Remember When...

[Savior of Silence]

Far too often, we - the IWC - focus too much on the negative and not enough on the positive. I think we sometimes forget why we're fans. We let our disappointment with the current product cloud our vision and we become far too jaded for our own good. I'm hoping this thread will help us remember...if only for a little while.

So I want to know...what are those moments that you go back and watch and they send chills down your spine? What moments make you remember why you became a fan and make you yearn for more? A match, a promo, a package. Anything.

I'll go ahead and start us off with something small. I absolutely love the old desire videos from early the 2000's. They give you a touch of the wrestler's personal lives and show you that they're a fan and that they love what they do.

[YOUTUBE]/watch?v=chV0HCuSxxg[/YOUTUBE]

[YOUTUBE]/watch?v=vdjRWMZh_PU[/YOUTUBE]

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[YOUTUBE]/watch?v=inTy1G-FoZE[/YOUTUBE]

[YOUTUBE]/watch?v=lPIv9PmFFMc[/YOUTUBE]

 

[WBL]

Back in the day, I didn't watch the WCW, so the concept of a heel super-group like the nWo eluded me.

That's why, when the Corporation and the Ministry merged to form the Corporate Ministry, it blew my mind. Vince McMahon's goons and The Undertaker's goons all merged together to form this giant wave of evil bad guys.

This was in 1999, when I was really getting into anime, so with that mindset, I was able to buy a LOT more fantasy elements in my wrestling. So when this evil force, the Undertaker, who I marked like hell for, joined forces with the owners of the company, it seemed like dark times. Hell, this is how we started the first episode of SmackDown.

And then... the reveal.

[youtube]tcXhMSOLJKM[/youtube]

Ooh, I thought I was so damn smart when I was younger, thinking the higher power was Jake "The Snake" Roberts getting revenge on Austin after all this time. Again, I didn't know about WCW, so I didn't know that Bischoff, in his war-era douchiness, had spoiled the surprise. For me, this just made things so much more terrifying.

And then Austin became part owner of the WWE, and suddenly, everyone was vulnerable.

Although they only lasted about three months, the Corporate Ministry really marks a big point in my WWF/E experience. I still look fondly back on it.

[youtube]V-DZQY-gUQY[/youtube]

 

[STAR PLATINUM $9.99]

A lot of the videos above really gave me chills every time i watch them. when i hear JR passion on the commentary that also puts chills down my spine.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G90NjYNQ1RA

just watch this video. Jr is just awesome when he was passionate.

 

[Slash-LN]

I think for me it's less about the wrestling itself and more about the memories associated with it.

Staying the night at my grandma's and renting two for a dollar tapes in the early 90s. Drinking orange Crush and my grandma making pop corn in the skillet for me to snack on while I watched and she would usually fall asleep in her recliner.

Saturday morning Superstars. Just knowing that I had that to look forward to every week.

In junior high getting one of my best friends back into wrestling so I had someone to talk to about it.

The memories mean so much more to me than wrestling itself but I like to go back and relive that stuff.

 

[TheICChampion]

The entrances for the classic elimination matches at Survivor Series 2001 and 2005. I remember being really hyped for the Raw vs. Smackdown 5-on-5 match. The 2001 WWF vs. The Alliance I didn't get to watch the first time around, but going back and watching it, listening to them hype it up made me really want to see the match.

 

[FromGlasgow]

For me it has to be Wrestlemania 1, When I was a child it just seemed so exciting to me at the time and was a huge fan of the A-team and Mr T and was so cool seeing him in the WWF tagging with my favourite at the time Hulk Hogan even my favourite music at that time was Cyndi Lauper her being involved also added to the event I have seen better events with better matches since but whenever I see clips from that wrestlemania 1 event it always brings back great memories for me.

 

[Agent_of_Anarchy]

Foley and his unforgettable night in the Cell vs Taker. I honestly didn't think he was going to survive, and to this day, I don't think there has been a match I've seen since that has impacted me the way Mankind and Taker did on that night. I was 11 at the time and had seen hardcore matches, but I legimatly thought I was watching the real life death of Foley. It was pretty fucked up.
Watching back now it definitely sends chills up my spine and for me is the high water mark of pro wrestling.

