Post by OGBoardPoster2005 on Apr 9, 2024 8:54:42 GMT -5
I rewatched this for the first time in years the other day. Here are my observations:
The fact that the WCW Championship is the Main Event of a WWF Pay-Per-View really had to be shocking to a lot of people who may not had watched in the months or even years leading up. You have Howard Finkel as Ring Announcer still and saying "for the WCW Championship" is surreal to hear, even in 2024. But you also have Jim Ross on commentary and Charles Robinson in the ring wearing the WCW logo. Just a crazy sight to see if you were someone that stopped watching in 2000 and just happened upon this match.
The feud itself is based on Booker being a Rock wannabe, which the WCW fan in me hated, but given that Booker was written like The Rock in WCW at times towards the end, even using the Bookend more prominantly (even though he used it first), I understand where to a WWF fan unfamiliar that Booker would fit that part.
That said, Booker in the build up is hilarious about it. From trying to play a British Nobel in order to be in a movie like The Rock to his outbursts when people mistake him for someone else. He makes up for it in the build up by beating up The Rock a lot, but you can tell the story is Booker trying to be on level with The Rock.
As for the match, its not a bad one. A typical Attitude Era Main Event and Booker only really loses because he got cocky and thought he could pose and taunt the Rock, not realizing he allowed him an opportunity to rise back up and hit the Rock Bottom.
Pretty poetic, that Booker tries to match the Rock in flashiness and being a strong dominant character, but ultimately loses because of the vanity as The Rock uses his wrestling instincts and smarts to steal a win at the end.
Your thoughts? 23 years later and its crazy to think 13 months prior to this Booker was still GI Bro in a mid card feud with Chris Kanyon and part of the MIA stable and by the end of 2001 he had high profile matches with Jeff Jarrett, Kevin Nash, Goldberg, Scott Steiner, Sting, The Rock, Kurt Angle, Steve Austin, and Undertaker. Quite a jump from feuding with Ahmed Johnson over the letter "T" in the Winter of 2000.
The fact that the WCW Championship is the Main Event of a WWF Pay-Per-View really had to be shocking to a lot of people who may not had watched in the months or even years leading up. You have Howard Finkel as Ring Announcer still and saying "for the WCW Championship" is surreal to hear, even in 2024. But you also have Jim Ross on commentary and Charles Robinson in the ring wearing the WCW logo. Just a crazy sight to see if you were someone that stopped watching in 2000 and just happened upon this match.
The feud itself is based on Booker being a Rock wannabe, which the WCW fan in me hated, but given that Booker was written like The Rock in WCW at times towards the end, even using the Bookend more prominantly (even though he used it first), I understand where to a WWF fan unfamiliar that Booker would fit that part.
That said, Booker in the build up is hilarious about it. From trying to play a British Nobel in order to be in a movie like The Rock to his outbursts when people mistake him for someone else. He makes up for it in the build up by beating up The Rock a lot, but you can tell the story is Booker trying to be on level with The Rock.
As for the match, its not a bad one. A typical Attitude Era Main Event and Booker only really loses because he got cocky and thought he could pose and taunt the Rock, not realizing he allowed him an opportunity to rise back up and hit the Rock Bottom.
Pretty poetic, that Booker tries to match the Rock in flashiness and being a strong dominant character, but ultimately loses because of the vanity as The Rock uses his wrestling instincts and smarts to steal a win at the end.
Your thoughts? 23 years later and its crazy to think 13 months prior to this Booker was still GI Bro in a mid card feud with Chris Kanyon and part of the MIA stable and by the end of 2001 he had high profile matches with Jeff Jarrett, Kevin Nash, Goldberg, Scott Steiner, Sting, The Rock, Kurt Angle, Steve Austin, and Undertaker. Quite a jump from feuding with Ahmed Johnson over the letter "T" in the Winter of 2000.
