Alternate Universe: What If WCW Had Survived?

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Written By: Mark Armstrong

In 2001, the wrestling business changed dramatically. Both ECW and WCW went under, the latter being purchased by the WWF. The short-term fall-out included the Invasion angle by what would become a WCW/ECW Alliance, followed by the Brand Extension split of the WWF/WWE which set the course of history on a new path. But what if WCW had remained in existence?

Although ECW had a loyal following, it simply would not and could not have grown into a mainstream powerhouse, unless it was acquired by a larger parent organisation; and if that had been the case, the vulgar style of the company may have been forced to change. However, WCW was a major mainstream wrestling promotion, even during its final months of life. Therefore, its demise had a much bigger impact. But it's interesting to consider how things might have transpired had the company managed to continue.

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Weekly Wrestling Thoughts (September 2 2016)

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Written By: Mark Armstrong

I noted last week, during an extremely eventful SummerSlam weekend along with its wealth of fall-out, that this current week wouldn't be anywhere near as exciting. While that proved to be the case, there has still been plenty going on in wrestling, including a major angle and an unsurprising departure from the WWE roster, so let's get to my thoughts on another week in the wacky world of wrestling.

Before I begin, it was sad to hear that Mr. Fuji had passed away at the age of 82. Although Fuji was an accomplished wrestler and a multi-time Tag Team Champion in the WWWF, I knew him more as a devious, evil yet entertaining and almost lovable rogue manager from the boom period of the late 1980s for the WWF. He managed the likes of Demolition and Yokozuna to championship gold, playing a vital role in Yoko's first WWF Title win at WrestleMania IX, and cutting a humorous promo on Hulk Hogan to set up Hogan's impromptu title win ("Come on, ya yellow-belly, come on!"). He was also well-known for practical jokes, some of which went a bit extreme (Roddy Piper recounted one such tale on a Q&A tour in 2014, which involved Fuji, another Japanese wrestler and a dog, which is probably best not repeated here). But Fuji was unquestionably a legendary name, and fittingly entered the WWE Hall Of Fame in 2007. RIP Mr. Fuji.

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Eric Bischoff - Sports Entertainment's Most Controversial Figure

Image Source: Amazon

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Running Time: 431 Minutes
Certificate: 15
Number Of Discs: 3
Studio: Fremantle Home Entertainment
Released: June 13 2016

Of all the personalities who have come and gone in the business of professional wrestling, few divide opinion more than Eric Bischoff. For some, he displayed the skills of a pioneer, a visionary, a truly creative promoter. To others, he was lucky, in the right place at the right time as he benefitted from someone else's money, a man who provided minimal input into key storylines and who was viewed as poisonous by a mutinous locker room. If nothing else, Bischoff has built himself an unforgettable career in the genre of sports entertainment, and his life and times are examined in this new DVD.

It's worth wondering why now; why are we getting a Bischoff DVD in 2016 and not in the mid-2000s during his WWE tenure, or even shortly after the demise of WCW in 2001? Well, it's been a long time since we've seen Bischoff in a WWE ring, so there is nostalgic appeal to revisiting Bischoff's career here.

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