WWF in 1990 probably had one of the most stacked rosters in wrestling history however the way 1990 actually played out seems like a missed opportunity. I have a few ideas in hindsight which I feel would have played out better than what actually happened. I will concentrate on the main event and upper-midcard and assume that everything else pretty much happens as it did in real life. Before I get into the booking, just a few comments on some key players in 1990:
Warrior - there's no way around it, he was a failure as champion however this wasn't entirely his fault. You just can't book a babyface as an irresistible force unless they are just as an attraction. People were happy to just see warrior squash people. This didn't require much of a storyline, however as a main event champion, this doesn't work. The fact that the roster was very weak on the heel side spelled disaster for his title run.
Savage - by far the most underutilized talent of 1990. He spent most of his year in a directionless feud with Dusty which didnt do much for either of them. I understand he was probably injured for a portion of the year but for my 1990, we're going to assume he is 100% healthy.
Hogan - he kept trying to be the guy even though he wasn't supposed to be the guy for the time being. He needed to transition to the 90s better which is why he was stale by 92. I feel his booking in 1990 needed more direction and more details so he didn't just autopilot to acting like the face of the company.
I would have the rumble and wrestlemania 6 and the buildup happen just as it did in real life but with a few small changes. Due to the lack of heels in 1990, I would look to rehire Tully Blanchard as a singles competitor and see if he could recapture some of the previous magic he had with Dusty. Perhaps he could debut by interfering in the Dusty-Savage mixed tag match. Maybe he brings in baby doll as well or someone else such as Madusa could be brought in as his "perfect 10". I would build this up for a match at SummerSlam.
Due to the aforementioned lack of heels, a face champion just isn't going to work. I would have Warrior drop the title to Savage at the first Saturday Nights Main Event after WM6 in a total shocker. My direction for Warrior would be to set up a SummerSlam match between him and Earthquake. Perhaps some interference by Tenta can play a part in Savage's title win.
Leading up to this, Hogan should start cutting promos saying how he should get a rematch as he was champion for so long. In real life, Jack Tunney announced there would be no rematch however the Savage win opens the door for Hogan who gets a shot at Savage at SummerSlam. To everybody's shock, Savage goes over clean and retains the title. I know that Hogan's ego makes it highly unlikely for him to lose 2 PPVs in a row but I feel this starts a good redemption story and hopefully he would be amenable to the payoff.
Earthquake, still hot after fighting warrior to a hard fought no contest which makes both guys look strong can squash Hogan on Brother Love's show just as he did in real life while he goes and films suburban commando. Perhaps he can team with warrior and face quake and Savage at the survivor series.
Back to Savage and the title picture, 1990 has some faces who were almost as over as Hogan was, namely Jake, Boss Man, Beefcake and to a lesser degree, Duggan. Let's use all of that heat to boost house show business. These guys can keep Savage busy throughout the year at house shows and TV specials. Given the Savage-Jake feud of late 1991, I'm sure even with the face-heel roles reversed, these guys can come up with some real magic which will add a bit more background spice to their eventual 91 feud.
When Hogan came back after being squashed by quake in real life, he added a fourth demandment, Believe in Yourself. I would put more emphasis on this and frame it as Hulk having lost his confidence after losing to Warrior and Savage. I would have Andre get involved with vignettes in helping him train and regain his confidence. It would be a better use of Andre and it would bring the Hogan-Andre story full circle. Hogan could carry the load for his team at survivor series and be a big part of the win, slamming and pinning Earthquake and being put over strong. He can then talk about how the training, the prayers and the vitamins and believing in himself lead him to victory and part of believing in yourself is standing up for what's right and wrong and then have him cut a promo taking exception to Sgt. Slaughter's recent turning on his country. Hogan will go over slaughter at the 91 rumble which will end the slaughter heel run in the appropriate timeframe right at the culmination of the gulf war. Hogan would then go on to beat Earthquake in a #1 contenders match at WM 7.
I would have Savage and Warrior fight their career match just as they did in real life but with the title on the line with Hogan eventually getting his win back against Warrior at SummerSlam 91.
Some additional thoughts:
- I would try to find a way to get Martel and Tito Santana in some sort of program to blow off strike force and avoid that god awful blindfold feud with Jake.
- I haven't mentioned Mr. Perfect or the IC title. I would be inclined to let that play out just like it did in real life however if the IC belt would have spiced up the Dusty-Tully fued, I would have been tempted to have Tully win the IC tournament and find a way to transition it to Hennig later on.
- Dibiase and Virgil should have their program at some point in 1990, 91 was too late. As the act was very stale by mid 1990, I would have liked to have seen Ted take the million dollar man into a face or tweener role in 1991, kind of like a cocky Scrooge McDuck type character. I think he would have done well in a feud with Tully, I'm sure the promos and ring work would have been memorable.
- I definitely would have booked Demolition better. I would stick with Ax and Smash if possible and I would get them in a program with LOD. On a related note, Kona Crush would probably be more over in 1990 than 1992.
