Old School Royal Rumble Roundtable

[King Kamala 0]

I've been hinting towards this for a while so here it is. A little bit disjointed but some of the more respected denizens of The General Wrestling and 24/7 folders (and Dandy) got together twice last week in an AIM chatroom to discuss Royal Rumbles of yesteryear. On the eve of The Royal Rumble, let's take a look back. Feel free to add your own discussion...or call one of us out.

 

 

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First, let's introduce the panelists;

 

King Kamala Classic: Moderator, all around swell guy.

 

Dr. Venkman PhD: Dr. Wrestling, savior of the WWE folder

 

Bob Barron: Former ombudsmen, part-time celebrity stalker

 

Dandy: Former Dr. Wrestling

 

MilleniumMan831: Some guy.

 

 

 

Dandy: It might be good for us to discuss the format of the rumble, and what works best in our eyes.

 

Bob Barron: feel the Rumble has to be the main event, it just feels off if it's not. 2 minute intervals are fine, though 90 seconds is fine. The match should be fast-paced, with eliminations frequent, and the ring should never fill up to much. If it does, it should only be for a big superstar to clear out the ring. The Rumble should be staggered so that big name stars are always in it to maintain interest. And there should also be a few comedy spots to break up the action

 

MillenniumMan831: Definitely agree w/ the Rumble being the main event unless the championship match is built so well it MAY be able to close the show. Can't really think of an example of this off the top of my head. As for the format, I dig 90 seconds. 2 minutes can drag for certain spots. I enjoy it when the ring fills up and comes down to 1-2 guys in the ring in the middle of the match (sort of like an intermission 89, 92, 04 are examples of this).

 

MillenniumMan831:And I do mark out for the old timers each year (Animal, Tatanka, Perfect, Snuka, Piper, etc.)

 

Dandy:I agree that Rumble match should be the main event. The PPV is called "Royal Rumble" for a reason, and it is the draw of the event. The entrances definitely need to have the two minute intervals to give enough time to tell the story and not clog up the ring with rapid-fire eliminations for the entire match. The "iron man" spot has been played out a lot lately, as we have had a bunch of people win from early spots. I think the Diesel spots should be reserved for someone they want to give a new push to. I would like to see every participant announced before the match unless they have a big surprise in store.

 

Dandy: Also, I miss the old school promos where people drew their numbers throughout the show and shenanigans ensued.

 

Dr.Venkman PhD: Those aren't really "old school", they started doing them in 2003. I do miss the cavalcade of promos before the match though. That was more of an "arena intermission" though.

 

King Kamala Classic: I thought they happened at the first two PPV Rumbles

 

Bob Barron: I do remember Bastion Booger drawing his number and then revealing it, pissing Jack Tunney off

 

Dandy: No, think back to Perfect, DiBiase, and the early 90s. That is what I am talking about.

 

King Kamala Clasic: DiBiase buying #30 off Akeem

 

Dr. Venkman PhD: Well, I see what you mean... I guess I'm thinking of the ACTUAL skits where so and so walks into an office and pulls from a drum. Prior to that they just had Hulk Hogan tell his good friends at Coliseum Video that he drew a good number. Anyway, I'm fine with 90 second intervals. 2 minutes is good too, but the last time they did legit 2 minute intervals, the match went on forever (2002). Part of that was the fact one of the intervals was actually over 3 minutes.That crazy HHH and his entrances.

 

MillenniumMan831 Starting to remind me why I've only seen the 2002 Rumble once

 

Dr. Venkman PhD: HBK Vs Undertaker was pretty good in 1998 and I don't think the Rumble should have followed a burning casket. Mark Henry vs. Kurt Angle was awful in 2006 and sadly HAD to be last due to Taker's special effects.The Diesel moment was cool in 1994 and worked for Austin in 1997 (and his crazy reaction to Bret's music was nice, though maybe a bit out of the no fear bad ass persona). It was also a big stepping stone for Rikishi in 2000. But it can't be overdone.Lastly, in terms of format, I have to give props to the 1996 Rumble. That was the year all 30 guys got music, and that's been pretty awesome ever since.

 

King Kamala Classic: Anything less than ninety seconds is too rushed (though I think the only examples of that are '95 and the knockoff WCW did on Thunder From Down Under in '00). Two minute intervals are ideal IMHO. I'm kind of a traditionalist. As for it being the main event, I'm also sort of a traditionalist with thinking it should be the main event all the time BUT… there are are rare examples when the Rumble has a weak roster and the World title program has been built up well where I think The World Title match should get top billing. '98 is a perfect example of that. I enjoy The Diesel spot so long as it isn't overdone and I don't think it has been. I only really remember 3 or 4 instances of it happening.

 

Dr. Venkman PhD Khali in 2007, maybe. But a bit different. They just stock piled guys until he came in.

 

King Kamala Classic: As for the structure of a Rumble, I like it kind of in between. I don't like just one or two guys in the ring at a time through out a match but I don't like a ton of guys in the ring ideally.

 

Bob Barron: I watched 1998 today, and it really suffers from just being too many guys the whole match. Same with 2006

 

King Kamala Classic: I may be in the minority but I think the "name" guys should be placed through out the match. I mean there should be more towards the end but there should be one or two at the beginning. One or two in the middle and then the rest at the end.

 

Bob Barron: Having 4-6 guys in the ring is best, then the action just gets too much and it's guys lying on the ropes

 

King Kamala Classic: yeah I think that's about the right amount as well

 

MillenniumMan831: I can take more. But no more than 10

 

King Kamala Classic: I think '92 is about as perfectly paced of a Rumble as you'll find but we'll discuss that later...

 

Bob Barron: That's what I like about 04- the only time the ring fills up is toward the end, so Goldberg can kill people. Or in 1992- it only fills up at the end to have this all star lineup and to create doubt over who will win

 

 

 

 

 

1988

 

King Kamala Classic: OK… I've only seen '88 once but it was fairly recently. I think, like a lot of "first" events (WrestleMania I, SummerSlam '88, etc.), you have to excuse some of the suckiness as they're trying to find the rhythm, what they're trying to do. Anyways, I think wrestling-wise, the undercard for '88 is certainly solid. But the non-wrestling segments kind of kill the show

 

Bob Barron: Yea, I fast forwarded through the Dino Bravo stuff when I watched it on 24-7

 

MillenniumMan831: The Bravo stuff isn't too bad, it's just too long

 

King Kamala Classic: and The Rumble is interesting as it’s the first and they're obviously trying to find the rhythm and it’s not every man for itself. But it's not particularly good by the standards of future Rumbles. I'd probably rank it in the Bottom 5 or so.

