WCW New Blood Rising

WCW New Blood Rising

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada - August 2000

CHAMPIONSHIP RUNDOWN: Coming into this show, Booker T is the reigning WCW World Heavyweight Champion, KroNik are the WCW World Tag Team Champions, and every other title is held by Lance Storm. Yes, every other title: the Cruiserweight Championship, the Hardcore Championship, and the United States (now Canadian) Championship all were held by Lance Storm. 

COMMENTATORS: Tony Schiavone, Scott Hudson, and Mark Madden

The first (and only) New Blood Rising PPV starts off with a wild 6-man Ladder Match: 3 Count (with Tank Abbott in tow) taking on The Jung Dragons. This math has often been viewed as the not-as-great cousin to the ladder matches that Edge and Christian and the Hardy Boys had done (to much praise) in the WWE starting in 99'. While there's no doubt that the stars of the WWE's tag division were way, way more over than the guys involved in this match (and that would include The Dudleys, who would join E&C and The Hardy Boys for the historic inaugural TLC Match at SummerSlam just a few weeks later) and there's no argument that this wasn't clearly an attempt by WCW to ape the competition, the entertainment value of this match is still off the charts. There are some genuinely awesome moments in this, including some that the WWE guys would blatantly steal for their next version, though because this is WCW, there are also one or two idiotic twists (the fact that, to win, you have to retrieve two objects is incomprehensible and pointless when one realizes that retrieving the second object gives you the win so you should either retrieve them both at the same time or not even bother). Tank Abbott is also a bit wasted here, playing the "dancing clown" role when it might have been cool to actually see him toss someone into a ladder or through a table. Again, though, those criticisms ignore the risks that everyone takes - including Jamie Noble (under a mask as Jamie-san), not a guy necessarily known for launching himself off 8-foot ladders to the arena floor - and the quality execution across the board. Matches like this tend not to age too well, but this one holds up well because you can literally see how hard these six guys were trying to put their own stamp on a match type that, in the summer of 2000, was still fresh enough that it didn't feel like we'd seen it all before. A really entertaining start to the show, booking holes aside. (4/5)

After a backstage segment with the Filthy Animals begging for a Tag Team Title match and promising some help in return, The Cat takes on The Great Muta (who was competing as part of the ICP-led Dark Carnival stable). Muta actually looks decent considering his age, but he just seems so out of place in WCW in 2000. Ernest Miller wasn't a good worker or anything, but at least this match is built around kicks and martial arts, which is at least in his wheelhouse. Tygress, a former Nitro Girl who was now associated with the Filthy Animals, comes out and hits Muta with an atrocious chair shot off the top rope when the ref is distracted. Fortunately for Muta's credibility, he kicks out at 2. The Cat hits his finisher and wraps it up pretty soon after anyway. I'm not sure why Vince Russo was so into interference that didn't lead to a finish, but it seems like taking an extra step to end up the same conclusion that you could get to without it (it also, if you're not careful [and Russo never was] leads to nearly every match featuring some sort of screwy BS). (1.5/5)

Buff Bagwell is backstage searching for his mother, Judy, who will be atop a forklift for the next bout - a Judy Bagwell On A Pole match - against Kanyon. This match has been (justifiably) mocked for close to 20 years and there's no reason for a critical re-evaluation. It is every bit as stupid as it would read on paper. Before the match begins, Kanyon explains that the reason Judy isn't on an actual pole is because she's too fat (hence the forklift). This is supposed to generate heat, but the fans seem more insulted by the digs he takes at Canada. Buff comes out with a head of a steam and immediately attempts to bring his mom down (good psychology), but Kanyon attacks him in the aisle and the two start brawling in the stands. Once they're back in the ring and Buff is in control, he takes time to do his strut (bad psychology). Why? I've written in dozen of times before but I'll write it again: Buff Bagwell was a good athlete who either never got coached or was too thick-headed to take the advice he was given. As a face, Buff wrestled like the same annoying, preening heel he was in the nWo and, by not exploring new parts of the character, he ended up in matches like this, further destroying any goodwill he may have still had with the WCW fans. Kanyon, as Schiavone notes, is still the Innovator of Offense underneath his horrendous Positively Kanyon gimmick, but there are at least a half-dozen matches I'd point to before this one if you're looking to watch Kanyon bust out some crazy maneuvers. Kanyon hits the Kanyon Cutter (uggh) and gets 2-and-a-half but then Kanyon's music plays so the audience (and commentators) are incredibly confused. Former WCW World Champion David Arquette walks out and strikes Bagwell on the back of the noggin with a construction helmet. Bagwell oversells it and goes down for a long 2 count. Easily one of the worst weapon spots in the history of WCW (and this is a company where main events have ended after someone gets hit with a high heel, finger poke, and a debilitating amount of fake blood). Bagwell strikes back at Arquette and ends up winning the match. Oh, I should mention that the camera cuts to Buff's mom, screaming on the forklift and looking like one of the old ladies from G.L.O.W every other minute or so, further making it clear how much a joke this contest is. Terrible. (0.5/5)

