Opinion
Cook’s Tale of the Tape: Heyman vs. Bischoff
With the newly announced executives, Cook takes a look at the tape. Who is ahead on points at the moment?
With the newly announced executives, Cook takes a look at the tape. Who is ahead on points at the moment?
There was a column I wrote recently where I was asking people what year it was. This is another column where I’m asking this question.
If you’re like me and grew up during the 1990s, you remember who the top wrestling brokers of the era were. (Apologies to Jim Cornette, who made the mistake of running in a poorer area of the USA.) Vince McMahon ran the WWF, Eric Bischoff oversaw WCW, and ECW came from the mind of Paul Heyman. The Monday Night War Era is seen by people of my age as the best time for professional wrestling. As much as people want to tell me that the in-ring product is so much better now, and as poorly as some of that 1990s television has aged, some of us still have a hankering for that era.
So one can see Vince’s decision-making process here. Surely he’s heard the feedback from most of the WWE Universe regarding the current direction. They aren’t happy. With all of this possible competition afoot, and with new network deals on the horizon, there is some pressure to provide a product that makes most of the fans happy.
When were we happiest? During the 1990s!
So now we have Paul Heyman as Executive Director of Raw, and Eric Bischoff as Executive Director of SmackDown. Between you readers & me, I think this means that they are on-air authority figures. Many people are thinking this means that Heyman & Bischoff will have say over creative direction. I’ve even seen some people suggest that Bischoff will be making deals with the Fox execs. I just don’t see it. Everything I know about WWE tells me that they’re giving proven on-screen characters some on-screen power.
Which is fine.
I’m not expecting a ton of changes to result from this, though if we do see a ton of changes it wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world. Raw with Heyman’s creative input…well, it couldn’t be much worse than what they trot out most weeks. Same with SmackDown & Bischoff. Do I really think either show will get out there without Vince’s tacit approval & adjustments? Hell to the nizzaw. I really believe that way too many of you are making way too big a thing of this.
With all of that being said, we at the very least are seeing something of a resurrection of one of wrestling’s greatest rivalries. Bischoff vs. Heyman. Two wrestling geniuses. Who was better?
Let’s go to the Tale of the Tape!
Stars Made
Heyman: I mean, look at all the guys still getting booked now because they got big in ECW. Rob Van Dam. Sabu. Tommy Dreamer. Heck, Sandman’s still making appearances. Raven became Raven under Paul E’s guidance, and Mick Foley & Steve Austin got to explore their characters more than they ever did in WCW. This is the part where I need to mention how many of the “cruiserweights” made their first appearance in ECW.
Bischoff: Goldberg.
Advantage: Heyman
Network Relations
Bischoff: Kept TimeWarner very happy for years & years thanks to Monday Nitro’s incredible ratings.
Heyman: Well…
Advantage: Bischoff
Second Act
Heyman: WWECW
Bischoff: 2010-2012 TNA
Advantage: Push. Both were awful.
Hair
Do you even have to ask?
Advantage: Bischoff
WWE Authority Figure Success
Bischoff: Served as Raw General Manager from July 15, 2002 until December 5, 2005. Still remembered as the best Raw GM.
Heyman: Served as SmackDown General Manager from October 2003 until March 2004. I think we all agree that Teddy Long was the best SmackDown GM. HOLLA HOLLA HOLLA!
Advantage: Bischoff
Best Promo
Do you even have to ask? If you do, let’s take a look at one of my favorite Paul Heyman promos.
Let me know if Eric Bischoff did anything in this realm. I seriously doubt it. If Paul Heyman had been the true voice behind the Invasion instead of Shane & Stephanie, the possibilities would have been endless. They only let him cut loose a couple of times, and he brought gold every time he did. Heyman definitely deserves to be in the conversation with Bobby Heenan & Jim Cornette as the best manager promos of all time.
Advantage: Heyman
Public Image
Heyman: We’ve all completely forgotten about Paul’s failings with ECW. He was just an awesome creative mind. We’ve also forgotten about his connection with Brock Lesnar. Obviously Paul would never focus his attention single-mindedly on one person, even he was that one person’s agent for most of the past fifteen years on & off television.
Bischoff: Oh God WCW what the hell man he’s Vince Russo’s best friend and Hulk Hogan’s best friend. He’s got no damn idea.
Advantage: Heyman
Best Wrestling Match:
Heyman: Tuxedo Match vs. Jim Cornette at Great American Bash 1989
Bischoff: vs Ric Flair Starrcade 1998
One of these matches knew their role & what they were there for. The other thought it was a semi-main event of a major show.
Advantage: Heyman
Final Score: Heyman 4, Bischoff 3, Draw 1
It’s a close call, but the numbers tell us that Paul Heyman has a slightly better chance of guiding a wrestling product in 2019 than Eric Bischoff does. Remember, the numbers never lie!
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Opinion
Chris King: The Wyatt Sicks’ Wasted Potential By WWE
Chris King takes a look at the WWE and their wasted potential of Uncle Howdy and the Wyatt Sicks faction.
Chris King takes a look at the WWE and their wasted potential of Uncle Howdy and the Wyatt Sicks faction.
It’s that time of the year again, folks; it’s unfortunate and downright awful that so many WWE superstars got released today. I’m not going to list all of them, but I am going to talk about one of my favorite factions,
The Wyatt Sicks. Nikki Cross, Joe Gacy, Erik Rowan, and Bo Dallas (Uncle Howdy) were something special. After Bo’s brother Bray Wyatt’s tragic passing, WWE felt like there was a hole that needed to be filled. Wyatt was one of the most creative and brilliant characters, and Bo would be taking over his brother’s concept and bringing it to life. In 2024, at the end of an incredible documentary highlighting Wyatt’s career and struggles, Bo appeared on the screen portrayed as Uncle Howdy. The last time Uncle Howdy was seen on-screen was at the 2023 Royal Rumble, where Wyatt defeated LA Knight in a Pitch Black Match. Howdy jumped off a structure onto Knight.
