Man, I'm sorry to hear about the story with Flair and Stevie. Stevie worked way too hard to get to where he is, and no one deserves that kind of BS to happen to them. But what matters is that you didn't let it get to you man. Look at where he is now, and I'll say you definitely won out in the end. Thanks for the great content you two; this podcast is always a highlight of my working week!
In all my years being in "nerd culture", or whatever they wanna call it, I have heard people say "this is how much of a nerd I am..." and that precede something perfectly mundane. Stevie admitting he would play out his flight home in Flight Sim afterwards is truly the nerdiest thing. Love it.
Stevie Richards is such a nice guy! You can tell how genuine he is, his videos have made me laugh,cry and get me through some tough times. Thankyou Stevie lots of love from a guy in a little town in the UK 👍👍 X
Great episode. Great show in general. Big fan of Cornette, Russo, Bischoff, Dutch, etc "clips". But the Stevie Richards show I seem to consistently watch the FULL show day of. Great work guys!
I like listening to the full shows of those other guys if I have time, but Stevie's show is the only one I make sure to watch on UA-cam and not just listen as a podcast. The whiteboard segments and other things they show make it much watch. Though, I don't often get a chance to watch it the day of (like now, where I'm watching 6 days late).
@@stinkypinkeee5085 It sure was with the total cliffhanger ending where the show ended with Fonzie right in the middle of the air after he jumped the ramp.
I say it weekly and I will continue to say it, my favorite show anywhere. Stevie is a great storyteller, who is humble enough to not let his ego get in the way of a story. Then the host, does an amazing job of asking questions inside of the already established narrative. This show keeps me entertained. Both gentlemen are masters of their craft. Thank you for the top notch entertainment fellas. I try to recommend this to everyone I know.
That sounds like a cool alternate reality there. Tbh I don’t think much needed to be changed to make the Invasion story work. I think instead of Shane cutting the promo at Nitro I think it should’ve been Linda. And WCW needed some of those names like Goldberg, Ric Flair, and Scott Steiner in particular. And some names like Triple H, Chris Benoit, and Eddie Guerrero not be injured or in Eddie’s case fired for substance issues. I would’ve had it be WWF vs WCW vs ECW, and I would’ve had Shane bring ECW involved instead, I would’ve put Steve Austin on the ECW team with the likes of Benoit, Eddie, Jericho, Dean Melenko, and Perry Saturn also being with ECW. The nWo in Hogan, Hall and Nash wouldn’t work in a WCW invasion anyway because the nWo was about killing WCW, so why would they help WCW. So at Survivor Series 2001 it’s the final 3, in a 5 vs 5 vs 5 elimination match, Austin for Team ECW, Rock for Team WWF and Goldberg for Team WCW. Then the lights go out and Hogan, Hall and Nash appear and take them all out, you let Goldberg get counted out so he doesn’t take a pin, and you let the nWo drag Rock’s body over Austin for the pin. So how you introduce the nWo is by Vince needing an insurance policy so Team WWF could win at Survivor Series, in a deal that the nWo take over Raw. And Raw Is War becomes Raw is nWo. Led by Eric Bischoff as the Authority figure with the nWo in Hogan, Hall and Nash. Then over time you add more names to the nWo faction like Scott Steiner, Buff Bagwell, Big Show, and new members in DDP and Booker T. Then Triple H rallies up to reunite DX with XPac, Billy Gunn, Road Dogg (who shouldn’t have got released or let go), Chyna, and new members in Steven Richards and Justin Credible. As I would’ve had XPac, Billy Gunn, Road Dogg, Steven Richards and Justin Credible be the DX spin off group XFactor. Then in a twist they all turn on Triple H to reveal nWo shirts, with Chyna giving Triple H a pedigree. So nWo becomes this huge force led by Eric Bischoff with Hogan Hall Nash Scott Steiner Buff Bagwell Big Show DDP Booker T XPac Billy Gunn Road Dogg Chyna Steven Richards Justin Credible That’s how you book the Invasion story to then turn into the nWo invading, by helping WWF beat both WCW and ECW to then taking over Raw. How you get the nWo to implode and for babyface to dismantle to the nWo, I haven’t thought of that just yet. But everything would fit and flow a lot more smoother than what we unfortunately got in real life. That’s how I would’ve done it anyway.
In an alternate universe, AOL TimeWarner never makes the monumental mistake to sell WCW for far less than it was worth. They were so clueless that they cancelled the most watched show on the entire TBS channel at the time (Thunder). Why? Because they hated wrestling. Fast-forward to 2019 and the now renamed Warner admit they were wrong to cancel wrestling on TNT and TBS by signing AEW to those channels with ratings that are nothing compared to what WCW used to get in 2001.
I personally like the longer these videos are, I listen at work and I work alone, so the longer the better for me, also the topics are very interesting to me, thank you Stevie!
Another great episode fellas. Always keep me entertained thru out it all. I enjoy your insight on these different topics. Stevie, you are truly a good guy. No one had any right to embarrass you like that especially Dick Flair in the words of the Franchise. You had every right to knock his block off and you should have just to show even nice guys have their boiling point. Catch you on the next.