 

Dr. Venkman PhD: It was a good first attempt but not something that holds up. It gets the "first attempt" pass.

 

Bob Barron: Given that it was the first time they did it on TV, I think they did a great job

 

King Kamala C lassic: I mean I like every Rumble to some extent (even '95 and '99)...it was a solid first televised effort. Just a bit underwhelming compared to later efforts.

 

MillenniumMan831: I'd be marking out if I saw it live on USA

 

Bob Barron: Ricky Steamboat forgetting to lift his arm up makes me laugh

 

Dr. Venkman PhD: For the card, it's worth noting that the Islanders/Young Stallions match is... something.I can't say I've ever seen a 2/3 falls match have an interview segment between falls.

 

Dandy: They early Rumbles are weird in retrospect due to the company not putting on larger than life events, or at least trying to do so. When you watch the first Mania, it doesn't hold up to what the event would become. Same for the Rumble in my opinion. They basically just had someone win, then Hogan made it his match for a couple of years, and then 1992 changed the game. The stipulation and star power make it totally different now than it was when it started.

 

Bob Barron: It's kind of weird how in 1988 and in 1989 it was just for bragging rights and now it's all about THE ROAD TO WRESTLEMANIA

 

 

 

 

1989

 

MillenniumMan831: I've always had a hardon for this particular Rumble match due to the randomness. On the CV released, there were 8 guys on the cover, Studd was not among them. Ax, Smash, Andre, & perfect made an interesting first 4, Snake came in and cleaned house w/ Damian, Savage followed, Rockers/Busters had some nice spots together and seperate, Hogan/Savage almost split, followed by HOGAN ELIMINATED HOGAN ELIMINATED . . . I hated Hogan growing up. But yeah, everything in the match made sense, it was well paced, and there was surprise and intrigue attached to it

 

Dr. Venkman PhD: Was Race/Haku cut from the CV?

 

MillenniumMan831: Yeah, it was. As was most of Martin/Robin.

 

King Kamala Classic: I watched it last year in the buildup to the show and it was certainly better than I remembered it being. Haku/Harley is a good match. Even at this stage- Harley could still bring it in the ring and Heenan’s antics are fun in that one. The Rumble is definitely an improvement over the previous year’s effort.

 

Dandy: I will say that they started piecing it together for the entire match to tell a story with this one, but it still fell short of what it would eventually become.

 

MillenniumMan831 It was funny how Studd would shoo away the faces so he could whomp Akeem's ass all by himself

 

 

 

 

1990

 

Dr. Venkman PhD: Ok, in my memory, I somehow remembered 1990 as being "so so".It's an AMAZING Rumble. They really paced out the stars well. In the first 10, you have DiBiase (which provides some great commentary from Gorilla), Savage, Piper. DiBIase, who has an issue with Roberts.

 

Dandy: DiBiase gave birth to the iron man story here.

 

Dr. Venkman PhD Yes! That too.

 

King Kamala Classic This is my 2nd favorite Rumble personally, it's been kind of overshadowed by '92 and '04 in ensuing years and due to the fact that there's really nothing on the line other than bragging rights

 

Dr. Venkman PhD: Dusty comes in at #10 and he has his issue with Savage. It's really quite an exciting opening 10 entrants, much better than say, 10 jobbers.

 

Dandy: I liked how DiBiase went from 30 the year before to being first.

 

Bob Barron: I like how Dibiase always had low numbers after that- karmic justice

 

Dr. Venkman PhD: In the later portions, you get the Warrior/Hogan CRISS CROSS, and all that build-up. It sucks that Hogan - as world champion - won the thing, but what can you do.

 

Dandy: It was the tried and true formula of Hogan must win everything,

 

Bob Barron: Warrior should've won dumping out Hogan

 

Dr. Venkman PhD My REAL favourite part of the 1990 Rumble, though? Shawn and Marty's pre-match promo. They lay it out that everyone - including Hogan and Warrior - better beware. Marty lasted 1:37 and was the first guy tossed. Shawn lasted TWELVE SECONDS.

 

King Kamala Classic: even remember what was on the undercard. A Bushwhacker-Rougeaus match probably? Ronnie Garvin-Greg Valentine I think in one of the matches that's probably pretty good now but bored the hell out a ten year old King Kamala Classic.

 

Dr. Venkman PhD: I hated Valentine / Garvin as a kid, and I still do to a point (the angle around it is retarded). how can you not like THE HAMMER JAMMER!

 

MillenniumMan831: I was shocked Garvin went over here

 

Dr. Venkman PhD But if you get around blatant no-sellings of figure fours because a SHIN PAD is being worn, it's actually really good. Lots of stiff chops and the like.

 

 

 

 

1991

 

Dandy: I enjoyed Rockers/Express, but I was a huge fan of both teams. Slaughter and Warrior was needed for the big AM angle, but I would have really liked to have seen a Warrior/Hogan rematch at the time, so I didn't like Slaughter winning. The Rumble was very crowded at the beginning. Undertaker started cleaning house, and it loosened up a bit in there. However, it got crowded again, and then Hogan comes in. You had to know Hogan was going to win this, as that was all he did back then.

 

King Kamala Classic: I think that was a big problem with that match. Just kind of a blah beginning but it does get much better towards the end. I kind of like '91. Overshadowed by '90 and '92 but solid in its own right. Certainly a good match if you're a mark for THE MODEL!

 

Dr. Venkman PhD The show makes me wonder if they had some big plans for Shane Douglas. Monsoon puts him over big time. And he lasted 26:23. Impressive for a rookie kid.

 

Bob Barron: I don't have a problem with Hogan winning 91, since he gets revenge on Quake and it sets up WM

 

Dandy: Earthquake was supposed to be the big obstacle that seemed impossible at the end that Hogan would overcome.

 

Dr. Venkman PhD 1991, while completely unofficial, is the first year the "Winner goes on to Mania to face the champion" stip is there. Of course it didn't formally exist until 1993, where Mean Gene called it the most important stipulation ever (how that was more prestigious then outright WINNING the belt, I do not know).

 

Dandy: If the match told a better story throughout, it would be better. It seemed like they didn't know what they wanted to do except for Undertaker looking impressive and Hogan overcoming the odds yet again. If they wanted to do only that, Taker should have done even more damage than he did, and have him lose by someone holding the top rope down from outside, setting up a feud and clearing the way for Hogan to win.

