When did Hogan's character start losing his luster?

[wildojinx]

Was binging some old OVP podcasts and they brought this up in one episode, when did Hogan's character (in kayfabe, nothing about Terry Bollea the person) start losing his luster in your opinion? Looking back, I'd go as early as the buildup to WM7. Even though Hogan had taken on "foreign" menaces before, the whole Super-Patriot thing just seemed odd, especially when we already had Duggan for that role. Of course, they pretty much had to do it since he was feuding with Slaughter.

["Cane Dewey" Johnson]

Jul 27, 2023 22:57:43 GMT -5 wildojinx said:

Was binging some old OVP podcasts and they brought this up in one episode, when did Hogan's character (in kayfabe, nothing about Terry Bollea the person) start losing his luster in your opinion? Looking back, I'd go as early as the buildup to WM7. Even though Hogan had taken on "foreign" menaces before, the whole Super-Patriot thing just seemed odd, especially when we already had Duggan for that role. Of course, they pretty much had to do it since he was feuding with Slaughter.

According to Randy Savage, Hogan never lost the lustre in his eyes for Miss Elizabeth.

[LiamMcDuggle]

Jul 27, 2023 22:57:43 GMT -5 wildojinx said:

Was binging some old OVP podcasts and they brought this up in one episode, when did Hogan's character (in kayfabe, nothing about Terry Bollea the person) start losing his luster in your opinion? Looking back, I'd go as early as the buildup to WM7. Even though Hogan had taken on "foreign" menaces before, the whole Super-Patriot thing just seemed odd, especially when we already had Duggan for that role. Of course, they pretty much had to do it since he was feuding with Slaughter.

WM7 is about right. He was saying things like he would join the US military and I think a lot of people saw through the pandering. Slaughter being a terrible heel and terrible in the ring also did not help 

[Ultimo Gallos]

For me it was after WMII. While I was never a big Hogan fan. After that PPV I was ready for anyone to get a run with the WWF title.

Major reason why I was a huge Warrior fan. I just knew he would beat Hogan.

[Dang!]

I first read "When did Hogan's character start losing his hair?".

SPOILER: Click to show

{Spoiler}{SPOILER: CLICK TO SHOW}(Since birth.)

[willywonka666]

To me, like a lot of things from the 80s, once the 90s rolled around (not immediately, but 90-91 ish) everything kind of took a hit in my eyes. I slowed down watching it, not because of Hulk, I'm a lifelong Hulkamaniac, but I won't watch anything WWF related from around the time Prime Time switched and Gorilla was gone. So yeah, 91 really, perhaps some of 90. There was trouble once Undertaker being the new guy that really took off, there was a shift that no one could help or stop.

[hassanchop]

There's always a luster on his bald spot

[thecrusherwi]

Definitely 1991 around the Slaughter feud. Through the Earthquake feud, he was still basically the same guy he'd always been, avenging an attack and standing up to the unstoppable monster. The Slaughter stuff felt much more like blatant pandering to current events and it didn't help that Slaughter looked like an old man so it was weird as a kid to see Hogan go toe to toe with him. I figured Hulk would beat him in two minutes.

The product as a whole got a bit edgier and a bit darker in the summer and fall of 1991 and Hogan's character just didn't seem to quite fit as well. Watching the build to Survivor Series and Royal Rumble, Hogan just doesn't quite seem as cool or as interesting as newly face Savage, Sid, Piper, LOD, Bret, Bulldog, etc. I can't quite explain why, but everyone else is either new or has evolved a bit and Hogan is cutting the same promo like it's 1987. It think it's a big reason why many fans backed Undertaker and then Sid instead of him. Those guys were just cooler. And as was said earlier, Hogan was SO synonymous with the pop culture of the 80s. Starting around late 91, a distinct 90s culture really started to get a foothold and if there was one thing that was universally uncool in the 90s, it was the 80s.

[tafkaga]

For me it's after WM3. I don't think Hogan had quite the same work ethic or intensity after he beat Andre, like he was starting to coast. The Megapowers angle was amazing, but it was Savage who was kind of elevating Hogan's work. We saw glimpses of prime Hogan after that but his first title run is where Hogan was at his peak.

[Aceorton]

He was never my favorite, but the No Holds Barred period after WM5 is where I found I was disliking him, and it only got worse. That's also when it started to occur to me that wrestling in general was a sleazy snake-oil industry. Everything connected to that movie was obvious crap to regular people, but on WWF TV, they were trying to paint Hogan as an Oscar contender, and it felt like he was 100% in on it.

[tirtefaa]

WWF - WrestleMania VII

WCW - Fingerpoke of Doom

[thecrusherwi]

Jul 28, 2023 9:00:12 GMT -5 Aceorton said:

He was never my favorite, but the No Holds Barred period after WM5 is where I found I was disliking him, and it only got worse. That's also when it started to occur to me that wrestling in general was a sleazy snake-oil industry. Everything connected to that movie was obvious crap to regular people, but on WWF TV, they were trying to paint Hogan as an Oscar contender, and it felt like he was 100% in on it.

