WWF King of the Ring 1993 - June 13, 1993:
I've been eagerly looking forward to this card after briefly spanning all of the different chapters leading up to it. The King of the Ring tournament was always one of my favorite shows of the year. I had the DVD for this show when I was young, so I've seen this show many, many times.
It's a fun twist to have the real life finals of the King of the Ring tournament go on first, in the quarter-final round. The story of Bret Hart leading into victory was expertly booked in real life, with Bam Bam Bigelow byeing his way there against a weakened Hart. I suspect this was very much prevalent here, and again with the flash pin, it allows him to slink his way to the next round. I think it's a no-brainer that Bret is probably at least reaching the finals after that, but even if he loses in the semi-finals he has an out to account for.
Chris Candido meddling with Shawn Michaels in storyline is amusing, but I do have to wonder what his role will be long term. Marty Jannetty assuredly won't be around forever, at least not by 1990s projections of that we know about the guy. Hopefully Chris doesn't pick up too many bad habits by association.
I'll bet that Tatanka and Jim Duggan was a slog, and I'm very unsure how this meeting of babyfaces would have played out. Sensational Sherri sticking by Tatanka is an interesting move, considering just how much potential remains for Sherri as a standalone character. Babyfaces with female managers is always unorthodox, with rare exceptions. Tatanka was the right man to win here, it doesn't bear repeating.
Another fuddy-duddy quarter-final match, but at least this one had storyline development. Doink the Clown as a heel produced some very fun angles, many of which that had never been done on such a major scale. While I think Crush in this incarnation had a lot going for him, this decision was probably the right move. I think that the apparent Fake Referee was a little much though, in a match where he literally relied on a taser to get the win. At least Crush was protected, and I'll bet Doink shall see his comeuppance sooner or later.
I don't know what it was about Harvey Wippleman, but the guy really never did much for me as a manager or a heel. May Giant Gonzalez' reign of terror be over, and whomever Wippleman's next threat to The Undertaker be prosperous. I hear Vinnie Vegas is on the market.
Pleasant twist to see Doink the Clown excommunicated from the King of the Ring tournament, even if it means a bye sends them to the final. I did like the attempts to pay off Razor Ramon, but I think anyone with good conscience would not allow Curtis Hughes of all people to reach the finals of a tournament. Razor Ramon with the evident babyface twist here was curious, but I now have to wonder how this goes when we have Razor evading the need for a third match in one night, opposite the knackered Bret Hart.
Shawn Michaels' interview was a fun one, and had another cool twist with Scott Norton taking the role of Shawn's heavy. The note about Prince was a sweet little pop culture reference to sprinkle in, here. I do think it would have been better to see Norton's reveal come at the finish of the WWF Intercontinental Championship match though, just for the effectivity of it.
Speaking of, on a card with so much going on, I don't feel like the two-out-of-three-falls stipulation was needed here. I'm sure it was a great match, as evident by the writing. I would figure this spells the end of Marty Jannetty's title prospects. It worked for establishing Shawn Michaels and his heavy, Scott Norton, if anything.
I feel like Doink the Clown would have been more angry after being barred from continuing in the King of the Ring tournament, but he's a crazy clown, so who knows.
I understand why Lex Luger got involved here, to thwart Tatanka's efforts and cost him his second ever loss in the WWF, but I don't think it needed it. I feel it hurt Bret Hart's ironman story of enduring battles to make it to the finals. Another meeting of fan favorites in 1993 really does lead one to question how the fans would have reacted.
It was definitely the time for the Steiner Brothers to become WWF Tag Team Champions, and I suspect they will be prominently featured going forward. Obviously, both Rick and especially Scott have great promise to be singles competitors in the distant future, but for now they are best suited driving solid quality matches in the tag team division. Money, Inc. had their day in the sun, and with it setting on Ted Dibiase's career at this point, it was for the best.
I really liked the interplay between Razor Ramon and Bret Hart in that interview, but some interesting comments from Bret. It's hard to imagine Bret taking the subtle heel role at what is arguably the peak of his babyface tenure.
Yokozuna losing by count-out was certainly a unique direction to take things, and obviously there are plans to keep Hulk Hogan around for a while beyond King of the Ring 1993. It raises major questions where the New Generation is concerned, as well with the steroids trial inbound in the coming year. I guess there is still time to mingle with the details, but there is of course that prospect of Hogan and Bret Hart having their much-prophesised match at SummerSlam.
It's a creative series to see Diesel align with Harvey Wippleman, but I have to wonder what this really means for his career. Obviously, Diesel having matches with The Undertaker has far more meaning than the series of matches 'Taker had with Giant Gonzalez, but by removing the Shawn Michaels' bodyguard angle and going a completely different direction with it, I wonder whether Diesel will have the career he had at all. Was he 'Taker's opponent of the month, or a mainstay star that would go on to eventually become WWF Champion?
Razor Ramon winning the King of the Ring tournament was a nice swerve from the norm, especially with Hulk Hogan previously having retained the WWF Championship. Another backslide finish protected Bret, but I can't help but feel that there have been a lot of flash pins in the tournament already. Turning Bret Hart was a bit of a baffling decision, considering just how high his star was shining in 1993. Razor being paraded and heralded despite the long night of work put in by Bret also felt a little flawed in execution. It's a few years early to be going with the jaded 1997 Bret Hart angle, though it does logically lead in to a future match with Bret Hart and Hulk Hogan. How you pull off Bret after this show is what I'll be keenly watching. To be fair to you, if Hogan is sticking around for the long haul, Bret may be best served as a heel rather than a number two or three babyface.
Overall, this was a corner-turning event for the project. I liked a lot of what I saw, but I can't help but feel there are some things that could have been saved for television. Namely, the Diesel and Harvey Wippleman segments, as well as the reveal of Scott Norton being the one to attack Chris Candido. Some things I would have handled differently, such as the two-out-of-three-falls match and the abundance of face versus face matches. All in all, it definitely sparks interest in the product and I will be watching to see how this influences the route to SummerSlam.
