1994 – the year the WWF embraced the New Generation and WCW sold their soul to previous one. The year Hulk Hogan would sell more for a woman than he would for Ric Flair, while Bret Hart injured his knee on every pay per view.
In WCW, the first half of 1994 sees Ric Flair working through his bucket list and having one more main event with the likes of Steamboat, Windham and Sting. The second half of 1994 sees Flair unable to beat Hulk Hogan despite the use of weapons, assassins and legal advice.
In the WWF, the Kliq begins to get a strangle hold on the company, the Hart family airs its dirty laundry in public and the Undertaker faces his gravest challenge – his noticeably shorter twin brother.
When people look back at 1994 they ridicule the New WWF Generation slogan for being hypocritical and spiteful but was it? Or had the company genuinely changed in many (but, sadly, not all) ways?
They also look at WCW and dismiss everything that happened once Hogan arrived as worthless, ego-driven garbage. Was the divide so clear and so sharp? Was the second half the year completely awful?
In this book I'm going to tell the story of the year through every PPV and Clash of the Champions broadcast (as well as a few side steps and archive rarities). The matches, the angles, the interviews and the talent - it's all here along with a healthy dose of humour.
Forget star ratings - this is a lapsed fan enjoying some frequently awful pro wrestling and gaining a new understanding of a year where both companies changed philosophy but only one embraced the change whole-heartedly. Not necessarily for the better.
From the author of 1988 and 1991: The Year in Pro Wrestling comes the obvious sequel – 1994.
Extract (from King of the Ring 1994)
Art Donovan has no idea who the guy with the beard is but he wants to know how much he weighs. Maybe Donovan had a form of autism which meant he couldn’t recognise human faces but he could identify people by weight. He might be introduced to Hulk Hogan and shrug his shoulders. Then someone whispers “three hundred and two pounds” and he exclaims “Mr Hogan – nice to see you again. How are Brooke and little Nicky?”
In WCW, the first half of 1994 sees Ric Flair working through his bucket list and having one more main event with the likes of Steamboat, Windham and Sting. The second half of 1994 sees Flair unable to beat Hulk Hogan despite the use of weapons, assassins and legal advice.
In the WWF, the Kliq begins to get a strangle hold on the company, the Hart family airs its dirty laundry in public and the Undertaker faces his gravest challenge – his noticeably shorter twin brother.
When people look back at 1994 they ridicule the New WWF Generation slogan for being hypocritical and spiteful but was it? Or had the company genuinely changed in many (but, sadly, not all) ways?
They also look at WCW and dismiss everything that happened once Hogan arrived as worthless, ego-driven garbage. Was the divide so clear and so sharp? Was the second half the year completely awful?
In this book I'm going to tell the story of the year through every PPV and Clash of the Champions broadcast (as well as a few side steps and archive rarities). The matches, the angles, the interviews and the talent - it's all here along with a healthy dose of humour.
Forget star ratings - this is a lapsed fan enjoying some frequently awful pro wrestling and gaining a new understanding of a year where both companies changed philosophy but only one embraced the change whole-heartedly. Not necessarily for the better.
From the author of 1988 and 1991: The Year in Pro Wrestling comes the obvious sequel – 1994.
Extract (from King of the Ring 1994)
Art Donovan has no idea who the guy with the beard is but he wants to know how much he weighs. Maybe Donovan had a form of autism which meant he couldn’t recognise human faces but he could identify people by weight. He might be introduced to Hulk Hogan and shrug his shoulders. Then someone whispers “three hundred and two pounds” and he exclaims “Mr Hogan – nice to see you again. How are Brooke and little Nicky?”
