The Blue Nova
Don Corleone
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Post by The Blue Nova on Jul 5, 2022 15:59:43 GMT -5
I know he said in interviews how miserable he was and I have heard people comment negative about it especially towards the end. But I found his commentary especially from 1994 to 1996/1997 really good and entertaining although by 1999 you could tell his heart was not in it as much
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Post by wrestlingrecap on Jul 5, 2022 16:10:08 GMT -5
I like his commentary the whole time. But, in 2000 when he gets regulated to Thunder, he really checks out and doesn't care.
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Post by nakedmideon on Jul 5, 2022 16:24:46 GMT -5
Yeah i agree.still thought he was top of his game for a long time in wcw
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Mozenrath
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Post by Mozenrath on Jul 5, 2022 16:26:34 GMT -5
Peaks and valleys, really. I think there's definitely quality content in there, like calling Hogan's turn and Hogan's loss to Goldberg are two things literally no one on earth was going to be more qualified to do due to his specific history with Hogan, but obviously also times he seemed drunk/stoned, irritated, or bored by. I think Schiavone and Heenan's styles clashed to a degree, but also just that they were set up to fail by stupid "work the boys" booking decisions, like not making it clear to them what the hell they were even supposed to be reacting to with certain angles. Frustrations on both sides would show clear as day.
Heenan made the right call for himself in terms of money, being with his family and working less, etc, but I do also get the same impression that I have with Nash, Hall, and some others, that they inherently had less respect for WCW to a degree. It wasn't just them, obviously, but it's probably a natural consequence of having such a different approach, along with WCW's difficulty finding prestige once they cut ties with the NWA. They didn't have the same level of tradition as the WWF did, and that had certain drawbacks.
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Post by Gremlin on Jul 5, 2022 16:27:13 GMT -5
No Heenan commentary thread is complete without this one, so I'll get it out of the way. College!? |
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Post by wildojinx on Jul 5, 2022 16:37:35 GMT -5
I like his commentary the whole time. But, in 2000 when he gets regulated to Thunder, he really checks out and doesn't care. I think he was legit excited about Goldberg and thought he was going to be a game-changer, but when they did what they did with him in 1999 and beyond, he pretty much realized he was in a failing company. |
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Post by A Platypus Rave on Jul 5, 2022 16:50:35 GMT -5
Peaks and valleys, really. I think there's definitely quality content in there, like calling Hogan's turn and Hogan's loss to Goldberg are two things literally no one on earth was going to be more qualified to do due to his specific history with Hogan, but obviously also times he seemed drunk/stoned, irritated, or bored by. I think Schiavone and Heenan's styles clashed to a degree, but also just that they were set up to fail by stupid "work the boys" booking decisions, like not making it clear to them what the hell they were even supposed to be reacting to with certain angles. Frustrations on both sides would show clear as day. Heenan made the right call for himself in terms of money, being with his family and working less, etc, but I do also get the same impression that I have with Nash, Hall, and some others, that they inherently had less respect for WCW to a degree. It wasn't just them, obviously, but it's probably a natural consequence of having such a different approach, along with WCW's difficulty finding prestige once they cut ties with the NWA. They didn't have the same level of tradition as the WWF did, and that had certain drawbacks. Them not having a set heriarchy probably didn't help Heenan either. But them not telling the commentators what's going to happen really hampered his style a few times. |
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chazraps
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Post by chazraps on Jul 5, 2022 16:55:41 GMT -5
Heenan 1994-1998 is outstanding. His best moments rival his best WWF performances.
Especially when left to his own devices on Worldwide.
The whole "Heenan was bad in WCW" is something parroted by people who think "but whose side is he on?" was in any way whatsoever a bad call. People who don't know what they're talking about.
Even the Hog Wild / Road Wild events that his contemporaries claimed bothered them for his drinking during the show, unprofessional as it may have been, didn't affect his great performances.
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The Blue Nova
Don Corleone
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Post by The Blue Nova on Jul 5, 2022 17:35:53 GMT -5
Heenan 1994-1998 is outstanding. His best moments rival his best WWF performances. Especially when left to his own devices on Worldwide. The whole "Heenan was bad in WCW" is something parroted by people who think "but whose side is he on?" was in any way whatsoever a bad call. People who don't know what they're talking about. Even the Hog Wild / Road Wild events that his contemporaries claimed bothered them for his drinking during the show, unprofessional as it may have been, didn't affect his great performances. thats what im saying 1994 to 1998 he was great but soome people make it seem like he was the worst announcer at that point he wasn't |
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tafkaga
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Post by tafkaga on Jul 5, 2022 19:35:56 GMT -5
I think the trouble is we mostly remember how good Heenan and Gorilla were together, and WCW just didn't have a Gorilla. The Vince/Bobby duo was good, but not as good as Gorilla/Bobby. Likewise, Tony/Bobby were not Gorilla/Bobby, but I think they were at least as good as Vince/Bobby, and probably better because Vince imo has always been annoying.