 

 

 

 

1992

 

Bob Barron: The 1992 Rumble was the gold standard until 2004. The Flair story is great, you have Dibiase being #1 again, everyone going after Flair, Piper coming in and beating the dog piss out of him, Roberts turning on everyone, Heenan praising Piper and then turning him on a second later, Savage's boneheaded move, and once #30 comes in, you have no idea who is going to win.My only complaint is that I think they focus on Flair a little too much, making it obvious he's either winning or making it to the final 2. And the ring gets a bit too crowded at times, as there are a few minutes where nothing happens. And Repo Man eliminates two people? But really, Barbarian doesn't like Flair is all you need to know about this one. Also, Bossman's elimination is hilarious...poor guy

 

Dr. Venkman PhD: I will say when I was 10, I had no idea Flair was winning. I bought into the fact that being #3 meant he was out.

 

MillenniumMan831: Heenan spazzing at even the smallest hints of a threat is great too . . . A 300 POUND LITHUANIAN!

 

Bob Barron One thing I never got: Why would the Mountie, LOD, Natural Disasters, etc. all agree to be in undercard matches knowing they couldn't be in the Royal Rumble. Wouldn't you want the world title? I also like the nods to history with Valentine and Von Erich both going after Flair. And poor Nikolai Volkoff. Flair's promo at the end (save for put that cigarette out) is tremendous

 

MillenniumMan831: Hulk WHO

 

Dr. Venkman PhD: Though Bob makes a point about the undercard guys, it is nice from a logic standpoint that 3 of the 4 matches involve tag guys who are focusing on tag team glory, not singles titles.

 

Dandy: I had no idea who was going to win, and I fully expected Hogan to win as that was the order of business at the time. It seemed obvious that Flair would hit the wall due to how long he was in there, and that he would be dead weight at the end.

 

Bob Barron: I like how Taker and Hogan got guaranteed spots in the 20s, yet Taker draws #20

 

MillenniumMan831: Tunney told the undercard guys to fuck off. Only 30 spots

 

Dr. Venkman PhD: Of course Beverlys/Buchwackers sucks.

 

MillenniumMan831: Damn you Stephen Gray, the Bushwhackers/Beverlies match was charming

 

Dandy: So, I think it came across as exciting and new, and as soon as Hogan is eliminated, you were like, "WHAT? Now who wins?"

 

Dr. Venkman PhD: I was pretty sure Piper or Sid was going to win. My cousin and I knew Hogan and Flair wouldn't.

 

Bob Barron: Gorilla and Bobby covering for Savage is funny too. Apparently, anyone can jump over the rope!

 

Dr. Venkman PhD: Too bad Monsoon and Heenan couldn't cover for Mil Mascaras in 1997.

 

King Kamala Classic: I think my old adage of bad shows being easier to talk about than good ones rings true here. '92 is fucking awesome. Not much else to add that hasn't been said. Sure, the undercard sort of sucks (save for Piper's IC title win and the opener) but even that's saved by Gorilla and The Brain's awesome commentary.

 

Dandy: Heenan's commentary definitely puts it over the top, and all of us who knew a lot about the NWA started thinking of the possibilities of Hogan/Flair at WM.

 

Bob Barron: Piper-Jake-Flair is such good stuff. I like when Jake runs in and Gorilla with utter disdain in his voice goes: Jake...the Snake....Roberts.

 

 

 

 

1993

 

Dr. Venkman PhD I've always said I don't like 1993. I bought a VHS copy of it and watched it, but always felt bored with it.But I know other people have been defending 1993 whenever I put it in the same breath as 1995. So I decided to watch it this year with a blank slate and try to get a new perspective on it. If the match was entrants 1-15 and only 30 minutes, it would have been AWESOME. It's fast paced, action packed, you have Martel/Tito and Virgil/DiBiase going at it. Flair is good, Backlund is good, Lawler attacks Flair right from the bat and that's pretty funny. Then Giant Gonzales does his thing and it's possibly the most lackluster last half in Rumble history.

 

Bob Barron: Yea, that's my problem with it. All the star power is in the first half. Once Giant Gonzalez runs in, it's down to Savage and Yoko, and it's just boring

 

Dr. Venkman PhD: Which of those faces was going to win? Carlos Colon? Perfect needed to last longer. As a I kid I KNEW Yokozuna was going to win, didn't want him to win, and wasn't left with any shreds of hope for him not to win.

 

King Kamala Classic: I thought Savage had a shot at winning as a naive mark.

 

Bob Barron: Also, Savage can jump over the top rope and it's cool, but another guy dumps Taker out and it counts?

 

Dr. Venkman PhD I was pretty into Savage's shot at the end, but then he got retarded.

 

MillenniumMan831: I marked for Repo's late entrance as I hoped against hope everyone would forget about him and he'd squeeze in the final 3 or 4.

 

Dr. Venkman PhD: Was I supposed to think Tatanka was going to win? Maybe I was supposed to be rooting for Backlund.

 

MillenniumMan831: MR Backlund young man!

 

Dr. Venkman PhD And why is Tenryu in this?! That's cool though.

 

King Kamala Classic: Honestly, I might be the only one but one of my three or four favorite Rumble moments is the moment towards the end of the match after Backlund eliminates Rick Martel and just looks around in complete shock and realizes he's in the Final Three. The moment is kind of soured by Yoko throwing him out ten seconds later but I've always loved it.

 

Bob Barron: Looking at the list of entrants: Carlos Colon? Terry Taylor? Koko B. Ware? Berzerker?

 

Dr. Venkman PhD: On the undercard, I find Jannetty/HBK to be a real let down. When I watched the show with my cousin and uncle, my uncle got a hearty chuckle at the ending. Steel posts and what not? Those don't hurt you. A ladies shoe? DOWN FOR THE COUNT. Worked for WCW in 96.

 

Bob Barron: I always thought it was funny that Jannetty never really could get revenge against HBK. Except for that one RAW, HBK always got the better of him

 

King Kamala Classic the most one sided series this side of Hogan-Savage

 

Bob Barron: At least Savage got a rap song out of it

 

1994

 

Dr. Venkman: 94: The debut of 90 second intervals works fine here. The Diesel moment is born. I like this Rumble, it's just too bad it had that goofy deal with Taker.

