Throwback Thursday: Bad Booking Decisions

Columns, Top Story

Well I’m back after a few weeks of some crappy health issues that I won’t bore you with. Let’s jump into the Throwback, shall we?

I will make no secret of this and perhaps it will be an unpopular opinion –I dislike that Sheamus cashed in on Sunday at Survivor Series. While we all knew it was coming given that Roman wasn’t as over as they would’ve liked for me and some fellow fans it was disappointing. Not so much because Roman should so easily be “the guy” but that you could see real emotion on his face only to have that taken away from him and the fans that did, in fact, support him.

Now we can all hope this will somehow lead to a well planned out feud between Reigns and Sheamus but chances are WWE Creative will disappoint us again.

So, for this week I’m taking a brief look back at other bad booking decisions that bugged me because it is Thanksgiving after all and while I’m thankful for WWE and the entertainment it provides overall it wouldn’t be Thanksgiving without some complaining. (Please note these are not ranked, just the first 10 I could think of!)

1. Vince McMahon wins WWF Title

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It’s 1999, a time when Vince McMahon was heavily involved in storylines and played his part as the asshole boss perfectly. On September 16th Vince McMahon won the WWE Championship from Triple H. Was it a clean win you ask? Of course not. This was an ongoing battle back and forth between Vince and Triple H, back when feuds were well done. Triple H was ripping apart his boss  (even elbow dropping him through the announce table) but, in the end, Vince won. Shane McMahon was the referee and after Triple H hit McMahon with the chair Shane attacked Vince only to be taken out by Chyna. When Patterson, Brisco and Linda McMahon came out to try and help Vince the Patterson and Brisco were easily taken out and Chyna held Linda while Triple H beat on Vince. Then Stone Cold Steve Austin’s music hit, he gave Chyna and Triple H the Stunner and then dragged a bleeding McMahon over Triple H for the three count. Austin left through the crowd and Triple H chased him. While this angle helped spur on the rivalries it was sort of silly, especially since the following week on Raw McMahon forfeited the Championship. Triple H would win it back the following week at the Unforgiven PPV so, all in all, a pointless, short title reign.
2. Triple H being handed the World Title
When WWE booked the brand extension/roster split in mid-2002 they didn’t handle things as perfectly as they could. Establishing a new trend in how the shows and rosters were run was probably difficult but, after a few months of there being only one top tier title (The Undisputed Championship) they decided each show needed their own. This was a good call. Once they brought back the WCW World Title and renamed in the World Heavyweight Title (The Undisputed Championship was then named the WWE Title) it looked like each show and each roster would have a chance to shine.The bad call came when, instead of a tournament or a PPV match to determine who would be the first World Heavyweight Champion the GM at the time, Eric Bischoff handed the title Triple H. Literally handed it over. Watch this moment here.

While Triple H has never been a bad call to be the champion, at least he is deserving of titles, this scenario was a little bogus to me. The moment was partially saved by the entrance of Ric Flair.  Flair said he felt that Triple H should earn it. In response Bischoff announced that Ric Flair would challenge Triple H for the title that night. Flair wouldn’t win and Triple H would go on to defend the title successfully. Still, seeing the title awarded to someone made the title cheaper.

 

3. Exploiting the Death of Eddie Guerrero

 

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Do I need to explain this one? Exploiting the poor circumstances and, especially the death of anyone is in poor taste. Sure they tried to use it to push Rey Mysterio and it was a “feel good” thing for a while when, Rey won the Royal Rumble and earned his spot at Wrestlemania. However, when Randy Orton was involved WWE Creative took this evil heel persona of Randy’s too far. Orton insulted Guerrero’s memory time and time again. It was painful to watch. Rey Mysterio ended up winning the World Title at Wrestlemania over Orton and Kurt Angle but still the lack of respect for a great wrestler’s legacy was hard to swallow.

