over again. It's more to note how a year ago, we lost a man who really made this sport worth watching and we still feel that loss. All I'm saying is that it might be nice to simply remember Eddie Guerrero for what he was and not bitch and moan over how others are keeping his name alive.

There's an old saying that a man never truly dies until everyone who remembers him is gone. Like it or not, WWE has spent the last year making sure that Eddie Guerrero will be alive for a long, long time.


After a look at the past, wanted to segue into a quick look at a new book from WWE. Main Event: WWE in the Raging ‘80's by Brian Shields (Pocket Books, $18.00) was just released in bookstores this week. At 206 pages, the book is a quick read, running down the events of the decade that boosted the then-WWF to prominence.

As someone who got hooked on wrestling in that decade, this book was of special interest to me. First off is a year-by-year timeline of major events in WWF, from title changes to big matches and debuts. We then get to the meat of the book, a huge overview of every major (and some minor) wrestlers of that decade. Hogan, Piper, Savage, Honky Tonk Man, British Bulldogs, Bobby Heenan, Slick, Junkyard Dog, Iron Shiek, Bob Backlund, Jimmy Snuka, Don Moraco, Jake Roberts, the Hart Foundation, the Killer Bees, Demolition, Rick Rude, Adrian Adonis and so many, many more, they're all covered.

Keep in mind, as the title says, it focuses on WWF, so nothing on Flair, Dusty or stars from other promotions. The entries are good, noting their careers and progress. There are a few errors here and there with dates and such. Also, the entries are all kayfabe so they act like Randy Savage really did crush Ricky Steamboat's throat and the various injuries of Hogan. They also skim on some hard details like Iron Shiek's drug arrest (which was noted on that ‘80's DVD they put out last year) and Dynamite Kid's injuries. I know it may be debated on whether it would be better to get the truth or refreshing to see WWE sticking to kayfabe again. Also nice is how they tend to be pretty positive talking about wrestlers, even Savage and Warrior getting more than a fair shake.

Another great thing is a listing of major WWF shows, from the 1980 Shea Stadium card to the Wrestling Classic tournament to the 1989 Survivor Series. I especially liked how for the first two Royal Rumbles, they have a full listing of the order of entry and the order of elimination and by whom. And there's a nice detailing at the end about each title change for the world, IC and tag team titles.

So it may not be hugely exhausting but the book still stands as a great look at the decade where wrestling took off in the mainstream and I would recommend it for fans both casual and hardcore alike.


All for now but also around 411:

Jordan imagines the Hardyz vs AMW

Story Lines handles the new WWE magazine.

The Fink takes on underutilized talent, which deserves a look.

O'Dog argues it's time to end the split. I personally think he's wrong but give it a read anyway as it's a good argument.

Julian counts down the Top 10 Celebrity Moments in wrestling. What, no WCW World Champion, David Arquette?

Matthew continues his excellent Evolution Schematic of the Dangerous Alliance.

I've been remiss not mentioning the Quick Talkdown's history of Ricky Steamboat, as I'm a huge Dragon mark.

Meehan celebrates his first anniversary. Congrats and here's to another year fighting negativity on the IWC.

Just S'pose imagines if Randy Savage had beaten HTM for the IC title in '88, a nice story indeed.

Truth B Told examines the worth of the various titles in wrestling today.

Don't forget Triple Threat, Hidden Highlights, Crystal Ball, Ask 411, 3 R's and all the rest.


Next week, I begin my two part look at the Survivor Series' history as we come to the 20th version. For now, the spotlight is off.