 

[Mustang Sally]

The entire Randy Savage-Elizabeth saga. It was the first time I had been aware that a bad guy wrestler could be associated with a manager/valet who was a face. That was....and still is.....a unique concept in pro wrestling.

But it wasn't just that one person was good and one was bad; Savage was the worst of the worst, the most evil dude in town....while Elizabeth was the personification of goodness; she was elegant, classy, beautiful and innocent.

Watching the manner in which he treated her was repugnant, yet consistent with the way he treated everyone else. It was the best show in town, wondering what they were going to do from week to week.

Remember, I was 6 years old when these two showed up in WWE....I believed all of it.....and Liz was my idol, the most compelling character I had even seen on TV, while Savage was attractive in a negative way; I thought he was an ogre.

When Macho Man turned good, the primary way you could tell was by the manner he treated Liz, because in his ring performance and persona, there was very little to distinguish his heel days from face.

In '91 came their reunion after long months of separation. By now, I was 12 and a sophisticated wrestling fan(!) It was hard to believe Randy & Liz had been around for 6 years and I felt as if I had grown up with them. After he lost his retirement match to the Ultimate Warrior and reunited with Elizabeth, I cried my eyes out.

From beginning to end, the adventures of Randy & Elizabeth remain my favorite example of what I really enjoy in pro wrestling.

 

[Damien"Dark"Starr]

Triple h v The Rock ladder match at Summerslam sends chills down my spine. Such an epic match.

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

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I must have seen this clip about 200x and it still has the same impact on me today. I never thought we'd see WWE, WCW and ECW brands on the same wrestling show, and to see it actually occur was fantastic and the start of my favourite period as a wrestling fan. I'd have rather ECW had remained it's own team and made it a 3-way Invasion war, instead of joining up with WCW but it was still awesome.

I know the Invasion gets alot of stick- quite a lot of it justified, but for a 14 y/o fan it was brilliant, and I loved nearly every minute of it. I still get chills seeing Heyman announcing the return of his baby E....C.....W!!!

 

[MR K]

I think wrestling is absolutley about the memories it creates. I remember being like "holy S**t" when Kane ripped open the cell in the Taker Shaun Micheals match, seing Mick Foley flung from the cell, Austin vs Mcmahon. Even more recent matches like Cena vs Micheals on raw in an almost hour long mach, Cena vs Punk at MOTB and of course Lesner breaking the streak.

Sure sometimes the WWE puts out a poor product, sometimes we get disengaged and down about what is going on, but having awesome memories of what we know can happen is what keeps pulling me back and continuing to watch or at least keep up with what is going on.

 

[FlairFan2003]

The entire Randy Savage-Elizabeth saga. It was the first time I had been aware that a bad guy wrestler could be associated with a manager/valet who was a face. That was....and still is.....a unique concept in pro wrestling.

But it wasn't just that one person was good and one was bad; Savage was the worst of the worst, the most evil dude in town....while Elizabeth was the personification of goodness; she was elegant, classy, beautiful and innocent.

Watching the manner in which he treated her was repugnant, yet consistent with the way he treated everyone else. It was the best show in town, wondering what they were going to do from week to week.

Remember, I was 6 years old when these two showed up in WWE....I believed all of it.....and Liz was my idol, the most compelling character I had even seen on TV, while Savage was attractive in a negative way; I thought he was an ogre.

When Macho Man turned good, the primary way you could tell was by the manner he treated Liz, because in his ring performance and persona, there was very little to distinguish his heel days from face.

In '91 came their reunion after long months of separation. By now, I was 12 and a sophisticated wrestling fan(!) It was hard to believe Randy & Liz had been around for 6 years and I felt as if I had grown up with them. After he lost his retirement match to the Ultimate Warrior and reunited with Elizabeth, I cried my eyes out.

From beginning to end, the adventures of Randy & Elizabeth remain my favorite example of what I really enjoy in pro wrestling.

The storyline didn't end there at SS 91, it continued all the way through 1996 when Liz double crossed him, caused him to lose the World Title, and publicly bragged about spending his money from their divorce settlement and alimony on expensive gifts, catered ring side buffets during matches, etc. It was actually probably the best promo work and the most character Liz ever did.

 

[RAGMAN]

The one unique match of wcw wrestler mike awesome vs wwf wrestler taz for the ecw heavy weight title is one that stays in my mind.