What is the best STORYLINE of all time?

[Deleted]

From start to finish. What is the best storyline in history?

I don't mean feud or series of matches. I mean story wise.

For me, I don't think anything tops Flairs retirement story in 2008. From start to finish, that story was amazing. From the opening promo where Vince gives him the ultimatum to his matches with the likes of Kennedy, MVP and even Vince himself before taking on HBK at the grandest stage. I was there live for that match and it is definitely a top 5 match of all time for me. Storytelling wise, it might even be number one.

But after all that, and Flair's send off the next night, the story continued into HBK vs Batista which also had a great story of Batista resenting Shawn for ending his friends career and wanting to make him pay. Jericho gets involved as the special referee and HBK cheats his way to victory by faking a knee injury. Jericho takes massive offense to this and holds the fans accountable for continuing to cheer on a cheater.

Then he puts Shawn's head through the Jeritron, punches his wife and gets an amazing World Title run with a brand new character which culminated in a great Ladder match at No Mercy for the title.

Can anyone top this? This is probably one of the last times it looked like a story was actually planned from start to finish and they went through with it with no interruptions or changes. I wish every story was like this and not done on a week to week basis.

[Mozenrath]

Hogan vs Andre is up there. The contract signing remains one of the best bits of television that WWE ever put together, and Andre ripping Hogan's shirt and Piper telling Hulk he was bleeding still has this amazing atmosphere.

Hogan's a really easy guy to badmouth these days, and with good reason, but he was in top form. He really sold that he was devastated, and when he claims he'd have given Andre a title shot in a heart beat if he had only ever asked for one, you believe it. In spite of the dozens of shady things Hulk did as a face, he sells that it never had to play out like this.

Andre played it all so cold. He, in both kayfabe and real life, had an ego, and he sold very well that Heenan had poisoned his mind, playing off of his entitlement and envy. In the contract signing I mentioned before, he provokes Hogan by speaking in French and otherwise deliberately not engaging Hogan until the end, letting Heenan speak for him for most of the signing. "Au revoir," he bids Hogan.

Heenan, for his part, is just loathesome in the segment, dropping the world title on the table with extreme disrespect, demanding a new title belt be made, one fit for a man. Like, Hogan's a racist creep, and in the moment, you forget that and just want to throttle Heenan. He's not being funny, he's not doing a bit, he's just being a slimeball, like Don King without the showmanship.

It's very easy to see how they extended this storyline for years, past Wrestlemania 3. This was everything a good wrestling angle is made out of.

[MrElijah]

It's a toss up between Rise of Austin/Fall of Bret and the Mega Powers Saga.

[polarbearpete]

Feb 13, 2021 8:45:41 GMT -5 @negan said:

From start to finish. What is the best storyline in history?

I don't mean feud or series of matches. I mean story wise.

For me, I don't think anything tops Flairs retirement story in 2008. From start to finish, that story was amazing. From the opening promo where Vince gives him the ultimatum to his matches with the likes of Kennedy, MVP and even Vince himself before taking on HBK at the grandest stage. I was there live for that match and it is definitely a top 5 match of all time for me. Storytelling wise, it might even be number one.

But after all that, and Flair's send off the next night, the story continued into HBK vs Batista which also had a great story of Batista resenting Shawn for ending his friends career and wanting to make him pay. Jericho gets involved as the special referee and HBK cheats his way to victory by faking a knee injury. Jericho takes massive offense to this and holds the fans accountable for continuing to cheer on a cheater.

Then he puts Shawn's head through the Jeritron, punches his wife and gets an amazing World Title run with a brand new character which culminated in a great Ladder match at No Mercy for the title.

Can anyone top this? This is probably one of the last times it looked like a story was actually planned from start to finish and they went through with it with no interruptions or changes. I wish every story was like this and not done on a week to week basis.

That’s certainly one of my favorites.

Another contender is the Hogan-Savage saga from 1987 to 1989.

[polarbearpete]

I hear Sheamus and DelRio had a bitter rivalry.

[Push R Truth]

When Viscera and Lillian Garcia were doing sexual things with nachos and chili dogs, and then one week Viscera and Charlie Haas were having a tag match and they knocked Lillian off the ring apron and she got hurt. Then they cut a promo "We'd tell you why, but we won't."

The End.

[Mike Strike]

[msc]

MegaPowers explode would be up there.

Although in the last twenty years nothing has come close to: Vince tells Flair on RAW next time he loses, he's retired. This narratively follows through completely logically to the retirement of Shawn Michaels nearly 3 years later.

[thechase]

Benoit vs HHH vs HBK: From the false finish between HBK/HHH in December 2003 up until The Final Encounter at Backlash. Not even the horrors to come can subtract from how good that feud was. I don't count the epilogues involving that Hell In A Cell match and flipping Eugene.

[CeilingFan]

Feb 13, 2021 8:45:41 GMT -5 @negan said:

From start to finish. What is the best storyline in history?

I don't mean feud or series of matches. I mean story wise.