4. “Super” Cena defeats the Nexus

The summer of 2010 saw a hot new stable make their way to the ranks in the form of The Nexus, a group that consisted of Wade Barrett, Justin Gabriel, Heath Slater, David Otunga, Skip Sheffield, Michael Tarver and Darren Young. Instead of giving them the boost at SummerSlam, these young stars became part of the group that fell victim to the “Cena is invincible” scenario we all know all too well.  In the end it was Wade Barrett and Justin Gabriel v. John Cena, two on one. Like always Cena “beat the odds” and won.  See Cena’s win here.

5. Batista Wins 2014 Royal Rumble

2013 was Daniel Bryan’s year and everyone expected him to win the Royal Rumble in January 2014. However, Batista made a surprise return, Daniel Bryan wasn’t even in the Royal Rumble and Batista swept the match. It came down to Roman Reigns v. Batista at the end of the Rumble and, at that time, everyone wanted Reigns to win to avoid Batista’s victory. It didn’t happen. WWE did damage control and at Wrestlemania Daniel Bryan was in the main event and won the title but still…the boos you can hear from the crowd say it all. No one wanted Batista to win. This short clip lets you hear the boos.

6. “Fingerpoke of Doom”

The beginning of the end for the WCW came when on Monday Nitro in January of 1999 Kevin Nash was challenged by Hulk Hogan. Everyone was ready for a fight. The title was on the line after all. Then…well…things were just goofy and poorly done. While this reunited the nWo it was just dumb looking. See it here.

7. MITB Alberto Del Rio wins over Miz (2011)

The Raw Money in the Bank Ladder match in 2011 featured a lot of great talent including, Alberto Del Rio, The Miz, Rey Mysterio, R-Truth, Alex Riley, Kofi Kingston, Evan Bourne and Jack Swagger. While Del Rio was the favorite and fans were okay with it the entire year The Miz suffered a ton of bad booking and his credibility was ruined. During the match Miz suffered a knee injury and was helped to the back. When he returned, hopping and limping the crowd cheered, spurred on by his gutsy reappearance. It looked like the crowd would’ve enjoyed seeing him win.

Instead Del Rio won and while he was not a bad champion this further pushed The Miz into the background as just another guy who didn’t win the match. Del Rio wasn’t a bad choice to win, it just hurt The Miz further.

8. Damien Sandow over Cody Rhodes (2013 MITB)

The World Heavyweight Championship Money in the Bank match was a good one but Sandow winning the briefcase, at the cost of his friendship and partnership with Rhodes was a bit miscalculated. What could’ve been a good rivalry between Rhodes and Sandow was pushed aside and Sandow was soon just a guy with a briefcase who didn’t look like he would win. And he didn’t win. When he cashed in against John Cena it was a great match. However, like we’ve seen time and time again, Cena beat the odds.  See it here.

Sandow, while putting on a great match that should’ve pushed him to greater heights, was then pushed into the background and, essentially, forgotten about. And for the second year, the prestigious Money in the Bank briefcase was wasted.

9. Wrestlemania 28- Daniel Bryan v. Sheamus

Daniel Bryan and Sheamus have great in ring chemistry. At Wrestlemania 28 they were set to have a great match. However, when Daniel Bryan went to kiss his on-screen girlfriend, AJ Lee, he would turn around into a Brogue Kick from Sheamus. The match was over so fast you could’ve blinked and missed it. This was a waste of a World Championship match and a waste of talent. The match lasted 18 seconds.

10. Wrestlemania 30- Undertaker’s Streak Ends

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I get why they did it. I also should start getting over it. I had hoped this would be the thing of legends, the unbroken streak, that Undertaker would remain undefeated. Instead we all know what happened. I know that Undertaker was involved in the decision but it’s still a sore spot for me. Sorry WWE, I’m just one of those fans that still can’t believe it happened.
What are your thoughts? Any moments you think were just as bad if not worse? I tried remembering all the times I’d been disappointed but let’s face it, that’d be quite a long list.
A nerd all around and a huge wrestling fan for over half of my life. Just your average book worm, fan girl, and wrestling enthusiast. Unintentionally I apparently copy CM Punk with my straight edge lifestyle (ahem, I was straight edge before I saw him on a TV screen but I digress...) but that's okay because, love him or hate him, you will remember him. Brand new to this website, hopefully I don't disappoint!