The next bout makes very little sense to me. The Filthy Animals come out and, based on their agreement with Ernest Miller, are able to insert themselves as special guest referees (with Konnan joining the commentary team) for the WCW World Tag Team Title match between champions KroNik, The Perfect Event, Misfits in Action Corporal Cajun and General Rection, and newcomers Jindrak & O'Haire. Part of my confusion stems the Animals' Mysterio and Juventud Guerrera wearing the titles to the ring despite not being the champions. I understand that they stole the physical belts - but why wear them to the ring where you have 8 other guys vying for them? Seems precarious to me. Keep that shit locked up backstage. Anyway, this match isn't that bad for the first 5-6 minutes. Sean O'Haire, in particular, impresses via his quickness and agility (seeing a 6'6'' guy that jacked hit a swanton is never not remarkable). As the match wears on, Disco Inferno refuses to make a legit count, purposefully trying to prevent KroNik from winning the match (but also making sure no one else really wins the match either). Eventually The Great Muta and Vampiro show up to attack, well, its not really clear if they're attacking a specific team or just trying interfering for the sake of interfering. KroNik proceed to destroy Palumbo in the middle of the ring with their ugly finisher (Palumbo's facial expressions and body language are woeful here too, as he noticeably "braces" himself for the move). Still, Disco won't make the count so Lieutenant Loco (Chavo Guerrero) runs out, knocks him down, rips off his ref shirt and puts it on to make the count himself! With each passing show, Vince Russo is basically topping himself with coming up with the worst finishes ever. Also, extra dummy points to Chavo Guerrero for not even helping his own stablemates win the match. Decent enough start, insulting end. (1/5)

Shane Douglas walks out with Torrie Wilson in tow for a strap match against Billy Kidman. WCW gave Kidman pyro and were obviously hoping to make him into a bigger star, but Douglas had nothing left to give here. In ECW, The Franchise was a big deal, but in WCW, he went from one disappointing feud to another and his matches were never better than average (and often below that). Kidman, meanwhile, had been miscast as a heel for his feud against Hogan, so turning him back into the underdog good guy was a step in the right direction. Too bad WCW didn't seem to have an idea what the next step after would be, continuing to build his storylines around Torrie Wilson. Wilson was and is beautiful, no doubt, but whatever real life chemistry she had with Kidman backstage rarely found its way on screen. Liz and Randy they weren't. Long story short, this match should have way more heat but the stipulation feels unwarranted and has no connection to the story of their rivalry (at least as far as I could tell). There's plenty of whipping and choking and Kidman almost breaks his own neck with a scary hurricanrana. At one point, Kidman press slams Douglas off the top rope and proceeds to whip him mercilessly in the crotch. Douglas hits his finisher, but Kidman kicks out. Torrie Wilson gets involved when she accidentally strikes Douglas with her heel (this also leads to a real groaner from Mark Madden on commentary: "Torrie turned heel!"), but this only dazes the former ECW Champion. Kidman bumps Douglas into Torrie Wilson, who no-sells the impact like a Road Warrior in 86'. This allows Kidman to his own finisher and snag the win. After the match, Torrie Wilson comes in with a chair, but Kidman ends up whipping her around the ring to the delight of the audience. Shane is back on his feet, though, and we get a needlessly, ultra-violent angle that sees Douglas hang Kidman in the corner of the ring, lifting him off his feet with the strap around his neck in a truly grotesque visual. In 99', WCW had made it a point to present itself as a less raunchy, less extreme brand than the WWE, but in 2000, they had obviously ditched that position and were actively working to lower the bar as close to the Earth's core as possible (as we'll see in the next match). Big Vito comes down and makes the save and gets a surprisingly massive pop from the crowd. Was he from Toronto? A quick Google search reveals he wasn't, but for some reason, the crowd is really behind him making the save. The mysterious Reno shows up and attacks Vito and the two guys start duking it out. I don't remember Reno at all, but I wasn't watching WCW at this point and he never made it to the WWE post-buyout. This match was an improvement on the last two, but not nearly as good as the opener (and Madden's Torrie-obsessed commentary is insufferable). (2/5)