For me, I don't think anything tops Flairs retirement story in 2008. From start to finish, that story was amazing. From the opening promo where Vince gives him the ultimatum to his matches with the likes of Kennedy, MVP and even Vince himself before taking on HBK at the grandest stage. I was there live for that match and it is definitely a top 5 match of all time for me. Storytelling wise, it might even be number one.

But after all that, and Flair's send off the next night, the story continued into HBK vs Batista which also had a great story of Batista resenting Shawn for ending his friends career and wanting to make him pay. Jericho gets involved as the special referee and HBK cheats his way to victory by faking a knee injury. Jericho takes massive offense to this and holds the fans accountable for continuing to cheer on a cheater.

Then he puts Shawn's head through the Jeritron, punches his wife and gets an amazing World Title run with a brand new character which culminated in a great Ladder match at No Mercy for the title.

Can anyone top this? This is probably one of the last times it looked like a story was actually planned from start to finish and they went through with it with no interruptions or changes. I wish every story was like this and not done on a week to week basis.

The storyline goes even further! Jericho (for whatever reason) starts insulting wrestling legends. Flair confronts him about it. This leads to WM25 and Jericho vs. 3 Legends, with Flair in their corner.

It begins with Flair and it ends with Flair.

[Deleted]

Feb 13, 2021 10:02:38 GMT -5 thechase said:

Benoit vs HHH vs HBK: From the false finish between HBK/HHH in December 2003 up until The Final Encounter at Backlash. Not even the horrors to come can subtract from how good that feud was. I don't count the epilogues involving that Hell In A Cell match and flipping Eugene.

Eh, I don't know. HBK v HHH was played out. The Raw false finish was great but I remember people being pissed when they did another one at Royal Rumble and then when HBK was added to the Wrestlemania match. Plus, Benoit had been feuding with Lesnar and Heyman basically said he would never get another title shot unless he wins the Rumble which he does...and then jumps to Raw. They completely dropped the Lesnar/Heyman angle. It made it look like he was ducking Lesnar. Great match in the end but I don't think the storyline was anything special.

I think the HHH/Batista storyline from November 2004 to June 2005 is more worthy of making an all-time list. That was perfect from beginning to end. Throughout 2004 Batista was just Evolution's henchmen and if you watch any of his singles matches he wasn't over at all on his own. One night in November though they do a fakeout storyline where it looks like Batista got pissed off and took out HHH off-screen and the pop was so huge that management took notice. The slow-build began and by January Batista was the most over person on the show. I've never seen someone rise so fast. He went from a generic bodyguard to a guy people were begging to get to the top within weeks. The closest recent example I can think of is Drew McIntyre last year. He started 2020 as a generic, barely over heel then had a couple of segments that showed off his charisma and suddenly he was getting big pops and people were dying to see him take out Lesnar.

[Ben Wyatt]

Feb 13, 2021 9:44:55 GMT -5 msc said:

MegaPowers explode would be up there.

Although in the last twenty years nothing has come close to: Vince tells Flair on RAW next time he loses, he's retired. This narratively follows through completely logically to the retirement of Shawn Michaels nearly 3 years later.

....which led/tied into the HHH/Taker matches.

[stealthamo]

Feb 13, 2021 9:06:01 GMT -5 polarbearpete said:

I hear Sheamus and DelRio had a bitter rivalry.

[Stu]

This is how I see Bret's story. He began as a face who was confused over the changing landscape, and he left as a heel after being screwed by the boss. In between, he evolved from the face to the heel and it was awesome.

[Citizen Snips]

I'd say the whole Macho Man/Miss Elizabeth saga, with The Megapowers Exploding being a huge part of it.

[PTBartman]

Lot of good ones here, but let me throw one out that gets over looked. Tatankas heel turn. Totally got me, I was as sure as anyone that Luger had sold out to Dibiase

[Fundertaker]

As a full arc, Macho/Liz and Austin/McMahon would be it. But specific storylines, it has to be the Mega Powers. It made sense, it expanded the scope of both characters, full of drama, relatable to a point but also over the top grandiose like a main-event in the 80's should be, made the right steps, lasted the right time and had the right conclusion. And it made a boatload of money on top of it all.

[romanstylesiii]

The Bret/Shawn stuff was great TV largely because it was real

[Pushed to the Moon]

I always think the way they tied in Taker's mystery brother story with the HBK/Bret feud and the WWF title was perfectly executed. All kinds of strands tied together and multiple feuds happening at once which I don't think they ever even try any more.

[lavelleuk]

Weirdly I couldn't think of many good storylines, when I thought of my favourite matches or moments I either couldn't remember the storyline or remember the story wasn't great

But mankind v HHH retirement angle was the best, if you end with HIAC

Undertaker v kane was good to start, but then was overdone with years of "we're together!" "We're not feuding!" stuff

If you pretend it was all intentional DB storyline leading to beating hhh and then Orton and batista was great, including the wyatt family bits and his takeover fans thing hr did that I know not everyone was fussed on