I totally feel James when he said the inVasion killed his interest in wrestling. I actually stuck by the following year, THEN the Reign of Terror was what killed my full-time fandom for good. I also remember being upset that only Shawn got to beat Hunter....what a coincidence... Plus, it wasn't fun anymore when it seemed like everyone I watched with was just complaining about the product, and the underlying politics. And the InVasion was my first glaring example of how Vince will never prioritize something that wasn't his idea. Of course, it was ALWAYS the truth, and it remained so until he left the company. Only since he really didn't have anyone else's creations to bury, he was now doing it to SmackDown and NXT. (NXT = mostly Hunter's idea, not Vince's. SD = UPN wanted it, not Vince. Only Raw was his "baby", on the other hand...) But....like how 2016 was the first time I saw the true nature of American politics, because it got that chance to be amplified, the InVasion was the first time I saw the true nature of Vince's prejudice against other people's stars.
Sad as it was to see Eddie dislocate (?) his elbow with a frog splash in his WWE ring debut, I was VERY impressed with the 'Radicals' match (w/ HHH & Poc vs Foley, Rock, Rikishi & Too Cool) and their amazing ability to so quickly adapt to the WWE ring dimensions & the locations of the 'set' ring cameras. After seeing them wrestle in WCW, I would NEVER have pictured seeing Booker T team up with Dustin Rhodes in a Tag-Team, but the WWE found a way to get 'Gold Dust' and 'King Booker' to be one of the most fun teams to see since the BWO (props to Nova!). Thanks for even MENTIONING the 'Midnight Rockers', classic AWA and UWF personalities and styles and ESPECIALLY the unforgettable 70's-80's era of the NWA. I'm 55 (in 2024), my brother (51) used to have a podcast with Kevin Sullivan, and had Road Warrior Animal apologize on-air to my Mom for the 'Spike in Dusty's Eye' spot that prompted her to forbid him from watching NWA on TBS. PLEASE keep up the AWESOME work you guys do on this podcast!
Bryan Clark, aka Wrath, aka Adam Bomb was my favorite wrestler growing up. I still keep his action figure that they made when he was Wrath displayed in my house!
My almost 2 year old has been running around all day doing the Double J "ha haaa". I listen to you guys all the time and greatly appreciate you both and so does my son
Hey Doc Stevie and James! Great episode here. I remember this time frame very vividly because I -loved- The Two Man Power Trip with Hunter and Austin and being heartbroken when Hunter tore his quad and sat out the entire InVasion angle. (Plus his return at MSG is a night I'll never forget. I still have that RAW floating around on an old VHS). But for me pretty much everything that came after the simulcast just being... a huge let down. Even with the talent they DID get in the buy out they could have done so much more with. Hell Booker, Palumbo and "Suga" Shane Helms could have carried a lot of weight. But then they wouldn't even let Helms use the finish that by any stretch was one of the most over things in WCW at the time (at a certain point I was watching Nitro just to see The Vertabreaker). Oh and O'Haire. My gawd that guy was a beast that moved like a Cruiserweight.
I have to say this Stevie Richards program is ABSOLUTELY incredible... it's hot, it's relevant, it's a different perspective the young dude as the co-host isn't stealing the spotlight like that other major modern industry podcasting Giant absolutely incredible program thank you
@@ProWrestlingReality do you mean giant like corporation size? Or giant as in a constant stress to the foundation of any building his corpulent mass is inhabiting?
Hilarious to hear the Aquette noise referenced, me and my friend will randomly do it to each other 24 years later, and know exactly what we're referring to. He actually goes, "shuuuuuuuuuut up... Whaaaaaaaatzup!?" As he desperately tries to do something, like, well, they've put me in this spot, and I'm a villain, and shit.... Ummmmm.... Budweiser ads! High art.
Went back to watch the Unforgiven 2001 tag title match. I don’t think it was bad, some just looked blown up/gased like was stated. And it seemed Irish whip heavy for such big men. I forgot Stevie was with Kronik. I liked the look they all had going, that could’ve been a really cool team if given more time.
Dean Winters is the actor Stevie was thinking of. OZ, Law & Order, Homicide: Life on the Street all share that east coast railway commute between Baltimore and New York. Hence why there's so much overlap.
Arquette turned heel and hit DDP with a guitar, allowing Jarrett to win. I only know this because I actually enjoyed the match as it happened live, and it's still fun to me to this day.
I’ve always thought Stevie Richard’s has been great. I loved RTC back in the day, booing them was great and creates amazing moments. Richard’s , you always shone even when you were putting people over . Always the consummate professional. Been watching this channel for ages and I don’t think there’s a wrestler out there who does a better more honest job of his recalling . You’re getting the credit you deserve and it’s nice to see
@matturner6890 Different type of content, I do agree the in jokes do create a barrier but you only need to watch like a couple of ring of the hawk stuff to get all the jokes.
Thank you for the video guys, my favourite to date ! Work nights before the day job and this took me back to happier times being 13 and all that mattered was raw and nitro, and occasionally ecw on Bravo 😂
Man, how AJ handled that situation with you and Rick Flair really shows how genuine he is. Also, I hope for the day when we can get an AJ vs. Stevie face off in Madden to finally see who is the Madden Champ after all these years would be a fun video for the gaming channel. Also another idea for the gaming channel, is Stevie playing as himself in any of the 2K MyRise story modes.
Well they have been telling their audience how terrible WCW was. Why would they want to see an invasion by them. Especially when u know Vince will never put them over, so u know how its gonna end.