Stacy Keibler vs. Major Gunns in a Match-Must-End-In-A-Mud Pit Match follows. This match is just gross. If you're really into NC-17 rated upskirt porn, this would probably be your favorite match (or anything) of all time, but I know that doesn't describe me and most likely doesn't describe anyone else that would be reading this. This isn't just offensive to women, its offensive to everyone (including the performers in the ring). Just yuck. I was watching this in the gym and had to turn it off - not because there were other people using the ellipticals next to me, but because there were other people in the room with me. The last minute takes things to the darkest place possible as Stacy Keibler fakes a miscarriage by clutching her stomach and moaning in agony. Gunns pins her and David Flair runs out to check on her health. The announcers put on their "serious" voices and pretend that the incident "wasn't in the script." I know Vince Russo became a born again Christian years after this, I'm hoping this is something that struck him as particularly insensitive and cruel in hindsight. There's just nothing funny or entertaining about this sort of angle and it has no place in the realm of pro-wrestling, a genre that really shouldn't mess with things like miscarriages or cancer or HIV or other genuinely sensitive issues. One of the all-time lowest points in any wrestling company ever. This went from offensive to despicable. (0/5)

Sting returns and demolishes The Demon in under a minute next. This was a continuation of the Vampiro/Sting feud and, after losing their Graveyard Match at the last show, The Demon had joined Vampiro's ICP-inspired Dark Carnival stable and begun taking orders from his former rival. One has to kind of feel bad for Demon - he was a shit worker and the company spent way, way, way too much cash creating his character (they reportedly paid the rock bad KISS in the 100ks range for the right to do it), but losing to Sting in 50 seconds is some Gambler/Joey Maggs-level booking. Vampiro and Muta attack Sting after the bell, but he's saved by KroNik who then challenge Vampiro and Muta to a WCW World Tag Team Championship match later on in the show. I think the idea is that the champions are putting up the titles to lure Muta and Vampiro into the match, but its never really explained. It doesn't matter either as the end result is a second KroNik match and that's never good. This was more match than angle and it wasn't interesting as that either. (0.5/5)

Finally, a match featuring two guys that want to impress the crowd and actually do some work - Lance Storm defending the US ("Canadian") Championship against Mike Awesome. Lance Storm gets a hero's welcome in Vancouver and announces that tonight's contest will be held under Canadian Rules - meaning there will be a second referee. The crowd is going crazy expecting Bret Hart, but instead, they get Jacques Rougeau. Womp womp. This one is wrestled a little bit off if you ask me, as, at first, it seems like they're building up Storm as the underdog by having Mike Awesome dominate so much of the match - which isn't a bad idea considering how much the audience wants to cheer for their Canadian brethren - but the turn never happens and Storm never gets that big rally he should. Instead, Awesome defeats Lance storm by pinfall...then taps him out...then pins hhim again for a FIVE count...but Jacques Rougeau reverses the referee's decision every time citing the Canadian Rulebook. The audience is happy to see Storm retain in the end (when, after both guys go through a table, Rougeau announces that the first man on his feet will be declared the winner - and then proceeds to knock Awesome out with a right hand to the jaw), but they'd probably have been a ton more happy to see him get an actual win over Awesome or at least cheat his way to victory. Instead, they had to see "their guy" eat 3 clean losses (including a submission!) before having to have one of the Quebecers change the rules to help him keep his title. Treating Storm, a credible, talented worker, like a Canadian James Ellworth was just awful long-term booking and, guess what else? Mike Awesome still had an 80s haircut, no mic skills, and didn't gain anything from this. After the match, the crowd gets what they want: Bret "The Hitman" Hart. Hart comes in and hugs Storm, which gets the biggest pop of the show so far. Again, piss poor booking ruins what could've been a decent contest. (2/5)

Kevin Nash is interviewed backstage. He says he's "going over" Scott Steiner tonight and will then challenge for the World Championship. Ugggh..."insider terms" in promos? Lame then. Lame now. Lame forever.

