Dark Pegasus Video Review: Greatest Superstars of the 90s, Disc One

Posted by J.D. Dunn on 04.21.2009

A profile of the best and brightest of the last decade.

Greatest Superstars of the 90s: Disc One

By J.D. Dunn
Twitter.com/jddunn411
Brightkite.com/jddunn411
Facebook

Your host is Tazz.

Shawn Michaels: Shawn was part of the Rockers. He turned on Marty Janetty and went solo. He didn't have a lot of credibility until Mr. Perfect gave him the moniker "The Heartbreak Kid." Then, he stole the show at WrestleMania X in the ladder match. Finally, at WrestleMania XII, he won the title in the Iron Man match, which Pat Patterson calls one of the best he's ever seen. Eventually, Shawn teamed up with HHH to form D-Generation X. He was injured at the 1998 Royal Rumble, and that's where we leave off (because he came back after the 90s were over). HHH and Vince McMahon call him the greatest ever.

Yokozuna: Yoko (actually a Samoan) was 505 pounds and was brought in as an evil heel by Mr. Fuji. He squashed Bret Hart to win the title but lost it immediately after to Hulk Hogan. Hey, great idea. ::cough:: Yoko would reclaim it later that year. He eventually gained so much weight that he wasn't able to function. He died at the age of 34. Steve Austin calls him one of the best big men and one of the nicest guys.

The Rock: Yokozuna's cousin was, let's say vastly different, and even more successful. At first, people saw him as a suck-up who was foisted on the public. The fans hated him so the WWF turned him heel. Rock won the title just two years into his career. People put over his mic skills.

Women of the 90s: Apparently, no one cares about chicks because they lump them all together. Sunny, Sable, Chyna, Terri and Alundra Blayze. Yadda, yadda, yadda.

Diesel/Kevin Nash: Nash had some… um, gimmick problems in WCW. He was Oz and then Vinnie Vegas. Shawn saw him and cracked up, though, so he begged Vince to sign him. Diesel debuted soon after as Shawn's bodyguard. Jim Ross doesn't seem to like Nash much as he gives most of the credit for his success to Shawn Michaels. Kevin and his buddy Scott Hall jumped to WCW and became even bigger stars. Nash beat Goldberg to become champion, thus cementing himself as a superstar.

Owen Hart: Owen was in the shadow of his brother for years but made a quantum leap when he challenged Bret to a match. Owen repeated many of the feats that his older brother did, but he never won the WWF Title. Sadly, Owen died in a freak accident in 1999. Jim Ross says he is the only person who *no one* ever said a bad word about.

Ric Flair: Interestingly, Ric was also featured on the "Greatest Stars of the 80s," which should tell you something about the guy's impact on the sport. Flair was a star in the NWA, but after that collapsed, Flair jumped to the WWF. Everyone wanted to see Hogan vs. Flair, but it wasn't a showcase match for reasons that are still somewhat mystifying. Flair did win the 1992 Royal Rumble (aka, the greatest ever). Flair jumped back to WCW and re-established himself as one of the greatest ever.

Mick Foley: Cactus Jack was big on the indie circuit and pretty big in WCW. He jumped to the WWF, though, and became Mankind. For better or worse, he became synonymous with Hell in the Cell when he was thrown off by the Undertaker. That led to more comedy – Mr. Socko, Yurple, and the like. Eventually, he paired up with the Rock and had the highest rated segment on Raw EVER!

Not So Great Stars of the 90s: Oy. We see Bastion Booger, the Yeti, T.L. Hopper, Man Mountain Rock, the Goon, the Berzerker, Damien Demento, the Repo Man, the Oddities and Duke Droese. Oh, and THE SHOCKMASTER ha ha ha ha ha!