 

Bob Barron: I've seen that Rumble a million times. Quebecers-Harts is awesome, and Owen's heel turn (aside from his flub) is just great The Taker-Yoko stuff is awful, but it's funny bad I feel The Rumble itself is solid. The Diesel stuff at the beginning is how you put someone over (love Dibiase when Virgil comes out), and I like Savage trying to kill Crush You also have that cool moment when Marty comes out and goes right for HBK and Fatu in the final 4! It gets bogged down with having too many people in there, but overall, I think it's a fun show and Rumble

 

King Kamala Classic: The amount of men it takes to put away 'Taker is of Nashian proportions But I like this show as well for many reasons. Partially cause it's around the time I started watching but having watched it for the first time in years a couple of months ago, it holds up relatively well. The Taker-Yoko stuff is crap but as Bob Barron says it's WrestleCrapian crap not boring IRS/Taker crap. Everything else ranged from servicable to very good. The Rumble itself is a bit too clogged but has its share of moments. I'd say it's the Best New Generation era Rumble ('94-'97)

 

MillenniumMan831 I was saddened that Backlund's 93 performance wasn't even glossed over when he made his entrance

 

Dandy: I have always liked the Diesel Spot, and I feel it should be thrown in every few years to push someone up the card a bit. Perhaps the pushed person could eliminate a huge star with ease in the middle of it or something.

 

King Kamala Classic Was this the first Rumble to have a random legend show up?

 

Bob Barron: 1993 had Carlos Colon

 

MillenniumMan831: 92 had Volkoff (he count?)

 

King Kamala Classic: Though The Hammer might not have qualified as a legend yet in '94. He was merely washed up at that stage This is The Rumble that had Tenyru in it right?

 

MillenniumMan831: 2 years in a row for Tenyru?

 

King Kamala Classic I don't know why that came to mind. Probably cause I was just reading about Tenyru in Jericho's book.

 

Bob Barron: Tenyru and Kabuki. They beat up Luger. But he makes it in anyway, since he's an American

 

Dandy: That gives me an idea. They should get a top wrestler from a foreign promotion enter the Rumble match, then have him enter every year. He could become "Mr. Royal Rumble" like the guy that was "Mr. Ninja Warrior." Lots of directions they could go in with that. Well, it's my idea, not Vince's. It would never fly in WWE unless it was booked as a comedy segment each year like Pete Rose vs. Kane

 

1995

 

King Kamala Classic: Surprisingly good undercard. Ramon/Jarrett is another one of their solid but kind of forgettable *** affairs. I've always been a fan of random plucky tag teams taking the titles so I enjoy Bob Holly and 123 Kid Vs The New Money Inc (was that their official name or was it just me calling that team that?)

 

MillenniumMan831: just you

 

King Kamala Classic: Maybe it's because I was still a mark at the time but I kind of like the beginning of the LT/Bam Bam angle and I've never gotten why some people call their match one of the worst WrestleMania main events of all time. It's the Flair/Steamboat of celebrity matches. But that's for the WrestleMania roundtable I guess Anyways, the main event is good but I personally would have shaved off 5-10 minutes and had a clearer finish. Did Bret not want to do a clean job? I don't agree with Nash very often but one of the fatal blows to his World title reign was having a Double DQ finish in his first major title defense.

 

Bob Barron: Bret v. Diesel is just awesome, Bret just knew how to work with Big Daddy Cool

 

Dandy: Bret knew how to work with almost anyone at this point.

 

King Kamala Classic: The only thing I don't like on the undercard is IRS/Taker which as I said is just a boring as dirt, typical mid '90s Taker match

 

Bob Barron: Why would IRS or Taker give up a Wrestlemania title shot for that. It never made sense to me

 

King Kamala Classic: I think I said in the first part of this roundtable but I at least kind of like every Rumble. '95 is the one I come closest to disliking. Worst Rumble roster ever (except possibly the first) and it's poorly booked to boot. Half of the guys who had a semi-legitimate shot at taking it had been long gone by the end.

 

Bob Barron: I finally watched the whole Rumble recently (stopping after Bulldog clotheslines HBK), and it's just so bad

 

King Kamala Classic: Anyways, more random legend appearances but instead of the special cameo feel they were probably aiming for, it just felt like they were desparately trying to fill out the roster.

 

Bob Barron:I didn't get why they didn't just put Taker and IRS in the Rumble or Bam Bam

 

MillenniumMan831 Dick Murdoch's airplane spin may have been the highspot of the match You had to know it would suck going in when Mabel & Bundy were heavily promoted as the favorites to win

 

King Kamala Classic: I can't remember who said it in the thread but this Rumble was a perfectly good (err...bad) waste of Rick Martel.

 

MillenniumMan831: I bet Martel was thrilled he'd only have to work 2 minutes on a one-shot

 

King Kamala Classic: The only highlights are the finish and Mo getting chucked out in six or seven seconds. I said it in the thread but Mo might have been the first babyface I disliked and I'm not sure why.

 

MillenniumMan831: Cause everyone wanted to see Mabel crush people, not Mo rasslin

 

King Kamala Classic: I think that's what it was. I liked Mabel and Oscar but not Mo.

 

1996

 

MillenniumMan831: Ok, so I don't remember the undercard too well other than marking out for Goldust's IC Title win over Razor (nevermind that the Kid barely touched Razor w/ that kick). Oh yeah, JJ busting the guitar over Ahmed Johnson was awesome too. Anywhoo, I kind of liked this Rumble. Bear in mind, I HATED Shawn Michaels at this time. A stripping boy toy did nothing for me as a 13 year old. The intrigue of Jake/Vader entering really gave it some ummmpphhh it needed. Lawler's cheapass hiding under the ring rocked as did Vader's meltdown after he was eliminated However, as a Hakushi mark, I was bummed about his very quick exit. Austin had a decent showing as I don't remember the last segment other than Diesel eating the superkick giving Shawn the win

 

Bob Barron: Doesn't the Rumble end really fast?

 

MillenniumMan831 : Similar to 94 maybe where the ring was full then everyone jumps over the top at a rapid rate

 

King Kamala Classic I remember the ending being kind of abrupt. For some reason beyond me, the randomness of this group of Rumble entrants works. Doesn't hurt that they all have entrance music!

 

MillenniumMan831: I remember one of the Apter mags busting HHH's nuts for doing virtually nothing of consequence during his 45 minutes in the Rumble. They compared it to Flair who went about an hour and was still able to dump guys over and deliver some offence

 

King Kamala Classic: Ah the days when Triple H jobbed to Duke "The Dumpster" Droese

 

MillenniumMan831: Would have been nice to have Duke enter and immediately throw HHH after all that time. Just to stick it to Hunter deeper and show the kids that it doesn't pay to cheat

 

Dandy: Back to this Rumble, I did like Shawn winning back-to-back at the time.