Kinda sad to hear that DDP and Stevie aren’t so close anymore. I bought DDP yoga on dvd when it was branded YRG and Stevie was in at least one of the workouts
I remember the Invasion Pay per View. A few friends and I all threw in money to watch it and had a watch party. It was the first PPV we had all paid for to see live. We were all WcW and WWF fans (WcW nitro used to be on free to air tv here so we got to watch that every week but you had to have satellite tv to see RAW etc so video rentals at the time were very important) and we had our own dream matches we wanted to see. At the time I thought it was a great idea on paper but not executed very well probably due to the amount of talent they didn't bring over. I remember being a bit disappointed that a few favourites didn't show up
I love Stevie putting Goldberg over for being a role model. Can’t vouch for the whole, “Let’s give myself a concussion” bit, but it does make sense. As in the beginning (middle?), Stevie goes on about how Shawn Michaels caused him to get into wrestling. Role models are a thing. Get involved in your community! And what pizza place North of Gainesville is Stevie talking about?
I remember reading or hearing somewhere that David Arquette didn't want to be made champion, as he was a fan & didn't think putting the belt on an actor was a good idea. Looking back, WWE would have been better off not bothering with the Invasion angle. They were missing most of the big WCW stars that had guaranteed contracts (DDP, Bagwell and Booker T being the main exceptions), so from the start, the WCW roster looked weak by comparison. WWE might have been better off trying to rebuild the WCW brand first, maybe with a PPV-only format, building-up to a "WCW vs WWE" event at the end of the year. Anything would have been better than what we actually got.
Really sweet that your wife pushes you to do things that are just for fun. Its also incredibly practical. You can't succeed if you are burnt out and tired.
James about the culture. Two point hospital and civ are the best. Would love to see a stream where both Stevie and James play two pint hospital and civ
As a WCW fan, the Invasion was such a massive disappointment, coming right off the back of the totally devastating sale of WCW. It pretty much destroyed wrestling as a thing for myself and millions of others around the world, for a good long time anyway. I did end up crossing the line (watching TNA) but wrestling has never quite been the same again as it was during the WCW years.
IDK if I will ever meet Stevie person to person, but I would say just based on the hobbies we would get along and find stuff to talk about, beside wrestling.
I know I'm I'm the minority but I really enjoyed the invasion storyline. Of course it could have been better but I still marked out in 01.
Місяць тому+1
Dean winters is who you were looking for at the beginning. He's best known for the all state commercials and Oz. His twin brother was the apples guy from good will hunting
1:07:41 James, Buff just did a video on his channel about this. He said the day before they were in Tacoma and Raw was in Seattle. Also he said the only person to discuss the match with him and Booker T was Stone Cold. He also said at the time Pat Patterson booked the main events, and both him and Johnny Ace passed the blame back and forth for not discussing the match with them. Pat thought Johnny did, and Johnny thought Pat did.
Two years ago, WCW had Spring Stampede 1999 at the Tacoma Dome, and and had a successful show. I'm surprised a wcw match in a wwf ring didn't get a positive reaction.
It’s Who Wrestled In The Match. Booker T vs Buff Bagwell Wouldn’t Ever Headlined Nitro. They Weren’t In WCW Top 8-10. Fans Wanted Sting, Goldberg, Hogan, Hall, Nash, Luger, DDP, Flair, Sid, Savage & Piper. These Guys That Did Came To The WWE DDP, Flair, Hogan, Hall & Nash, Got The Biggest Pops. DDP & The NWO Pops Were Louder Than Austin & The Rock’s.
@allencollins5666 True. The event for Spring Stampede 1999 had Sting, Flair, DDP, Hogan, & Randy Savage as Special Referee. Wwf had DDP, but not the other four. I wonder if the main event would have been different if it as DDP vs. Booker T as the main event. I may have to agree with Steve Richard's conspiracy that Vince McMahon wanted the wcw experiment to fail.
I never even realized that WWE entrances are different than WCW's in that they don't ever look into the camera. I actually never really watched WWE; I was more of a WCW fan from '97 to 00. I mostly played the N64 and early Smackdown games, & I would only catch a RAW or Smackdown episode every once and again. I always liked Buff Bagwell in WCW. There's one match that made me laugh - it was a tag match - but I don't remember who his partner was or who they were wrestling against. All I remember is Buff's partner was getting the snot bet out of him and Buff would reach into the ring for his partner to tag him in, but every time the guy tried to tag his hand Buff would pull it away. Finally his partner tagged Buff in by slapping Buff all over his chest and shoulders. Just the way Buff would earnestly and sincerely reach his hand out to his partner and then pull it away every time his partner tried to tag him in, and then look around like "I don't know how he didn't tag me in" was funny and memorable enough that it has stuck in my mind all these years. I just wish I could remember who the other participants were. I always assumed Buff's partner was Scott Steiner because they did a lot of stuff together during their NWO days, but I only remember Buff.
1:17:42 Buff in his video said that after he went home Jim Ross said, “Don’t worry about the House Shows this week get some rest and we’ll see you on Monday.” Buff thought he said that because he had 20 staples in his head at the time. Once Monday rolls around he shows up in Atlanta and sees Vince and exchanges pleasantries, then someone asks him to go into a room that Johnny Ace, Jim Ross, and a couple others are sitting in. Johnny tells Buff he’s being released rather than fired, because if he’s released he can come back in 3 months but if he’s fired he can’t. He goes home and after 3 1/2 months calls in, and Jim Ross acted disgusted that he even called. And he never worked for WWE again. He also said that July 9, 2001 was the worst day of his life
I knew it was over for WCW when they started using the same ring set for nitro and thunder. Honestly they had some decent matches but little to no story and if there was it was bad, rushed and repetitive. Love the show and appreciate the content!!!
