WWE 400

[Guest alkeiper]

Picked up PWI's special issue celebrating 40 years of the WWE. Most of the contect is good, chronicaling 100 top moments in WWE history, and featuring all the WWE champions. Then however, we come to the WWE 400. Now, keep in mind this is a list of the most accomplished, not the best workers. Problem is, its incredibly obvious no thought whatsoever was put into this. I won't reprint the entire list, but here's some of the notable placements I can't understand.....

 

-Andre the Giant at #15. He shouldn't be any lower than 4. Outside of Hulk Hogan, he's the most famous wrestler in history.

 

-Vader and Yokozuna are listed at 88 and 89, respectively. Vader spent 2 years with the WWE, while Yoko spent 5, and won two world titles. Shouldn't Yokozuna be higher?

 

-Rey Misterio Jr. and The Big SHow are listed at 103 and 104, respectively.

 

-Owen Hart is listed at #94. Rob Van Dam is just above, at $90. Owen spent nearly ten years in the WWE, RVD's been there for two. Why the higher ranking? And Owen should've been top 50.

 

-Hardcore Holly is listed at #195, and Bob Holly is listed at #233.

 

-Bryan Clark is listed at #248, and Adam Bomb is #281.

 

-Smash is #190, and Repo Man is #267.

 

-Haku is listed at #242, along such illuminaries as Shelton Benjamin and Charlie Haas.

 

-Rosie is listed at #356, Ted Arcidi is #357, and Jamal is #358. What makes Ted Arcidi better than Jamal, but not better than Rosie?

 

-Henry Godwinn is listed at #385, just below Nathan Jones. How the hell does Jones rank higher than Godwinn?

 

-Outback Jack is #371, despite having wrestled only one preliminary match his entire WWE career.

 

It gets worse. PWI then proceeds to bless us with top 10 lists. Top 10 women wrestlers. Victoria is listed, as is Jazz, and Ivory, but no Trish Stratus. Top 10 Wrestlemanias. Wrestlemania IX is listed seventh. I've never heard anyone not suggest it wasn't one of the worst, or at least second-worst, Wrestlemanias ever.

 

The articles and old pictures in the issue are great, but the shoddy lists at the end really ruin it for me.

[Guest WrestlingDeacon]

The fact that they list the same guy under different names is completely stupid kayfabe. Steve Lombardi is probably on the list a dozen times then.

 

Do they list what their criteria was for the rankings?

 

My top ten WWF wrestlers of all time, just based on what they meant to the fed would be:

 

1) Hulk Hogan

2) Steve Austin

3) Andre the Giant

4) Bruno Sammartino

5) Bret Hart

6) Randy Savage

7) The Rock

8) The Iron Shiek

9) Gorilla Monsoon

10) Freddie Blassie

 

Where's the Honky Tonk Man listed?

[Guest alkeiper]

The thing is, PWI never kayfabed name changes.

 

They do list criteria, including....

 

-In ring success

 

-No consideration to quality of era. For example, a 70s wrestler not penalized because he wrestled against inferior wrestlers.

 

-Wrestlers who have not had oppurtunity to prove themselves are ranked lower than abilities would seem to warrent.

 

-Wrestlers with a prominant but short role in WWE (i.e. Buddy Rogers, Antonio Inoki) are given some credit for their whole career.

 

-Wrestlers who made a few WWE appearances (i.e. Verne Gagne, Dory Funk Jr.) are not included.

 

-Wrestlers who appeared exclusively in tag teams are not included. This would seem to exclude 3 Minute Warning and the Bruise Brothers/DOA, but what do I know?

 

The Honky Tonk Man is not rated at all. Must be one of those slips of the mind. Or the aforementioned really shoddy thought.

[Guest Galactic Gigolo]

I can understand shit like Smash/Repo Man. But Bob Holly and Hardcore Holly?????

 

Does any mark watch a Hardcore Holly match and think, "Hey, I wonder whatever happened to that Bob Holly fellow?"

[Guest Fook_Hing_Ho]

Does this mean they have three separate listings for Foley?

 

 

And about 12 for Ed Leslie?