This post-credit scene sparked so much speculation and excitement that Wyatt’s brother would carry on his legacy and possibly debut the faction that was Wyatt’s concept. On the June 17th episode of Monday Night Raw, The Wyatt Sicks made their dramatic debut ,destroying the backstage area as well as “murdering” Chad Gable. It was such an iconic arrival for Howdy as he made his menacing walk from the back into the audience who were chanting “Holy Shit.” The Sicks and American Made (Chad Gable and The Creed Brothers) battled for months, with The Sicks being victorious. On the September 9th episode of Raw, The Sicks defeated them, with Howdy getting the win with Sister Abigail.
The following year, The Sicks would move over to Friday Night SmackDown, and it seemed like WWE had a plan in place. They would win the tag team championships from The Street Profits and start to look dominant. Now, what should have happened next is Howdy should have won the United States title. The Sicks could have held all the gold over on the blue brand, but it never happened. The Sicks entered into a never-ending feud with The MFT’s (Solo Sikoa, Tama Tonga, Tonga Loa, JC Mateo, and Talla Tonga.) It started off exciting, and the WWE Universe was red-hot for their interactions.
After months of repetitive matches and The MFT’s stealing their lantern, the feud grew tiresome and boring. Even Tama asked Solo why they are still holding onto the lantern, as it was destroying them as a whole. Finally on the SmackDown before Mania, Tama
gave the lantern back to Howdy against Solo’s wishes. Please explain to me why both factions fought almost every single week instead of just having one final blowoff match at WrestleMania.
It should have been either a massive street fight or a falls count anywhere match on the grandest stage of them all. Instead, it turned into a meaningless week-after-week extravaganza that benefited no one. The MFTs won the rivalry, and The Sicks don’t even work for WWE anymore. This was the same criminalized creative process that Wyatt dealt with during his first run in the company.
We’ll never know how much of a dangerous force The Wyatt Sicks could have been in the WWE. For all their careers’ sake, I hope they stay far away from the company for as long as possible. Every superstar that was cut deserves better!
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Opinion
Chris King: Bloodline Saga: Is This the Right Call For WWE?
Chris King questions the WWE’s logic in setting up Jacob Fatu as the next challenger for World Heavyweight Champion Roman Reigns
Chris King questions the WWE’s logic in setting up Jacob Fatu as the next challenger for World Heavyweight Champion Roman Reigns
Roman Reigns is once again World Heavyweight Champion after his dominant win over CM Punk at WrestleMania 42. On the following night on Monday Night Raw, The OG Bloodline came back together as a well-oiled machine as The Usos stood side by side with Roman. With the WWE Universe asking who would be the first to challenge “The Tribal Chief,” Jacob Fatu shocked the world by answering the call.
Fatu is running hot after his impressive win over Drew McIntyre and feels like he is ready to become the new world champion. This bloodline segment ended Raw, and it picked right back up on SmackDown with even Solo Sikoa and the MFTs involved. This is now two shows that have been centered around The Bloodline saga, and it’s made me question whether or not WWE should be retelling this story.
The Bloodline (Roman Reigns, The Usos, and Solo Sikoa) ran WWE for over four years as Reigns’ henchmen, doing his dirty work to retain his title. Even though Roman has declared he doesn’t want Jey and Jimmy to serve him, it sure seems like WWE are spinning their wheels. Fatu could add a whole new chapter into the story, even if he’s not able to beat Roman at Backlash. “The Samoan Werewolf” could be forced to do the same thing as Jey did all those years ago and fall in line.
In my opinion, I feel like Fatu should be challenging for the Undisputed WWE Championship because that’s a title I feel like he should win. I understand standing up to your blood and trying to prove you’re the best, but I don’t think this is the right move. It feels like 2022 all over again, as The Bloodline is the central focus on both shows. If Fatu doesn’t win, what happens to all his momentum he’s been building over the last two years?
Why did WWE make this the best choice for storyline purposes? Why couldn’t creative have come up with a different challenger for Roman? There are so many other superstars that could challenge The Tribal Chief, such as Rusev, Bron Breakker, Gunther, or even a returning Sheamus.
I just can’t help but question WWE’s logic here, and it kind of reminds me of all the times The Shield reunited. Could WWE be pushing the same storyline too many times here? Could the WWE Universe get tired of this rinse and repeat cycle of The Bloodline Saga?
Are we about to see all the weekly episodes solely focused on The Bloodline again? Will it be cinema… Yes. Is there still money in The Bloodline… Yes. Was it the right call? That’s to be determined!
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Launched in 2017, the Chairshot Radio Network presents you with the best in sports, entertainment, and sports entertainment. Wrestling and wrestling crossover podcasts + the most interesting content + the most engaging hosts = the most entertaining podcasts you’ll find!
MONDAY - Bandwagon Nerds (entertainment & popular culture)
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WEDNESDAY - The Greg DeMarco Show (wrestling)
THURSDAY - Nefarious Means
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SATURDAY - The Mindless Wrestling Podcast
SUNDAY - 30 Mindless Minutes
CHAIRSHOT RADIO NETWORK PODCAST SPECIALS
Attitude Of Aggression Podcast: The Big Five Project (chronologically exploring WWE's PPV/PLE history) Unidentified History (Ufology) & Game Gone Wrong (Game of Thrones Universe)
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