Oz is an underrated classic. It aired in the UK in early hours of the morning on Channel 4. There are some shows that leave you with emotional scars... Oz is one of those shows. It was a precursor to The Wire etc and does kind of have a connection to wrestling seeing as Jungle Boy Jack Perry's father is in the show!
Thanks for defending Kronik. I remember watching that match and enjoying it, then everyone was on about how bad it was. It wasn't the best work from anyone, but it was okay. It's a shame that they were never given another chance. Brock and Goldberg actually injured Taker in far worse matches and yet they stayed employed. I guess they were bigger stars, but even so. I think given a couple of months, Kronik could have been a great powerhouse tag team in the WWE, especially when working with smaller or more agile opponents.
I always felt bad for Bagwell about the whole situation. He took a gamble by not waiting out his contract and should've been one of the premiere guys from the first round of the Invasion imo.
The phrase "Jumping the shark" has kind of changed meaning over the years. The original reference (obviously to Fonzie literally jumping a shark in a season 5 episode of "Happy Days") was intended to be where the quality of a show peaked. These days, people use the phrase to mark the point that kills a show. Because of that, some people wrongly reference it and think that season 5 episode is what killed "Happy Days", but the show lived on for another 6 and a half seasons after that episode.
The phrase “jumping the shark” originally meant that writers had run out of ideas to carry on the original intent of a show and would start injecting new ideas into the show that departed from the original plot. The further a show moved away from the original idea, the show would lose popularity.
Really wished more questions were asked. Was Stevie aware ecw was coming in to the storyline? Why wasn’t he involved? What did the ecw guys think of how they were portrayed in the storyline? More backstage stories of that era as I assume things weren’t exactly normal during that brief period.
I didn't realize it until James mentioned it, but it was probably the invasion that started my interest waning in WWE. I still watched for a few more years but with less of an interest. I think it was a combination of the attitude era guys starting to age out, and the influx of lackluster WCW stars. The guys I did like were buried, except for Eddie and Chris. I still follow, but I watch more wrestling podcasts than actual wrestling these days 😆
Man, I'm sorry to hear about the story with Flair and Stevie. Stevie worked way too hard to get to where he is, and no one deserves that kind of BS to happen to them. But what matters is that you didn't let it get to you man. Look at where he is now, and I'll say you definitely won out in the end. Thanks for the great content you two; this podcast is always a highlight of my working week!
In all my years being in "nerd culture", or whatever they wanna call it, I have heard people say "this is how much of a nerd I am..." and that precede something perfectly mundane. Stevie admitting he would play out his flight home in Flight Sim afterwards is truly the nerdiest thing. Love it.
I don’t know, amongst simulator enthusiasts? Might be normal. I’m thinking of anyone who finished Penn & Teller’s bus ride video game with that.
I absolutely love it 😁
@@shenanitims4006 You need to be an absolute machine to complete that game 😂
@@LoyalWilliamUK Of course! I believe Penn, an early laptop enthusiast, helped create it. And wanted it to be close to impossible to finish.
Which is a mundane statement just not preceded by that statement. Illiterate clown you just rambled and argued against yourself with contradiction
Stevie Richards is such a nice guy! You can tell how genuine he is, his videos have made me laugh,cry and get me through some tough times.
Thankyou Stevie lots of love from a guy in a little town in the UK 👍👍 X
Related to john Bradshaw and preferring the guy who clobbered him 😂
Fellow uk Watcher to, down on the coast
One of the most obvious examples of a guy too nice for the wrestling business.
❤
@@dunnydun209yeah I'm in Lincolnshire mate
I love that these videos are full of educational, fact-checked, entertaining content for two to three hours each week!
Friday is the best day of the week for wrestling fans cause we’ve got Stevie, Maven, and all the other banger yt’bers
Great episode. Great show in general. Big fan of Cornette, Russo, Bischoff, Dutch, etc "clips". But the Stevie Richards show I seem to consistently watch the FULL show day of. Great work guys!
I like listening to the full shows of those other guys if I have time, but Stevie's show is the only one I make sure to watch on UA-cam and not just listen as a podcast. The whiteboard segments and other things they show make it much watch. Though, I don't often get a chance to watch it the day of (like now, where I'm watching 6 days late).
These shows are just getting better & better. The highlight of my week gents.
18:22 Stevie my man, Fonzie jumped the shark on his WATER SKIS, not a motorcycle 😂
It also didnt hurt the show until the following season in the ratings.
@@brianlogan4243But weren't the shark jump episodes a season finale?
@@stinkypinkeee5085 It sure was with the total cliffhanger ending where the show ended with Fonzie right in the middle of the air after he jumped the ramp.
@@stinkypinkeee5085 No. It was only the 3rd episode of the 5th season.
I say it weekly and I will continue to say it, my favorite show anywhere. Stevie is a great storyteller, who is humble enough to not let his ego get in the way of a story. Then the host, does an amazing job of asking questions inside of the already established narrative. This show keeps me entertained. Both gentlemen are masters of their craft. Thank you for the top notch entertainment fellas. I try to recommend this to everyone I know.
In an alternate universe, Vince kept WCW running as a separate company with crossover PPVs and stuff.
That sounds like a cool alternate reality there.
Tbh I don’t think much needed to be changed to make the Invasion story work.
I think instead of Shane cutting the promo at Nitro I think it should’ve been Linda.
And WCW needed some of those names like Goldberg, Ric Flair, and Scott Steiner in particular.