I still like the Hogan character in 1989-90, but you're right the No Holds Barred stuff is strange. Like everyone is praising the movie. Even heels! Ventura, Heenan, Slick, even Brother Love are putting the movie over at times and putting over Hogan's performance. They would talk it up and then add "Though I think Zeus is the real star!" or some nonsense to try and save face. It's very weird.

[CeilingFan]

Jul 28, 2023 9:07:14 GMT -5 tirtefaa said:

WWF - WrestleMania VII

WCW - Fingerpoke of Doom

I agree about WM7, but Hogan really went downhill after losing the World Title to Goldberg. He needed feuds with Jay Leno and Ultimate Warrior to sustain any momentum.

[BRV]

In the WWF, I'd say it was WrestleMania VI. He'd clearly passed the torch to Ultimate Warrior and then spent the next year in upper mid-card feuds with Earthquake and I think most people saw through his feud with Sgt. Slaughter and WrestleMania VII main event as both pandering to the fans and not on the level of the previous WrestleMania main events, almost as if Hogan was brought back to the title scene to rescue WWF after the Warrior experiment flopped.

In WCW, it felt like the bloom was off the rose after the Fingerpoke of Doom. WCW fans had clearly moved on from Hollywood Hogan and the New World Order and wanted to turn their focus elsewhere, but he strolled back into the championship scene and reunited the nWo, which nobody seemed to want.

[tirtefaa]

Jul 28, 2023 10:20:25 GMT -5 CeilingFan said:

Hogan really went downhill after losing the World Title to Goldberg. He needed feuds with Jay Leno and Ultimate Warrior to sustain any momentum.

True, but the catalyst for just being unwatchable for me was when he regained the title. I'm okay with Hogan sliding down the card and feuding with lesser people as long as it allowed for the main event to evolve.

[Jaws the Shark]

I’m going to say that the lustre in WCW started to wear off long before the Fingerpoke of Doom, and actually happened when he started single-handedly vanquishing the Dungeon of Doom. He was pretty unbearable from that point until he turned heel and was polished up a bit.

[tirtefaa]

Jul 28, 2023 11:50:58 GMT -5 Jaws the Shark said:

I’m going to say that the lustre in WCW started to wear off long before the Fingerpoke of Doom, and actually happened when he started single-handedly vanquishing the Dungeon of Doom. He was pretty unbearable from that point until he turned heel and was polished up a bit.

Oh, it was bad...but it was only unwatchable for me once he had Ed Leslie as a mole in the Dungeon, who then became the Booty Man. But the stuff between Hogan, Sting, Savage and Luger was actually pretty good.

[Can you afford to pay me, Gah]

For sure his WWF popularity was really showed in 91 and was very clear in 92. WCW it was in the first year it started to become blah until the heel turn. The Dungeon of doom suff was so cartoonly and unbearable to watch. See the 2 very all the heels cage match. Than again I say Summer of 98 He and the NWO over stayed there welcome. The fact we still had it in 99 was worse. I've never been a fan of Hogan but Honestly from 98 to the end was very lack lustre. 2002 WWE return was a good run and really the last time he really truly mattered. Sure his HBK run and Orton happened but those where just what it was. Hogan shouldn't have beaten IMO either of them if he wasn't staying around. More so Orton who would gained a lot more with the win. Hogan didn't need to beat Orton.

[Jaws the Shark]

Jul 28, 2023 13:35:15 GMT -5 tirtefaa said:

Jul 28, 2023 11:50:58 GMT -5 Jaws the Shark said:

I’m going to say that the lustre in WCW started to wear off long before the Fingerpoke of Doom, and actually happened when he started single-handedly vanquishing the Dungeon of Doom. He was pretty unbearable from that point until he turned heel and was polished up a bit.

Oh, it was bad...but it was only unwatchable for me once he had Ed Leslie as a mole in the Dungeon, who then became the Booty Man. But the stuff between Hogan, Sting, Savage and Luger was actually pretty good.

Just Ed Leslie in WCW was pretty unbearable. I said about the Dungeon of Doom, but actually the Three Faces of Fear stuff with him as the Butcher was the absolute drizzling shits too, so maybe that's actually the first instance of the shine starting to come off.

[tirtefaa]

^ Yeah, while Hogan was certainly still over as the Red and Yellow in WCW...anyone who has been watching Hogan for years up to that point was pretty sick of his schtick. There were a few good things sprinkled in there, but he definitely was going to need to freshen up his act soon because with Nitro in the mix, I doubt it would have taken long to either lose the interest of the audience or for them to turn on Hogan.

Thankfully, the nWo happened.