However, I think the Tony/Bobby/Dusty trio were fantastic, and I probably laughed at their PPV broadcasts as much as I laughed at Gorilla/Bobby.
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Post by wrestlingrecap on Jul 7, 2022 15:52:58 GMT -5
I like his commentary the whole time. But, in 2000 when he gets regulated to Thunder, he really checks out and doesn't care. I think he was legit excited about Goldberg and thought he was going to be a game-changer, but when they did what they did with him in 1999 and beyond, he pretty much realized he was in a failing company. He's said that shortly after arriving in 1994, Bischoff shot down Heenan giving any input and to just remain a commentator, since that was his job. Heenan just collected a check from then on. |
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Post by GodzillaIsMyMonster on Jul 7, 2022 16:10:22 GMT -5
Honestly... I never thought he was a good commentator. He spent most matched making dumb jokes and out of touch cultural references.
And he got even worse in WCW.
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Mozenrath
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Post by Mozenrath on Jul 7, 2022 22:14:05 GMT -5
I think he was legit excited about Goldberg and thought he was going to be a game-changer, but when they did what they did with him in 1999 and beyond, he pretty much realized he was in a failing company. He's said that shortly after arriving in 1994, Bischoff shot down Heenan giving any input and to just remain a commentator, since that was his job. Heenan just collected a check from then on. Unsurprising. Even people who kinda like Bischoff admit he can be a dick sometimes, especially when he had a big role in WCW. Wouldn't be surprised if the pressure got to him and he kind of lashed out at people as a result. |
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Cranjis McBasketball
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Post by Cranjis McBasketball on Jul 7, 2022 23:43:22 GMT -5
He's said that shortly after arriving in 1994, Bischoff shot down Heenan giving any input and to just remain a commentator, since that was his job. Heenan just collected a check from then on. Unsurprising. Even people who kinda like Bischoff admit he can be a dick sometimes, especially when he had a big role in WCW. Wouldn't be surprised if the pressure got to him and he kind of lashed out at people as a result. Heenan said in his book it was an idea for Cactus Jack and Maxx Payne. |
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Post by thegame415 on Jul 8, 2022 0:03:57 GMT -5
I don't mind a lot of his WCW work, but as mentioned, by 1999 you can see he's just not into it anymore.
A gem from a Nitro I just watched...It's not long after Scott Steiner joins the NWO, and he's in a tag match. Rick, on the other team, comes out with a dog and Heenan says "he brought out their sister".
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Post by carter 15 on Jul 8, 2022 1:20:40 GMT -5
I think he added a ton to Goldbergs run. Which is a huge part of WCWs history
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tafkaga
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Post by tafkaga on Jul 8, 2022 9:01:36 GMT -5
He's said that shortly after arriving in 1994, Bischoff shot down Heenan giving any input and to just remain a commentator, since that was his job. Heenan just collected a check from then on. Unsurprising. Even people who kinda like Bischoff admit he can be a dick sometimes, especially when he had a big role in WCW. Wouldn't be surprised if the pressure got to him and he kind of lashed out at people as a result. I believe Eric has said as much. Dude had tunnel vision and created this big monster to achieve his goals. Congrats, he achieved them, but I'm sure the day to day of dealing with all the bullshit was pretty grueling. I'm sure it's hard to be the leader, especially when surrounded by so many fragile egos who have already reached superstardom and are extremely protective of their public images. Also, Eric didn't have that larger than life folk hero image that Vince had, where people would treat him with deference because he was some kind of a savant wrestling kingpin. |
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Post by Jindrak Mark on Jul 8, 2022 12:32:48 GMT -5
I still loved him during his WCW days. He was always entertaining even if he was half-assing it.
After "whose side is he on?", my main memory of him in WCW was his tribute to Gorilla on Nitro after he died. Apparently he had to fight WCW to even let him say a few words on screen about his friend.
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salz4life
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Post by salz4life on Jul 8, 2022 12:36:16 GMT -5
Even when he stunk, he was still pretty damn entertaining. I'm convinced if Heenan was still around and able to do commentary, he would make whichever company he was in seem even better.
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salz4life
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Post by salz4life on Jul 8, 2022 12:38:34 GMT -5
I still loved him during his WCW days. He was always entertaining even if he was half-assing it. After "whose side is he on?", my main memory of him in WCW was his tribute to Gorilla on Nitro after he died. Apparently he had to fight WCW to even let him say a few words on screen about his friend. I will go to my grave saying the "Who's side is he on?" line was perfectly on brand for his character. It was actually a brilliant line and ONLY in hindsight could it be considered a spoiler. I remember watching it live and not even considering Hogan turning and thought the line was funny. Granted, I wasn't really on the internet for wrestling at the time, so I had no insider knowledge at the time. |
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