And some names like Triple H, Chris Benoit, and Eddie Guerrero not be injured or in Eddie’s case fired for substance issues.
I would’ve had it be WWF vs WCW vs ECW, and I would’ve had Shane bring ECW involved instead, I would’ve put Steve Austin on the ECW team with the likes of Benoit, Eddie, Jericho, Dean Melenko, and Perry Saturn also being with ECW.
The nWo in Hogan, Hall and Nash wouldn’t work in a WCW invasion anyway because the nWo was about killing WCW, so why would they help WCW.
So at Survivor Series 2001 it’s the final 3, in a 5 vs 5 vs 5 elimination match, Austin for Team ECW, Rock for Team WWF and Goldberg for Team WCW.
Then the lights go out and Hogan, Hall and Nash appear and take them all out, you let Goldberg get counted out so he doesn’t take a pin, and you let the nWo drag Rock’s body over Austin for the pin.
So how you introduce the nWo is by Vince needing an insurance policy so Team WWF could win at Survivor Series, in a deal that the nWo take over Raw.
And Raw Is War becomes Raw is nWo.
Led by Eric Bischoff as the Authority figure with the nWo in Hogan, Hall and Nash.
Then over time you add more names to the nWo faction like Scott Steiner, Buff Bagwell, Big Show, and new members in DDP and Booker T.
Then Triple H rallies up to reunite DX with XPac, Billy Gunn, Road Dogg (who shouldn’t have got released or let go), Chyna, and new members in Steven Richards and Justin Credible.
As I would’ve had XPac, Billy Gunn, Road Dogg, Steven Richards and Justin Credible be the DX spin off group XFactor.
Then in a twist they all turn on Triple H to reveal nWo shirts, with Chyna giving Triple H a pedigree.
So nWo becomes this huge force led by Eric Bischoff with
Hogan
Hall
Nash
Scott Steiner
Buff Bagwell
Big Show
DDP
Booker T
XPac
Billy Gunn
Road Dogg
Chyna
Steven Richards
Justin Credible
That’s how you book the Invasion story to then turn into the nWo invading, by helping WWF beat both WCW and ECW to then taking over Raw.
How you get the nWo to implode and for babyface to dismantle to the nWo, I haven’t thought of that just yet.
But everything would fit and flow a lot more smoother than what we unfortunately got in real life.
That’s how I would’ve done it anyway.
Same dude lol. Instead of Raw/SD/NXT, we get WWE/WCW/ECW
You mean Eric Bischoff bought it and got a tv deal
That's the only path for WCW to actually work out
In an alternate universe, AOL TimeWarner never makes the monumental mistake to sell WCW for far less than it was worth. They were so clueless that they cancelled the most watched show on the entire TBS channel at the time (Thunder). Why? Because they hated wrestling. Fast-forward to 2019 and the now renamed Warner admit they were wrong to cancel wrestling on TNT and TBS by signing AEW to those channels with ratings that are nothing compared to what WCW used to get in 2001.
@@namikstudios There are actually infinite realities with every possibility you can think of. It is quite fascinating.
I personally like the longer these videos are, I listen at work and I work alone, so the longer the better for me, also the topics are very interesting to me, thank you Stevie!
Another great episode fellas. Always keep me entertained thru out it all. I enjoy your insight on these different topics. Stevie, you are truly a good guy. No one had any right to embarrass you like that especially Dick Flair in the words of the Franchise. You had every right to knock his block off and you should have just to show even nice guys have their boiling point. Catch you on the next.
I totally feel James when he said the inVasion killed his interest in wrestling.
I actually stuck by the following year, THEN the Reign of Terror was what killed my full-time fandom for good. I also remember being upset that only Shawn got to beat Hunter....what a coincidence...
Plus, it wasn't fun anymore when it seemed like everyone I watched with was just complaining about the product, and the underlying politics.
And the InVasion was my first glaring example of how Vince will never prioritize something that wasn't his idea. Of course, it was ALWAYS the truth, and it remained so until he left the company. Only since he really didn't have anyone else's creations to bury, he was now doing it to SmackDown and NXT. (NXT = mostly Hunter's idea, not Vince's. SD = UPN wanted it, not Vince. Only Raw was his "baby", on the other hand...)
But....like how 2016 was the first time I saw the true nature of American politics, because it got that chance to be amplified, the InVasion was the first time I saw the true nature of Vince's prejudice against other people's stars.
2016? What are you banging on about? Found the political mark!
Grow up@@stinkypinkeee5085
Sad as it was to see Eddie dislocate (?) his elbow with a frog splash in his WWE ring debut, I was VERY impressed with the 'Radicals' match (w/ HHH & Poc vs Foley, Rock, Rikishi & Too Cool) and their amazing ability to so quickly adapt to the WWE ring dimensions & the locations of the 'set' ring cameras. After seeing them wrestle in WCW, I would NEVER have pictured seeing Booker T team up with Dustin Rhodes in a Tag-Team, but the WWE found a way to get 'Gold Dust' and 'King Booker' to be one of the most fun teams to see since the BWO (props to Nova!). Thanks for even MENTIONING the 'Midnight Rockers', classic AWA and UWF personalities and styles and ESPECIALLY the unforgettable 70's-80's era of the NWA. I'm 55 (in 2024), my brother (51) used to have a podcast with Kevin Sullivan, and had Road Warrior Animal apologize on-air to my Mom for the 'Spike in Dusty's Eye' spot that prompted her to forbid him from watching NWA on TBS. PLEASE keep up the AWESOME work you guys do on this podcast!