Hulk Hogan: Vince thought Hulkamania was winding down, so he let him go. Hogan tried acting, so Eric Bischoff showed up and convinced him to come back to wrestling for WCW. Turns out Hulkamania really was over, but rather than give up on him like Vince, Eric Bischoff decided to turn Hogan heel. To say it paid off would be an understatement. Hogan said he needed to reinvent himself. Thankfully, he doesn't threaten to kill his wife.

Triple H: HHH started out ripping off William Regal -- or Charles Barkley's deodorant commercials – with his blueblood gimmick. Eventually, Hunter paired up with Shawn Michaels and formed DX. DX got over, and Hunter became immensely popular. He could have settled for that, but he wanted to be up there with Austin. That led to a heel turn and the World Title in 1999.

Bret Hart: Bret started the decade as part of a tag team but eventually he went solo and became a star. Eventually, Shawn Michaels came calling and defeated him for the title. Bret took time off and came back to battle Steve Austin. The American fans turned on Bret, but he became even more popular with Canadians. Bret says that was one of the happiest times in his life. WCW offered him big money to jump, but he was ultimately wasted.

Vince McMahon, Eric Bischoff and Paul Heyman: Vince liked to pretend he was just an announcer until WCW started winning the ratings war. That led to the creation of "Mr. McMahon." On the other hand, Eric Bischoff beat him to that nearly a year earlier. Paul Heyman was always portrayed as a crazy owner – because he was.

Lex Luger: Luger was a big name in WCW, being a multiple-time U.S. champion and WCW champion. He jumped to the World Bodybuilding Federation, an organization that went under almost as soon as it started. With nothing else to do, he went back to wrestling. Initially a heel, Luger made a surprise babyface turn by bodyslamming Yokozuna. That led to the Lex Express as he campaigned to be Hogan's replacement. When that failed, Luger became the first big free-agent signing in the Monday Night Wars.

Sting: Sting had everything – the look, the athleticism, the psychology, the energy. He became a huge star in WCW, and once the nWo came along, he retreated to the rafters to watch the proceedings rather than fighting for WCW. Of course, that led to the infamous showdown with Hollywood Hulk Hogan at Starrcade 97.

Razor Ramon/Scott Hall: No mention of the AWA or the Diamond Stud. He just showed up in the WWF as a Scarface ripoff. He was a heel at first, but eventually people thought he was so bad he was cool (years before Austin or Diesel). Razor would win the IC Title, setting up the famous ladder match at WrestleMania X. Once he peaked in the WWF, he jumped to WCW as part of the nWo. Everyone praises him as a worker and talker.

The Undertaker: You know how people complain about TNA relying on WWE rejects. The Undertaker is why the WWE is the WWE, why WCW is out of business, and why TNA is still a distant second banana. While other promotions take their cues from the WWE, the WWE took the talent, polished it, and turned it into something marketable. Take low midcarder Mean Mark Callous. Notice how they didn't bring him in as Mean Mark and have him defeat Hogan for the title. They revamped him and made him their own. It wasn't always successful – Bastion Booger, the Berzerker – but it was successful enough times to make a ton of money – Undertaker, Stone Cold Steve Austin, Mankind. Everyone agrees the aura of the Undertaker was the selling point, but he was also able to move well for a big man.

Steve Austin: Steve was a pretty big star in WCW for a while, but he stalled out due to injuries and politics. WCW didn't know how to use him, so they let him go. Steve jumped to the WWF where they revamped him. See above, re: Undertaker and multiply times a thousand. Austin became a superstar and never looked back.

Extras:

A bunch of video vignettes of various superstars. The highlight is Steve Austin talking about the Shockmaster. Poor Shockmaster.

The 411: Hard to argue with any of the inclusions, although they excluded some people who probably deserved mentions. Goldust and Sid Vicious spring immediately to mind, as does the British Bulldog. Even guys like Earthquake and the Big Bossman probably warranted an inclusion. Most of these pieces were recycled interviews and video clips with Tazz doing voiceover anyway. Bring on the matches.

Final Score:  8.0   [ Very Good ]