 

1997

 

Bob Barron: The undercard on this show is awful. I love Goldust but him and HHH have no chemistry at all. Ahmed Johnson is always good for a laugh, and that lucha match shows that Vince did not understand why the cruiserweights worked on Nitro. Seriously, that lucha match is one of the most random matches ever

 

King Kamala Classic: Vince seemed like he just picked six random lucha guys for his (poor) attempt at starting something resembling a cruiserweight division.

 

Bob Barron: The Rumble match itself is one that I really like. It has its flaws (the countdown clock not working, the Mexican guys, the fact that the WWF had about 12 wrestlers employeed at this point) but Austin is just so cool in this Rumble. Austin doing pushups, or mocking Jesse Jammes after he eliminates him is hilarious.

 

Austin's reaction to Bret Hart coming out is one of my favourite Rumble moments.

 

Dr. Venkman PhD: The beginning of Austin hitting the big time, but not that great a Rumble. The talent pool was far too shallow at this point too as, not counting Bret and Owen's participation in 1994, this is the first year that practically the entire undercard was thrown into the Rumble. Austin does have a good run, though.Dandy: Austin really started to gain steam here, I believe.

 

Bob Barron: and I think Jerry Lawler is the best comedic moment ever

 

MillenniumMan831: Agree on the Lawler spot. Felt like it was an Austin/Bret Rumble

 

Bob Barron: I like Austin's disdain for the jobbers too, he's like: Wait...I have to fight this guy? Bret's spaz out is cool. I don't remember much about HBK v. Sid. I think the papered crowd hurt the show, since they were only there for HBK, and nothing else.

 

Dandy: The Boyhood Dream was a bit over the top, but it did make a nice moment to show in highlights. It became iconic in WWE land.

 

King Kamala Classic: I haven't seen this in years but I don't remember liking this show very much at all. The Rumble is basically a two man show (granted the two men put on a hell of a show that carries the match) and the show just feels flat thanks to the dead crowd.

 

MillenniumMan831: I have trouble staying awake when the Cubans start to fill the ring during the Rumble

 

Bob Barron: And poor Mil Mascaras. Is it true that he didn't want to get eliminated so he did it himself?

 

King Kamala Classic: from what I've read about him in various wrestler autobiographies, that wouldn't surprise me.

 

Bob Barron Yea, the Rumble gets dead in the middle, since the roster was so barren, but it gets better at the end

 

MilleniumMan831: I know Mil has been dumped in 1984 battle royals for the WWF

 

Bob Barron It's funny how today, half the roster gets excluded from the rumble, while in 1997.....we have Latin Lover

 

MillenniumMan831: I'm surprised Mr Hughes didn't get a number

 

Bob Barron: I like how Austin freaks out at first, but then collects himself and tells Bret to bring it

 

MillenniumMan831: I kinda dug Diesel making it to the last 3 . . . 2nd year in a row for the big guy

 

Bob Barron: And Vader legally killing Flash Flunk

 

MillenniumMan831: No relation to Terry . . . who was all entertainment as usual

 

Bob Barron Also, Bulldog is going to win the RumbleBecause he's BIZARRE

 

Dandy: That promo still weirds me out as I try to figure out what the fuck he is talking about.

 

King Kamala Classic: he's obviously zonked out on something

 

Bob Barron: He's zonked out on winning the Rumble. Owen trying to bullshit an excuse after dumping Davey was great

 

MillenniumMan831: I also laughed at that enormous 2x4 Ahmed was clonking Faarooq with

 

Bob Barron: YOUB GUNNA DOG

 

King Kamala Classic: Ahmed Johnson is never not entertaining.

 

Bob Barron: Ahmed Johnson, Faarooq, Mil Mascaras- not the smartest Rumble eliminations

 

MillenniumMan831: Well, at least Faarooq was escaping a beatdown

 

1998

 

Dr. Venkman PhD: I really enjoyed this in 1998 but future viewings really expose the same issue that plagued the 1997 version - shallow talent pool. I also am not a fan of how they basically said "Austin is winning this" - yeah, most people knew Shawn was winning in 1995 and 1996, but this Rumble they actually booked the entire match around jobbers trying to eliminate Austin before the match even started. Loved the 3 Faces of Foley (logic be damned), Honky Tonk Man appearance, and the hardcore bit at the beginning. Shawn vs. Taker is also a pretty good title match - love the leaping Tombstone from the apron to the casket.Bob Barron This is a decent show. The crowd being really hot helps the matches, and The Rock was so good in 1998 and you have Luna Vachon getting killed by Vader. The Rumble itself is pretty blah. Austin winning is too obvious, and the roster was thin at that point, so no one else remotely had a chance. It's like 1994 in that too many people are in there for so long. Austin coming through the crowd and tossing Mero is great. The three faces of Foley thing is cute, but it underscores how small the roster was. Taker v. HBK is a lot of fun, and not just if you want to see HBK break his back. Kane lighting Taker on fire- Taker has bad luck in title casket matches. Marc Mero coming out with Sable to a huge pop and having this grin on his face cracked me up.

 

Millennium Man831 I remember the Rumble match being entertaining to a degree but sure seemed like a lot of Godwinn/DOA caliber entrants

 

King Kamala Classic I don't remember much about this show other than The Three Faces of Foley and Taker/HBK being a lot of fun (though it's probably the worst match of their series)

 

Bob Barron:Mark Henry handling the big Johnson is another great moment and Cold Stone Steve Austin.Mike Tyson looked like he was having the time of his life at that show.

 

MillenniumMan831: I wonder if Shane had to explain the rules to the Rumble before the match to Mike

 

King Kamala Classic: Was it at this show when Iron Mike mentioned being a big fan of Bruno Sammartino.

 

Bob Barron: I heard he was a huge wrestling fan. Foley said he remembered obscure stuff about wrestling.

 

Dandy: I agree wholeheartedly about Austin being the obvious choice, but he did a good job in the match. Austin WAS the Rumble match for a string of years.

 

1999

 

King Kamala Classic: I know I’m in the minority here but I don’t hate this show. This is kind of the epitome of a Attitude era Russo show. Lot of flash, not very much substance but I still find myself reasonably entertained throughout. X-Pac/Gangrel for some reason is the only match that stands out to me now on the undercard. Perhaps the best match of the night from a pure wrestling standpoint. Watching it live The I Quit match totally stole the show and The Rumble just felt like an afterthought. The beginning and the end of the match are fairly entertaining Russocity but the middle section where Austin is getting taken to the hospital is unfathomably boring.

