Posted By: Bill (Guest) on November 05, 2009 at 09:53 PM
Okay, I'm confused. What exactly makes Cornette so special again? I understand he was a good manager back in the day (the 80's). He can cut a good promo. So can a lot of others. He wasn't that bad in TNA. But what makes him so special?
Russo always takes the heat for stupid things he's done. Yes, there's been stupid things, but even McMahon doesn't get ripped for his stupid stuff like Russo does. Yes, he called the belts props, but McMahon doesn't get ripped half as bad for doing what he's done to wrestling.
Look, I'm not saying Russo is all that great, but he deserves credit for his part in turning WWF around and helping them overcome WCW. Yes, he played a part, and just because McMahon owns all the video footage and histories that he does, that doesn't mean history can be changed. Facts are facts.
Bishoff played his part. Heyman played his. People don't try to deny that as much. But, Russo is only credited for all the crap when he was in a key role in WWF when the tide turned.
Maybe McMahon didn't need him to do it, but he was still there in a key role. It's the same as the argument that if it hadn't been Hogan in the 80's it would have been somebopdy else. Thing is, it was Hogan. And it was Russo.
Russo was there when WWF regained control. He was the man behind an interesting "Powers that be" angle that wasn't given a chance in WCW before he was dropped. He did try to give young talent a shot in WCW, though a lot of top up and comers had left by the time he tried. He was there when the good ship WCW sank. And he's in TNA making some interesting stuff happen. And, yes, he's done a lot of crap.
So, Cornette can run his mouth all he wants, and he's very good at that. He was a good "authority figure" in TNA, and I recall him being behind getting the NWA belt on WWF TV in the 90's to let people know the belt still existed. Not saying there's aren't positives.
If Jim really wants to impress, though, let's see him pull a Heyman and really get ROH on the radar screen where people can see it. Don't bitch about what's wrong with Russo and TNA. Help those who don't know (and there's a lot of us) see what's right with ROH and why we should give a damn.
I don't know why I bothered to write this and I doubt anybody will care. I'm not a huge Russo fan, but the bashing is getting old.
That's just my opinion, for whatever that's worth.
Posted By: Guy Incognito (Guest) on November 05, 2009 at 10:24 PM
In response to Guy Incognito...
I highly suggest you and everyone here search youtube for the Russo/Ferrara sitdown interview. Type in WWF Insiders and WCW Insiders (might have to play around with the lettering i.e. use "vv" instead of "w"). It's a very good interview and it sheds some light on their creative process and what it took for Vince Russo to turn WWF around and how he initially bumped the ratings for WCW. We tend to only remember the bad when it comes to Vince Russo, but he's done a lot of good and with some stable backing behind him, he can do a lot of good.
I still say the proof is in the pudding. TNA for the past 3-4 months has been the best its been in the past 3 years and the difference is no more Dutch Mantell and no more Jarrett. It's funny how everyone blamed Russo for everything that was wrong these past few years not realizing that he didn't have final say in creative. Now that he has more control, the product is geared towards putting over younger talent and having roles for those that didn't. Just look at the landscape of TNA. For better or worse virtually everyone has something to do now...(and its mostly for the better)
-Styles, Joe and Daniels...main eventing
-Desmond Wolfe...strong push out the gate with Kurt Angle
-Team 3D, Rhino, Hernandez and Matt Morgan...compelling new twist on young guys vs veterans storyline
-Eric Young and associates...World Elite
-Mick Foley...putting over/passing the torch to Abyss
-Amazing Red...underdog X-Division champion embroiled in a feud with Homicide
-MCMG's...top contenders for the tag team titles along with Beer Money
-Awesome Kong...running wild on the top tier Knockouts
-Beautiful People...still being bitches we love to hate
-Lashley gets a good midcard feud while Steiner gets to play up his character as the Big Bad Booty Daddy, classic good guy vs bad guy and Lashley isn't forced into the main event
-Even Black Machismo has this new Legends Challenge where we'll hopefully get to see some older wrestlers jobbing out (although next week doesn't get that off to a good start).
Things are clicking right now and while I'm a huge Jim Cornette fan, he needs to give the devil his due and admit that Russo/Ferrera seem to have their heads on strait. The critics (and AJ Styles) just need to give Russo/Ferrera a chance.
Posted By: bighustle (Guest) on November 06, 2009 at 01:04 AM
"Look, I'm not saying Russo is all that great, but he deserves credit for his part in turning WWF around and helping them overcome WCW."
I would fully endorse that. Russo WAS responsible for a lot of business-killing crap after his initial run in WWE, and the IWC tend to focus strictly on that. But they shouldn't forget that Russo basically invented the Attitude era, which we all look back on fondly.
Well, at least those of us who were there. If all you have to base the Attitude era on is current DVDs featuring matches from that time, you would probably think it was the crappiest period in wrestling history. It wasn't about the wrestling though, it was about exciting television. It was about not knowing what would happen from week to week, and feeling COMPELLED to tune in just to find out. Nowadays, who in the hell feels that way about Raw or even Smackdown? To quote Eddie Guerrero from the Monday Night War DVD, "you don't know what month it is watching our show. It's the same shit every week."
I got off on a tangent there, but I do agree that Russo deserves a bit more respect than he gets. The problem is, everyone ripping him is usually right as well, because of all the crap he's pulled (I'm not going to list it, we all know what I'm talking about). It's a double-edged sword.
Posted By: The REAL MP (Guest) on November 06, 2009 at 10:34 AM