I literally say it every episode that comes out, STEVIE…. Oz, the boys references…… You have SPECTACULAR taste
Bryan Clark, aka Wrath, aka Adam Bomb was my favorite wrestler growing up. I still keep his action figure that they made when he was Wrath displayed in my house!
I'll say it than, you guys have the best wrestling show on UA-cam
My almost 2 year old has been running around all day doing the Double J "ha haaa". I listen to you guys all the time and greatly appreciate you both and so does my son
No-one should be made as small in their own workplace like Rick did with Stevie. Completely unacceptable. He is the bigger man.
Hey Doc Stevie and James!
Great episode here. I remember this time frame very vividly because I -loved- The Two Man Power Trip with Hunter and Austin and being heartbroken when Hunter tore his quad and sat out the entire InVasion angle. (Plus his return at MSG is a night I'll never forget. I still have that RAW floating around on an old VHS). But for me pretty much everything that came after the simulcast just being... a huge let down. Even with the talent they DID get in the buy out they could have done so much more with. Hell Booker, Palumbo and "Suga" Shane Helms could have carried a lot of weight. But then they wouldn't even let Helms use the finish that by any stretch was one of the most over things in WCW at the time (at a certain point I was watching Nitro just to see The Vertabreaker). Oh and O'Haire. My gawd that guy was a beast that moved like a Cruiserweight.
This is one show that's so good I actually watch the UA-cam version instead of just listening in the background
This has to be one of the best breakdowns of the Invasion. Well done guys 👏🏽👏🏽👌🏽
I have to say this Stevie Richards program is ABSOLUTELY incredible... it's hot, it's relevant, it's a different perspective the young dude as the co-host isn't stealing the spotlight like that other major modern industry podcasting Giant absolutely incredible program thank you
@@ProWrestlingReality do you mean giant like corporation size? Or giant as in a constant stress to the foundation of any building his corpulent mass is inhabiting?
Hilarious to hear the Aquette noise referenced, me and my friend will randomly do it to each other 24 years later, and know exactly what we're referring to.
He actually goes, "shuuuuuuuuuut up... Whaaaaaaaatzup!?" As he desperately tries to do something, like, well, they've put me in this spot, and I'm a villain, and shit.... Ummmmm.... Budweiser ads!
High art.
That little bit was hilarious!!!
The boys are back again, keep up the great work
Spoilt on a Friday with TSRS, Cultaholic Podcast and 83 weeks
Also loved kanyon great catchphrase underutilized
Ah yea I remember kanyon when he was dressed up a boy george.
Went back to watch the Unforgiven 2001 tag title match. I don’t think it was bad, some just looked blown up/gased like was stated. And it seemed Irish whip heavy for such big men. I forgot Stevie was with Kronik. I liked the look they all had going, that could’ve been a really cool team if given more time.
Dean Winters is the actor Stevie was thinking of. OZ, Law & Order, Homicide: Life on the Street all share that east coast railway commute between Baltimore and New York. Hence why there's so much overlap.
I was pacing in my room back and forth until I seen that notification 😎
Also 20:28
Arquette turned heel and hit DDP with a guitar, allowing Jarrett to win.
I only know this because I actually enjoyed the match as it happened live, and it's still fun to me to this day.
It wasn't a bad match at all. Totally undeserved reputation.
It's definitely not as bad as people make it out to be. At least it was a finished match unlike every nwo main event match on Nitro.
ARQUETTE WITH THE ACOUSTIC EQUALIZER!
@@namikstudios AN INTERNATIONAL OBJECT!
I loved you in WcW Stevie! You and Raven were sometimes comedic gold. Greets from Croatia!
As soon as ECW was added to the invasion, Stevie should of been made world champion. And then what? Then have him beat everybody
Should have*
@Shaun_Singletary you showed me, I saw(the error of my spelling ways😆)
Then take him all the way and have him beat austin and undertaker at wm 18
Then take him all the way and have him beat austin and undertaker at wm 18
@@Volvase have him stack rock and Hogan at x8 then challenge and pin triple h after the main event to send the fans home happy
I’ve always thought Stevie Richard’s has been great. I loved RTC back in the day, booing them was great and creates amazing moments. Richard’s , you always shone even when you were putting people over . Always the consummate professional. Been watching this channel for ages and I don’t think there’s a wrestler out there who does a better more honest job of his recalling . You’re getting the credit you deserve and it’s nice to see
Markyd123 posted a vid covering okada's first tna run. Featured a match against Stevie.
His stuff is so amateur compared to this though, he never bothers to explain the extensive channel lore and talks way too fast.
@@matturner6890 The hogan voice he does is fucking annoying too
@matturner6890 Different type of content, I do agree the in jokes do create a barrier but you only need to watch like a couple of ring of the hawk stuff to get all the jokes.
Good show guys, enjoy the insight. I enjoyed the Invasion PPV as a kid and some moments during the Invasion. Good stuff.
Thank you for the video guys, my favourite to date !
Work nights before the day job and this took me back to happier times being 13 and all that mattered was raw and nitro, and occasionally ecw on Bravo 😂
Man, how AJ handled that situation with you and Rick Flair really shows how genuine he is.
Also, I hope for the day when we can get an AJ vs. Stevie face off in Madden to finally see who is the Madden Champ after all these years would be a fun video for the gaming channel.