 

Dr. Venkman PhD: Terribly booked and pretty dull all around. 10 years ago I had a legitimate feat the match would be a 60 minute McMahon vs. Austin match with Austin eliminating the other 28 guys one by damn one... then it actually happened with entrant #3 (Golga). I would say "thankfully that fear did not come true", but I'm not entirely sure that would have been much worse than what we got. Rock vs. Mankind isn't all that good upon future viewing either - it's brutal to a disgusting degree and always will be, but not something that's very fun to watch. Honestly, I think my favourite match on this show is Gangrel vs. X-Pac, though I was pretty mad Gangrel didn't win the European title. The internet told me his contract guaranteed it! Bob Barron: The show is Mick Foley's head v. a chair, and nothing else. 1995 has its moments, 1999 is just a mockery of the entire match. The only good part of 99 is Chyna getting tossed out and Mark Henry laughing at her

 

MillenniumMan831: It did have Vince in his last hoorah as commentator

 

Bob Barron: This is the Rumble with 3 minutes of a guy standing there. And Kane gets eliminated because of mental workers!

 

MillenniumMan831 Vince's "Oh no" when Bossman doublecrossed and dumped D-Lo was great

 

King Kamala Classic: My dad, of all people, watched this PPV with me and my brother and seemed to really enjoy it for some reason. My dad loves the type of stuff you'd expect non-wrestling fans to hate and only that type of the stuff.

 

Dandy: You would think that Pat Patterson or someone could have helped Russo piece together the match so it would flow better with his dumb ideas.

 

2000

 

Bob Barron: The undercard is really good, helped by the hot MSG Crowd. Tazz coming out and killing Angle is funny, especially given what happened to both guys. I could watch that tables match a thousand times, it's so much fun. Cactus Jack v. HHH is fantastic. One of the best matches I've ever seen, and is just an incredible rollercoaster ride. The barb wire, HHH's gig job, the handcuffs, The Rock coming out to free Foley, Foley kicking out of the pedigree, and then a pedigree on the thumbtacks...holy shit.The Rumble itself is really boring, once Rikishi gets eliminated especially. It's the only Rumble where King has ever sounded noticably bored, begging for The Rock to come out. The early parts with Rikishi playing Diesel, and them dancing, and Backlund rock, but again the WWF roster was just so thin at this point, and it was obvious Rocky was winning.

 

King Kamala Classic: The Rumble is kind of middle of the road but I love Lawler making them replay Taka's elimination over and over again

 

Bob Barron: Yea, that's great. But toward the end, he's like: I hope it's The Rock...and I'm wondering if he had a junior prom to get toThat's the match that made Triple H. That's the only show where the Rumble match shouldn't have gone on last, since you just can't follow that

 

MillenniumMan831: It was a stellar match

 

2001

 

Bob Barron: The 2001 Rumble undercard is excellent. Dudleyz v. E-n-C was a fun tag match, Benoit v. Jericho is fantastic, and I really dig HHH v. Angle. Plus Chyna almost dies, and Billy Gunn is concerned. You can't script that!

 

MillenniumMan831: The Rumble match itself was FULL of entertainment. Hardies colliding, Drew Carey doing a bangup job in his role offering Kane a handful of cash, the Hardcore Rumble breaking out before Kane had enough and ridded the ring of everyone, the HONKY FUCKIN TONK MAN, then the match gets rollin again w/ Taker & Rock, then the BIG SHOW's back and gone in a few minutes, Austin comes back from the dead, but whogivesashit, it's HAKU!!!!! We widdle down the field and it looks like no one remembered to book Billy Gunn's elimination so Austin takes care of that before eventually dumping Kane (who had an awesome performance) to win the Rumble

 

Bob Barron: Billy Gunn mocking Austin, and Austin killing him is great. I got carried away

 

King Kamala Classic Another contender for Best Overall Rumble card. The Rumble itself was the best since '92 and is in My Top Five Favorites

 

Bob Barron: I like King flipping out over Honky and JR going: You'd think they were cousins!I still say they missed a boat with Scotty 2 Hotty coming out to face the BOD. I thought he should've come out all nervous, but giving them sunglasses, lights go out and they all start dancing for a bit, but the BOD stop, stare at each other, and chuck a still dancing Scotty out.

 

MillenniumMan831: Oh man, that'd have been tight. Only thing I would have changed offhand was giving Tazz a bid in the hardcore rumble and not being 10 second fodder to Kane

 

King Kamala Classic: Oh man I'd pay $20 to just see Taker bust a move

 

Bob Barron I like HHH beating up Austin and JR having a seizure, ignoring that Austin did the same thing 30 minutes ago! And boy does it suck to be Lodown

 

2002

 

King Kamala: Fun undercard. Ric Flair/Vince McMahon is an entertaining, overbooked brawl. Spike and Tazz Vs The Dudley Boyz is a fun if slightly forgettable opener. The Rock/Jericho is great as most of their matches tended to be.

 

Bob Barron You forgot Regal winning the I-C title

 

King Kamala Oh that's right. One of the many boring Regal/Edge matches took place here.

 

Bob Barron: I hate you. No lie, my friend and I freaked out when Regal won. We were going crazy

 

King Kamala Classic: The matches weren't bad just dull and sort of formulaic.

 

MillenniumMan831 : It was a series like that that had Attitude fans hoping for a WCW rebirth

 

King Kamala Classic The Rumble itself was incredibly predictable but it had its moments. Not quite as good as the previous two Rumbles but an admirable effort.

 

Bob Barron: The Rumble is good, but loading up the stars to the end kind of kills it

 

King Kamala Classic Maven eliminating Taker and the ensuing Taker freakout is one of my favorite Rumble moments.

 

MillenniumMan831: Maven damn near shit himself. Hurricane looking to chokeslam Austin/HHH was my Rumble high spot, I love how they actually sell it for a second.

 

Bob Barron: Maven eliminating Taker...watching it live, shocked the shit out of us/ Austin totally whiffing on the stunner yet Booker T selling it anyway...oh, wrestling and of course, Mr. Perfect swatting the gum

 

MillenniumMan831 : Perfect! He recaptured 1990 for one night

 

Bob Barron: I was rooting so hard for him to win

 

MillenniumMan831: I didn't see it live, but even taped I was rooting for him to win

 

Bob Barron: I thought he'd get tossed in ten seconds. And then as he kept outlasting other guys, I was like: Wait...shit, is he gonna win?

 

MillenniumMan831: Especially after the guys directly before him

 

Bob Barron: He outlasted Austin! Austin eliminating everyone, and then bringing them back in to stun them is funny.

 

MillenniumMan831 : Ya figure if anyone is hanging on to the rope in that exchange, it's Austin, but no.

