Rassle Inn #44

The G1 Climax wrapped up recently.  AEW has Wembley coming up just around the bend.  Suffice to say, there is a lot happening in the world of wrestling.  So naturally, I did what any sane mark would do on a slow Monday night.  I watched (half of) Greed, the last PPV churned out by WCW.  It was bittersweet.  Nostalgia can do funny things to a man.  I missed most of this stuff when it was new.  In early 2001, I was 16 years old, and I was just beginning to "grow out" of professional wrestling.  A few years earlier, I was a WWF fanboy.  I had flipped the tube over to Nitro maybe once or twice during the Monday Night Wars, and while I didn't outright loathe the competition, I can't say that anything grabbed me.

Taking in Greed, you can see the seeds of modern wrestling pullulating, especially as it relates to high spots.  Cruiserweights ruled the roost.  As a matter of fact, this card saw the culmination of a scanty tournament to crown the first-ever WCW Cruiserweight Tag Team Champions.  For those playing at home, Elix Skipper and Kid Romeo reigned victorious.  "Who???"  I can hear you now.  And I wouldn't blame you for not recognizing those names.  If you ask me, the titles should have gone to either The Jung Dragons or Three Count.  Or anyone but Elix Skipper and Kid Romeo.

Man, the roster was congested with talents that were THIS CLOSE (you'll have to imagine the appropriate hand gesture...no, not that one) to becoming full-fledged stars.  The curtain puller featured Kwee Wee squaring off against Jason Jett.  They were dead serious about pushing this Jett fellow.  He acquired a handful of convincing wins in the weeks leading up to WCW's abrupt abeyance.  And then?  Nothing.  According to Wikipedia, he was released from his contract during a stint with the Heartland Wrestling Association, a developmental territory owned by the former Federation.  Makes you wonder.  If WCW had managed to stay afloat, would Jason Jett be a respected name in the industry?

There are scads of guys with the same story.  Chuck Palumbo, Sean O'Haire, Billy Kidman (I can't believe he didn't amount to much in Connecticut), Shawn Stasiak (paired with Stacy Kiebler, he looked like a million bucks), Mark Jindrak, Buff Bagwell...just kidding about ol' Buff Daddy.  The others?  Wasted potential.  So yeah, Greed is actually worth watching on a slow Monday night.  Is it possible I'm only saying that to justify paying for Peacock?  Hmm, no comment.  Mind your own business.