Also another idea for the gaming channel, is Stevie playing as himself in any of the 2K MyRise story modes.
Can you name the video breakdowns "I'll show you, you'll see"? 🙃
I always listen to the new episodes when they come out, but am I the only one who has an episode while going to sleep???😂😂
Me too dude
Well they have been telling their audience how terrible WCW was. Why would they want to see an invasion by them. Especially when u know Vince will never put them over, so u know how its gonna end.
Kinda sad to hear that DDP and Stevie aren’t so close anymore. I bought DDP yoga on dvd when it was branded YRG and Stevie was in at least one of the workouts
I wish kid me had enjoyed Stevie’s work more . Love this show so much .
I remember the Invasion Pay per View. A few friends and I all threw in money to watch it and had a watch party. It was the first PPV we had all paid for to see live. We were all WcW and WWF fans (WcW nitro used to be on free to air tv here so we got to watch that every week but you had to have satellite tv to see RAW etc so video rentals at the time were very important) and we had our own dream matches we wanted to see. At the time I thought it was a great idea on paper but not executed very well probably due to the amount of talent they didn't bring over. I remember being a bit disappointed that a few favourites didn't show up
'Break glass in case of six figure payoff" lol
Shout out to the top stars that still treated the job guys like human beings.
Great coverage of the Gods of Wrestling.
I love Stevie putting Goldberg over for being a role model. Can’t vouch for the whole, “Let’s give myself a concussion” bit, but it does make sense. As in the beginning (middle?), Stevie goes on about how Shawn Michaels caused him to get into wrestling. Role models are a thing. Get involved in your community!
And what pizza place North of Gainesville is Stevie talking about?
I never stopped watching wrestling
The never ending madden rivalry of AJ vs Stevie is honestly funny. You should have him on the gaming channel
I remember when the ECW invasion happened and Jerry Lynn wasn't included. "Well, he's f'd."
I remember reading or hearing somewhere that David Arquette didn't want to be made champion, as he was a fan & didn't think putting the belt on an actor was a good idea.
Looking back, WWE would have been better off not bothering with the Invasion angle. They were missing most of the big WCW stars that had guaranteed contracts (DDP, Bagwell and Booker T being the main exceptions), so from the start, the WCW roster looked weak by comparison. WWE might have been better off trying to rebuild the WCW brand first, maybe with a PPV-only format, building-up to a "WCW vs WWE" event at the end of the year. Anything would have been better than what we actually got.
Really sweet that your wife pushes you to do things that are just for fun.
Its also incredibly practical. You can't succeed if you are burnt out and tired.
Just in time for work!!! 🙌
James about the culture. Two point hospital and civ are the best. Would love to see a stream where both Stevie and James play two pint hospital and civ
Friday is my new favourite day
Flight sim! Dude, how fun would it be to get a bunch of listeners to spawn into the same airport and do some scenic routes. 🤟
Love the intro
The invasion PPV was the first PPV I ever ordered so I have very fond memories of watching it.
Likes the cold open. Is it gone? Also liked the ticker. Want to see them come back. Like the show. Keep up the great work.
Funny he mentioned it this episode, I was thinking stevie should be wearing some merch
As a WCW fan, the Invasion was such a massive disappointment, coming right off the back of the totally devastating sale of WCW. It pretty much destroyed wrestling as a thing for myself and millions of others around the world, for a good long time anyway. I did end up crossing the line (watching TNA) but wrestling has never quite been the same again as it was during the WCW years.
Really enjoy MarkyD123's content, learnt a lot about TNA from his channel
IDK if I will ever meet Stevie person to person, but I would say just based on the hobbies we would get along and find stuff to talk about, beside wrestling.
BOTCH WATCH! Got to be! Love Stevie’s reaction!
I know I'm I'm the minority but I really enjoyed the invasion storyline. Of course it could have been better but I still marked out in 01.
Dean winters is who you were looking for at the beginning. He's best known for the all state commercials and Oz. His twin brother was the apples guy from good will hunting
1:07:41 James, Buff just did a video on his channel about this. He said the day before they were in Tacoma and Raw was in Seattle. Also he said the only person to discuss the match with him and Booker T was Stone Cold. He also said at the time Pat Patterson booked the main events, and both him and Johnny Ace passed the blame back and forth for not discussing the match with them. Pat thought Johnny did, and Johnny thought Pat did.
Two years ago, WCW had Spring Stampede 1999 at the Tacoma Dome, and and had a successful show. I'm surprised a wcw match in a wwf ring didn't get a positive reaction.
It’s Who Wrestled In The Match. Booker T vs Buff Bagwell Wouldn’t Ever Headlined Nitro. They Weren’t In WCW Top 8-10. Fans Wanted Sting, Goldberg, Hogan, Hall, Nash, Luger, DDP, Flair, Sid, Savage & Piper. These Guys That Did Came To The WWE DDP, Flair, Hogan, Hall & Nash, Got The Biggest Pops. DDP & The NWO Pops Were Louder Than Austin & The Rock’s.
@allencollins5666 True. The event for Spring Stampede 1999 had Sting, Flair, DDP, Hogan, & Randy Savage as Special Referee. Wwf had DDP, but not the other four. I wonder if the main event would have been different if it as DDP vs. Booker T as the main event. I may have to agree with Steve Richard's conspiracy that Vince McMahon wanted the wcw experiment to fail.