 

2003

 

Bob Barron: The undercard is a one match show, and of course I'm talking about The Commonwealth Connection v. Dudleyz. It's amazing how awful Triple H-Scott Steiner is, and then Benoit v. Angle have the complete opposite match. The crowd turning on Steiner as he does one too many suplex is hilarious, as his him trying to look tough with a purple thong. Benoit v. Angle is just incredible though. They took a crowd that was completely dead and turning on the show, and had them on the edge of their seat at the end and Benoit gets a standing ovation....for losing!

 

King Kamala Classic: yeah, it's amazing to have one of the worst matches in Rumble history immedietely followed by one of the best.

 

MillenniumMan831: I probably would have been better served to see that match live on ppv and not months later after all that hype

 

Bob Barron: I still love Benoit hitting a diving headbutt when Angle's all the way across the ring. Tazz's commentary is great, as you can tell he's marking out and loving every minute of it. The Rumble match itself is good. The first half is amazing, 92, 04 levels, but then it drops off as the second half is filled with slugs.

 

Once Jericho gets eliminated, the match just dies

 

MillenniumMan831: I remember TSM being suicidal when Test eliminated Jericho

 

Bob Barron: Matt Hardy and Shannon Moore are the best part of the match. Also, HBK is the first #1 entry to be eliminated #1. I always thought that was funny that Jericho wanted to match HBK, but just to be a dick, HBK took #1. Talk about cutting off your nose to spite Chris Jericho's face.I watched it at a movie theatre...in Canada, so that match was like the Super Bowl. There's also a spot where Taker almost gets tossed, and someone has to pull him back in

 

King Kamala Classic: My thoughts on The Rumble are the same as Barron's. Watching the first half, I thought it was shaping up to be one of the best Rumbles ever but then it kind of flatlines.

 

Bob Barron: I remember TSM had a heart attack over the final 4 being Big Dave, Kane, Taker and Brock

 

MillenniumMan831: Yeah, that was brutal

 

Bob Barron: Lesnar also won the Rumble with the highest number in history (29)

 

King Kamala Classic: until 30 finally did it

 

MillenniumMan831: Two years in a row

 

Bob Barron: I like how Shannon Moore keeps saving Matt, so Brock's like: Fuck this, and just F5s him out of the ring. Oh, and Maven v. Taker Part 2 is *****. And Edge kills Chris Harvard. Probably gave him one of his 10,000 concussions. Cena rapping the whole two minutes.

 

MillenniumMan831 : B2

 

Bob Barron: Tommy Dreamer hitting Jericho square in the face with a cane . Tajiri tries the Tarantula and gets eliminated, and then a year later, it happens again

 

MillenniumMan831: Didnt they have like that shortest hardcore rumble in history? Or was it just Dreamer and his one cane. I could have sworn he brought in a cart of weapons

 

Bob Barron: Dreamer brought some weapons and then hit Jericho in the face, so Jericho stiffed the shit out of him and that was the end of the hardcore rumble!

 

MillenniumMan831: That would explain how I cloudily remembered it

 

Bob Barron: 2001 has the hardcore Rumble

 

MillenniumMan831: I also recognize 1998 as having a hardcore rumble to open it

 

Bob Barron: Yea, Funk and Foley and poor Rock gets killed.

 

MillenniumMan831: The weapons made it to like entrant #5ish

 

Bob Barron: I wonder if Maven drinks himself to sleep

 

 

 

2004

 

Dr. Venkman PhD: 2004 was great. Benoit was a real killer in there. He hung in there all night. You could put the women and children to bed because he was going to be there til the end.

 

Dr. Venkman PhD: Often compared to 1992, this was a good Rumble to build up Benoit's title win at Mania XX, but what REALLY makes it great? They added the entry number to the chyrons! Never again will a TV viewer lose track of what number entrant they are at. The undercard of this show is pretty weak though and has one of my least favourite Hunter / Shawn matches, but that's par for the course at the Rumble - it's all about the big one.

MilleniumMan831:

Actually saw this live on ppv. Forgettable undercard. Fantastic Rumble! Can't quite put it above 92, more due to timing (If I was 10 and saw this Rumble, yeah I'd have this as #1) than anything else. Tremendous in-match storylines going on other than the obvious Benoit coast-to-coast job. Orton looked like he would match him minute for minute which made me nervous he'd win the damn thing and hose Benoit out of it at the end. The Ayatollah's comedy segment was just what the doctor ordered 1/2 way in. Foley's run-in was one of those unpredictably predictable moments if that makes a lick of sense. Nunzio pussying out as long as he could was great. Goldberg's entrance at #30 looked to change the face of the match until "The Real" Brock Lesnar took him out. Show being built as a one night only monster was fabulous as well. Just one of those matches I wouldn't be hesitant to show a non-fan.

2005

Dr. Venkman PhD: Another good Rumble with some good spots (the Raw vs. SmackDown stand off - and boy did that get a reaction, the Hassan beat down, the Puder - who I hate, so this was great - initiation, Paul London giving the floor mat a SSP) that was nice enough to include some good undercard matches too (though Taker vs. Heidenreich is quite bad). The backstage skits were good too - Christian trying to out rap Cena (and Tomko refusing to give him a beat), Eddie stealing Flair's number and wallet, and of course, Snitsky and Heidenreich. Speaking of Eddie, having just re-watched this the other day, it's amazing that his heel turn actually went through. His elimination got the largest round of boos followed by a very loud "Eddie" chant - something not seen for an elimination since the "Diesel Moment" of 1994. I also found it odd how Benoit was in the ring for the entire 1-30 duration again, but this point seems to go unnoticed.

Bob Barron: A worthy sequel to 2004.

 

The undercard is decent. Edge v. HBK is great, Taker v. Heidenreich….not so much. The three-way is decent, and HHH v. Orton is just weird since Orton just gets destroyed.

 

I love the Rumble match. The opening where they all kill Puder is fun, and I like Edge, Rey and Benoit all lasting until the end. Benoit again almost going bell to bell is a nice tough. Paul London’s elimination is sick, and the crowd just goes crazy for everything Batista does.

 

And Vince tears his quad too!

 

2006

 

Bob Barron:

What a pile of shit this show was .Boogeyman v. JBL? Ashley Massaro v. Mickie James?

 

The Rumble match itself not being the main event is lame, and they gave away all the key entrants in backstage skits. The Eddie-spolitation had officially become very uncomfortable at this point. I also like that Chavo had to be eliminated in a minute so as not to take away heat from Rey.