The WCW World Tag Team Champions, KroNik, are back out for the next match, defending the titles against The Great Muta and Vampiro. Tony mentions that this card 10 matches and this one makes 11. Why did WCW do this? If they needed someone to do double-duty, why not put Storm over strong and please the crowd? Why do you even need someone to pull double-duty when Mysterio and Juventud don't wrestle? Or, here's an idea, have Sting put in more than 50 seconds? Whatever you have to do to fill time, it shouldn't have to involve KroNik. Nothing too much to say about this match aside from the fact that it is about as interesting (or uninteresting) as one would expect. The Harris Brothers end up coming in and screwing KroNik out of the titles because if there is one team that hates marijuana, it would be a team of Neo-Nazi bikers. (1/5)

Finally its time for one of the evening's bigger matches - Kevin Nash vs. Scott Steiner vs. Goldberg to decide who the Number One Contender to the WCW World Championship will be. Goldberg's entrance music plays twice, but he does not appear as the announcers discuss that he has yet to arrive in the building and was supposedly injured in a motorcycle accident. Uhh...okay? Nash and Steiner brawl outside of the ring and lo and behold, here comes Goldberg! This is supposed to be some ultra-meta super-smart booking but it just seems confusing. The crowd doesn't seem to be behind anyone, though there is a small "Goldberg" chant at one point. With Steiner selling, Nash finally gets his big opportunity to hit the Jacknife Powerbomb...but Goldberg escapes and walks out of the ring. The commentators go wild as Vince Russo appears, ranting and raving about how Goldberg "refused to go up for the Jacknife." The match continues and Mark Madden wonders aloud what the wrestlers will do now that they are "off script." Of course, none of this is made clear to the live crowd, who have just seen the one guy they were sort of behind quit the match. They're the lucky ones, though, because the home audience has to suffer through the commentators admitting that wrestling is fake but that Nash and Steiner are no longer faking the very poor, very slow and obviously cooperative "wrestling match" they're having. Wrestling relies on a suspension of disbelief, but Vince Russo's plan was to ignore that foundational, essential element and this is the result - one of the most insufferable matches/angles I've ever seen...since the last most insufferable angle I've ever seen (which was less than an hour earlier when Stacy Keibler faked a miscarriage). (0/5)

Main event time - Booker T vs. Jeff Jarrett for the WCW World Championship. Now, because the last match involved the BIG REVEAL that wrestling is fake and the outcomes are predetermined, this match has absolutely zero gravity - which sucks because, if Russo hadn't have taken a huge shit in the mouths of the announcers (rendering everything they say to be shit) and the eyes of the fans (making everything we see into shit), this would've been an improvement on their Bash at the Beach match a month earlier. There's actually a story to tell in this match as Jarrett attacked Booker earlier in the night and went after his knee. Jarrett goes after it from the jump and, down the line, applies the figure four in what was supposed to be one of the match's peak emotional moments. There's a ref bump (which has to be what? Number 12 or 13 on this 10-match card?) and Jarrett hits Booker with a guitar, but that is still not enough to secure him the title. There's a not-so-great table spot followed by an even less devastating Stroke into a chair too. I'm not in favor of guys taking heinous face-first bumps into steel chairs, but if you can't make the move look good, don't do it. After yet another referee goes down, Charles Robinson makes his way down the aisle and we get an actual finish with Booker T retaining. This was supposed to be a "feel good" ending but the fans shit on it and throw trash into the ring. I'm not necessarily sure what the straw that broke the camel's back was, but I'm guessing the Toronto crowd was probably just upset with the show in its entirety. The finishing stretch hurts what would've been an otherwise decent match. (2/5)


With a Kwang Score of 1.32-out-of-5, New Blood Rising manages to squeak by as not being the all-time worst pay-per-view of all time. Why not? The opener. That's it. Without that opener, this show's Kwang Score falls to a very sad 1.05. Everything aside from that opener is below average and, though I'm not going to fact check it, worse than any match that has ever appeared on any NXT Takeover show ever. If this is how bad WCW was in August 2000, I really can't imagine how terrible it was in 2001.

FINAL RATING - DUDleyville