I never even realized that WWE entrances are different than WCW's in that they don't ever look into the camera. I actually never really watched WWE; I was more of a WCW fan from '97 to 00. I mostly played the N64 and early Smackdown games, & I would only catch a RAW or Smackdown episode every once and again. I always liked Buff Bagwell in WCW. There's one match that made me laugh - it was a tag match - but I don't remember who his partner was or who they were wrestling against. All I remember is Buff's partner was getting the snot bet out of him and Buff would reach into the ring for his partner to tag him in, but every time the guy tried to tag his hand Buff would pull it away. Finally his partner tagged Buff in by slapping Buff all over his chest and shoulders. Just the way Buff would earnestly and sincerely reach his hand out to his partner and then pull it away every time his partner tried to tag him in, and then look around like "I don't know how he didn't tag me in" was funny and memorable enough that it has stuck in my mind all these years. I just wish I could remember who the other participants were. I always assumed Buff's partner was Scott Steiner because they did a lot of stuff together during their NWO days, but I only remember Buff.
All in for a gaming channel. About to join the Patreon in an hour too.
1:17:42 Buff in his video said that after he went home Jim Ross said, “Don’t worry about the House Shows this week get some rest and we’ll see you on Monday.” Buff thought he said that because he had 20 staples in his head at the time. Once Monday rolls around he shows up in Atlanta and sees Vince and exchanges pleasantries, then someone asks him to go into a room that Johnny Ace, Jim Ross, and a couple others are sitting in. Johnny tells Buff he’s being released rather than fired, because if he’s released he can come back in 3 months but if he’s fired he can’t. He goes home and after 3 1/2 months calls in, and Jim Ross acted disgusted that he even called. And he never worked for WWE again. He also said that July 9, 2001 was the worst day of his life
AJ broke his controller watching this
This was a great episode!
Interestingly, ecw on syfy was the ONLY wwe show I watched from 2006 to 2010.
But I sure as hell was watching TNA during that same time period
I knew it was over for WCW when they started using the same ring set for nitro and thunder. Honestly they had some decent matches but little to no story and if there was it was bad, rushed and repetitive. Love the show and appreciate the content!!!
Oz is an underrated classic. It aired in the UK in early hours of the morning on Channel 4. There are some shows that leave you with emotional scars... Oz is one of those shows. It was a precursor to The Wire etc and does kind of have a connection to wrestling seeing as Jungle Boy Jack Perry's father is in the show!
Thanks for defending Kronik. I remember watching that match and enjoying it, then everyone was on about how bad it was. It wasn't the best work from anyone, but it was okay. It's a shame that they were never given another chance. Brock and Goldberg actually injured Taker in far worse matches and yet they stayed employed. I guess they were bigger stars, but even so. I think given a couple of months, Kronik could have been a great powerhouse tag team in the WWE, especially when working with smaller or more agile opponents.
I always felt bad for Bagwell about the whole situation. He took a gamble by not waiting out his contract and should've been one of the premiere guys from the first round of the Invasion imo.
Planet Zoo is FANTASTIC!!! We plan on doing an episode on it sometime this next year
The phrase "Jumping the shark" has kind of changed meaning over the years. The original reference (obviously to Fonzie literally jumping a shark in a season 5 episode of "Happy Days") was intended to be where the quality of a show peaked. These days, people use the phrase to mark the point that kills a show. Because of that, some people wrongly reference it and think that season 5 episode is what killed "Happy Days", but the show lived on for another 6 and a half seasons after that episode.
The phrase “jumping the shark” originally meant that writers had run out of ideas to carry on the original intent of a show and would start injecting new ideas into the show that departed from the original plot. The further a show moved away from the original idea, the show would lose popularity.
this show is so freaking good .
Really wished more questions were asked. Was Stevie aware ecw was coming in to the storyline? Why wasn’t he involved? What did the ecw guys think of how they were portrayed in the storyline? More backstage stories of that era as I assume things weren’t exactly normal during that brief period.
WM 14 Kane vs Undertaker is one of the most underrated matches in pro-wrestling history.
Hey Stevie I myself have a Thrust Master for my flying needs I used to play a huge amount of Elite Dangerous , Curious if you had a go at that?
I watched OZ not long ago and the cast of Dexter is in it too
8:35 How the fuck did you know that offhand?! Crazy impresive maths, my dude 😂
Barry Orton always catching strays 😂
This podcast is so so sooo good !
Shane helping to set up for shows🤔 That's one ring boy with an iron clad 'No Touching' rule 😅
I stopped watching wrestling because the invasion angle. I was so pissed off.
this is a great show
In a business with many missed opportunities The WCW/ECW Invasion angle remains the biggest fuck up and missed opportunity
Rass-a-lin' talk. I love it.👍
Higher buyer rate than most manias people really thought sting goldberg hogan nwo would show up
I enjoyed Vincent D'onofrio in law & order criminal intent. He was amazing in that show
The Invasion was as big as the Avengers finally meeting and fighting the Justice League and there was almost as much backstage politics
Would love to see Stevie do a wrestling empire playthrough
Hi I'm from London UK . I don't recall ever seeing wcw on TV in the 2000's what channel was it on.
I didn't realize it until James mentioned it, but it was probably the invasion that started my interest waning in WWE. I still watched for a few more years but with less of an interest. I think it was a combination of the attitude era guys starting to age out, and the influx of lackluster WCW stars. The guys I did like were buried, except for Eddie and Chris. I still follow, but I watch more wrestling podcasts than actual wrestling these days 😆
new game- every time stevie says there might be a gaming channel coming soon take a shot.