In conclusion, I know this all isn't perfect but I feel my ideas are far more compelling than what we actually got. Hopefully everyone enjoys this. Feel free to fill in any blanks or add any additional ideas.
Warrior - there's no way around it, he was a failure as champion however this wasn't entirely his fault. You just can't book a babyface as an irresistible force unless they are just as an attraction. People were happy to just see warrior squash people. This didn't require much of a storyline, however as a main event champion, this doesn't work. The fact that the roster was very weak on the heel side spelled disaster for his title run.
Savage - by far the most underutilized talent of 1990. He spent most of his year in a directionless feud with Dusty which didnt do much for either of them. I understand he was probably injured for a portion of the year but for my 1990, we're going to assume he is 100% healthy.
Hogan - he kept trying to be the guy even though he wasn't supposed to be the guy for the time being. He needed to transition to the 90s better which is why he was stale by 92. I feel his booking in 1990 needed more direction and more details so he didn't just autopilot to acting like the face of the company.
I would have the rumble and wrestlemania 6 and the buildup happen just as it did in real life but with a few small changes. Due to the lack of heels in 1990, I would look to rehire Tully Blanchard as a singles competitor and see if he could recapture some of the previous magic he had with Dusty. Perhaps he could debut by interfering in the Dusty-Savage mixed tag match. Maybe he brings in baby doll as well or someone else such as Madusa could be brought in as his "perfect 10". I would build this up for a match at SummerSlam.
Due to the aforementioned lack of heels, a face champion just isn't going to work. I would have Warrior drop the title to Savage at the first Saturday Nights Main Event after WM6 in a total shocker. My direction for Warrior would be to set up a SummerSlam match between him and Earthquake. Perhaps some interference by Tenta can play a part in Savage's title win.
Leading up to this, Hogan should start cutting promos saying how he should get a rematch as he was champion for so long. In real life, Jack Tunney announced there would be no rematch however the Savage win opens the door for Hogan who gets a shot at Savage at SummerSlam. To everybody's shock, Savage goes over clean and retains the title. I know that Hogan's ego makes it highly unlikely for him to lose 2 PPVs in a row but I feel this starts a good redemption story and hopefully he would be amenable to the payoff.
Earthquake, still hot after fighting warrior to a hard fought no contest which makes both guys look strong can squash Hogan on Brother Love's show just as he did in real life while he goes and films suburban commando. Perhaps he can team with warrior and face quake and Savage at the survivor series.
Back to Savage and the title picture, 1990 has some faces who were almost as over as Hogan was, namely Jake, Boss Man, Beefcake and to a lesser degree, Duggan. Let's use all of that heat to boost house show business. These guys can keep Savage busy throughout the year at house shows and TV specials. Given the Savage-Jake feud of late 1991, I'm sure even with the face-heel roles reversed, these guys can come up with some real magic which will add a bit more background spice to their eventual 91 feud.
When Hogan came back after being squashed by quake in real life, he added a fourth demandment, Believe in Yourself. I would put more emphasis on this and frame it as Hulk having lost his confidence after losing to Warrior and Savage. I would have Andre get involved with vignettes in helping him train and regain his confidence. It would be a better use of Andre and it would bring the Hogan-Andre story full circle. Hogan could carry the load for his team at survivor series and be a big part of the win, slamming and pinning Earthquake and being put over strong. He can then talk about how the training, the prayers and the vitamins and believing in himself lead him to victory and part of believing in yourself is standing up for what's right and wrong and then have him cut a promo taking exception to Sgt. Slaughter's recent turning on his country. Hogan will go over slaughter at the 91 rumble which will end the slaughter heel run in the appropriate timeframe right at the culmination of the gulf war. Hogan would then go on to beat Earthquake in a #1 contenders match at WM 7.
I would have Savage and Warrior fight their career match just as they did in real life but with the title on the line with Hogan eventually getting his win back against Warrior at SummerSlam 91.
Some additional thoughts:
- I would try to find a way to get Martel and Tito Santana in some sort of program to blow off strike force and avoid that god awful blindfold feud with Jake.
- I haven't mentioned Mr. Perfect or the IC title. I would be inclined to let that play out just like it did in real life however if the IC belt would have spiced up the Dusty-Tully fued, I would have been tempted to have Tully win the IC tournament and find a way to transition it to Hennig later on.
- Dibiase and Virgil should have their program at some point in 1990, 91 was too late. As the act was very stale by mid 1990, I would have liked to have seen Ted take the million dollar man into a face or tweener role in 1991, kind of like a cocky Scrooge McDuck type character. I think he would have done well in a feud with Tully, I'm sure the promos and ring work would have been memorable.
- I definitely would have booked Demolition better. I would stick with Ax and Smash if possible and I would get them in a program with LOD. On a related note, Kona Crush would probably be more over in 1990 than 1992.
In conclusion, I know this all isn't perfect but I feel my ideas are far more compelling than what we actually got. Hopefully everyone enjoys this. Feel free to fill in any blanks or add any additional ideas.