 

The match itself is just bad, and gets bogged down by having too many people in there at once the whole time with nothing happening. HBK being eliminated by Shane McMahon (!) was cheap, since they did the same thing the prior year. Rey going bell to bell also didn’t mean anything, since they did the same story two years ago.

 

Cena v. Edge is pretty bad, and they really shouldn’t have taken the title off of Edge when he was on fire. I refuse to believe Angle-Henry actually happened.

MilleniumMan831: I actually ordered the stream of this on wwe.com Not the best decision ever but at least Rey Mysterio ultimately went over even though he sort of took a series of 5 minute naps throughout the match. Not the most charming Rumble but MNM had their moments. Just too much HHH dominating the likes of Flair, Show, Kane, ect for my tastes.

 

2007

MilleniumMan831: As decent as this Rumble was, I immediately think of the Sandman's sad outing. Would it have killed WWE to let him play around for 5 minutes before ridding him? I'll always be a mark at heart. I liked having Flair/Finlay start it. Don't remember much about the match other than Khali killing everyone before Taker came in and killed everyone Khali didn't have time to chuck. I personally found the Taker/Michaels scuffle to cap off the Rumble a little overrated but to each his own. Once it was down to those two, I had no preference as far as who I wanted to win so it was kind of lost on me.

Dr. Venkaman PhD: A very good Umaga vs. Cena title match which began a very good year for Cena - people still boo him and portions of the internet still hate him and accuse him of not being over, but this match began to make many haters (myself included) that John actually could work. Not much happens for most of the Rumble match, but the final bit with Undertaker and Michaels is tremendous stuff to the point it increased the quality of the entire overall Rumble match 2008

 

Bob Barron: I was at this show live. Let me say that if you’ve never seen a Rumble live, you should. Nothing beats it.

 

I really enjoyed the undercard. It was nice getting to see Flair last one time, and Edge v. Rey was great live. They hated Rey, loved Edge, but hated Vicki Guerrero. Gotta love New York. Jericho v. JBL is awful.

 

Jeff v. Orton was a real disappointment, I think they did too good job of building Hardy and the match up. They had intended to make Hardy the usual lame duck challenger designed to make Orton look good, but I think after the great buildup people expected Hardy to win and a crazy heated contest, instead of a glorified RAW match. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a good match, but the ending just comes out of nowhere and it sucked the life out of the crowd. I was upset, I thought for sure Hardy was going over.

 

The Rumble match itself was fun, albeit confusing live. Where we were sitting, we never saw Hornswoggle go under the ring, and we didn’t know what happened to Finlay. Also, we thought Batista was eliminated at one point, we didn’t realise Umaga spiked him and he rolled out of the ring.

 

I liked HBK-Taker renewing their war from last year, and it was fun seeing a lot of midcarders get to hang with them and have them sell their moves. Part of the fun of the Rumble. Snuka and Piper might be older than dirt, but the crowd popped huge for them and that was a cute moment.

 

Once HBK and Taker get eliminated, the match just died live since everyone figured Triple H was going to win, especially after we thought Big Dave was tossed. Where I was sitting, you couldn’t see the entrance aisle so when Cena’s music hit everyone went insane, only I didn’t see him until he got closer to the ring. I’ve almost never heard a pop that loud. I do like that once Cena got to the ring, MSG remembered they hated him and started booing him again. Only in New York.

 

The crowd was on its feet the rest of the Rumble, and it just exploded when it came down to Cena v. HHH. My friend loves HHH and I love Cena, so we were going at it, and it’s one of those moments that makes you remember why you love wrestling. Cena winning was great, though I don’t like how they cheapened the Rumble by having him cash in the title shot at No Way Out.

 

 

MilleniumMan831: Quality Rumble here. Taker/Michaels starting was great. Loved Dreamer's pop upon his entrance and the unintentional heat Batista got for eliminating him a couple minutes later. Seeing Taker make a fool out of himself by headbutting Snuka was a sight to be seen. Hated seeing HHH dump Foley/Burke so effortlessly. Cena's surprise entry even took me by surprise. One of those endings that had to make the WWE fans that paid $40 to see the ppv feel like they got their money's worth. I'm getting we'll get Haastista this year as #30.

 

As an aside, I would mark the fuck out if 7-8 guys were in the ring this year when Bushwhacker Luke's music hit. He could come out like he thought it was still 1990. Licking kids in Hardy shirts and being nutty all around the ring. Maybe Cole can take a lick. He yucks around the ring when his music stops for the countdown. Of course, it's Butch. They can act all crazy going to opposite sides of the ring where they simultaneously enter only for Miz to take Butch and Morrison to take Luke across the ring (so they actually cross paths) and eiliminate the Bushwhackers as they land on their feet and gleefully march to the back. I could give a fuck less if the kids won't know who they are, their fathers will do the Bushwhacker march in place while marking out with everyone else 25 and up in the arena.

[DrVenkman PhD 0]

I had some comments for other Rumbles but apparently King Kamala didn't think me repeatedly stating "Screw Flanders" was good for the discussion.

[King Kamala 0]

I had some comments for other Rumbles but apparently King Kamala didn't think me repeatedly stating "Screw Flanders" was good for the discussion.

 

To be fair, I cut out some of MilleniumMan and Bob Barron's comments as well.

[CanadianGuitarist 0]

You made threatening letters to the UN!

 

I enjoyed reading this: There was at least some diversity, which made for better reading, and it just flowed really well.

[DrVenkman PhD 0]

"Numerous threatening references to the UN".

 

My friend asked what time to pick me up for the Rumble today, I told him eighty past two. But that's besides the point. This was fun though and I wish I could have been at the second session.

[muda345 0]

I believe they had Studd win the Royal Rumble to help build him up as a legitimate contendor against Andre, whom he was supposed to fued with after WrestleMania V going all throughout the summer. I read in Andre's new book though that Studd was so terrified of Andre because he thought that Andre was legitimately going to beat the shit out of him that he just packed up and left and was never heard from again

[muda345 0]

The whole point of the 1990 Rumble was to get the Warrior/Hogan feud moving. Also, not to get technical Dr. Venkman, but Gorialla did not do the commentary for this. It was Tony Schiavone and Jesse. That being said, this show holds a soft place in my heart and today is still my favorite Rumble, even though outside of Hogan/Warrior, nothing significant takes place.

[tominator89 0]

I miss Vince's introductions..

 

THE WAAAAAAARLOOOOOOOOOORD....HAAAAAAAAAAAKUUUUUUUUUU....SIIIIIIIIIIIIIIID JUUUUUUUUUUUUUSTICE!