segaz
Samurai Cop
Posts: 2,381
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Post by segaz on Jan 9, 2019 6:10:49 GMT -5
I'm of a very mixed opinion here - and this is strictly my own subjective opinion - but while I agree that Hogan deserved to be the one to eulogize Gene (and that does not absolve Hogan of any of his missteps in being a decent human being) Some people don't seem able to recognise that. If Vince died and Hogan spoke, they'd say he shouldn't have because he's stealing the focus, literally burying others. I'm critical of Hogans 'apology' also, but I can't deny it would have been stupid and unnecessary for him to be banned from the event. Someone else in the Mean Gene RIP thread talked about how they really were close friends across 3 major promotions and went back even before the WWF. This wasn't just like getting a random wrestler to do a random interviewer, say Bret to honour Todd Pettingil. If Hulk had gone first, guaranteed Gene would have been doing the same back to him.
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Post by celtics543 on Jan 9, 2019 7:07:39 GMT -5
mobile.twitter.com/WWEShop/status/1082351228456235008They tweeted that hours before RAW. That's what the whole thing was about. I don't doubt Hogan is legit mourning a longtime friend, but overall, WWE wanted him back to make some money, they saw Mean Gene's death as an opportunity to do that. Yup, I appreciate some people are being glass half full on this one, but we know Vince, we know Hogan, and as much as it may have had a tinge of authenticity, plenty other equally as important figures have passed without an MC coming out to talk about them. I feel that Vince told Hogan "let's wait til the time is right" and Vince took this tragedy and used it. Some see it as good. I see it as a strategic maneuver and a marketing ploy. I'm not saying that Hogan wasn't upset at the loss of his friend, but no one else in recent memory that passed got this much of a farewell. Vince was waiting for the "right" moment, and if you think about it, it's actually in poor taste. Did Gene deserve that farewell? Hell yes. But so have plenty of other people who have passed away and some barely got the graphic at the beginning of the show. This was bordering on poor taste masked as a feel good moment. Some people are buying it as the latter, and that's totally fine. But this was completely on purpose. And not all in a good way. You say that we know Vince and Hogan but do we really? I've never met them and I assume you haven't either. We know what we see on tv, what we read in books (most by bitter ex wrestlers with an axe to grind), and we know what Dave Meltzer and other "insiders" tell us but we don't really know them. Gene seems like a great human being and I'm sure both were pretty torn up over his passing. Vince and Hulk talked I'm sure and decided that Hulk would be the best person to eulogize Gene on tv, which he absolutely is there were no other choices that make sense. Hogan was the only guy that could lead that tribute to Gene and the tribute was better because he was there. I view him eulogizing Gene similarly to when Sylvester Stallone inducted Hogan into the hall of fame or when Wade Boggs showed up to induct Curt Hennig, having a big star do it only raises the level of importance of the person they're talking about and brings more eyeballs to it. Having Hulk Hogan, one of Mean Gene's legit long time friends eulogize him on Raw only brings more attention to Gene and has more people talking about him, regardless of who's in the headline. Hogan did nothing to promote himself at all during the segment and even managed to pay tribute to several other wrestlers who have passed away. He did alright and I enjoyed watching it.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Jan 9, 2019 8:14:48 GMT -5
I think Hogan brought more attention to Gene. For that moment, perhaps, but Mean Gene was a headline the day he died, and got the kind of mainstream press outside wrestling that Piper, Savage and Warrior got when they died. .....an interviewer. Sure, interviewing Hogan was a big highlight, but he was a consistent face and voice across wrestling for 2 decades, interviewing everybody. Interviewing. Gene Okerlund did that.
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