I've never been the biggest fan of the New Generation Era, but I'll stand by and say the parts of it were good, were REALLY good. No better example is there than the year 1994. Just look at the pictures I've chosen for this review. Bret Hart, Lex Luger, Razor Ramon, Owen Hart, Undertaker, Diesel, and Shawn Michaels. These were the guys that were chosen to lead the new era of wrestling for the WWF. And, not surprisingly, these are some of the most iconic superstars in wrestling history. It's the tightly woven storylines and matches held within two fantastic rivalries (Bret Hart vs. Owen Hart and Razor Ramon vs. Shawn Michaels and Diesel) that solidifies 1994 as the most important year in the New Generation Era.
It was up to this year and these superstars to prove that the company did not need Hulk Hogan, Ultimate Warrior, or even Randy Savage in order to survive, and also to show the world that things were going to be very different from what we had seen in the company's past. It was no longer about the biggest superstar or the guy with the most muscles. Shorter and scrawnier wrestlers could be legitimate main eventers thanks to their never say die attitudes and technical wrestling abilities. The landscape for the WWF was going to be flipped upside down, as times were changing and they needed to shake things up in order to stay ahead of the curve.
So let's head to one of the Royal Rumble's most controversial moments to kickstart 1994...
1. Royal Rumble
One of the most talked about matches heading into the Rumble was the Casket match between Yokozuna and the Undertaker for the WWF Championship. The match is pretty underwhelming, but it's the ending and post-match moment that had fans talking, and it's still one of the most memorable moments in the Phenom's legendary career. The Kliq were all over this PPV, starting with Razor Ramon defending his Intercontinental Championship against Irwin R. Schyster. Later in the Royal Rumble match, Shawn Michaels and Diesel both had opportunities to stand out in the match, with Michaels lasting nearly a half hour and Diesel tying the record for most eliminations at the time with 7.1994 continued the established rivalry with Bret Hart and Owen Hart that began at the 1993 Survivor Series. The two brothers, seemingly reconciled their differences to challenge the Quebecers for the World Tag Team Championship. History, of course, proved that wasn't the case. Owen kicked Bret's leg out from under him and left his brother hurting in the ring. By then, it wasn't sure if Bret would return for the Royal Rumble match. When he did, it came down to Bret and the OTHER company babyface Lex Luger. What then occurred is one of the most controversial moments WWF had seen at that point, when both men hit the floor at the same time. What resulted was one of the most confusing and talked about moments that is still associated with the Rumble's greatest moments.
Mild Recommendation
2. WrestleMania X
Another great story of the evening was the fate of the WWF Championship. After both Lex Luger and Bret Hart were declared the winners of the Royal Rumble, the decision was made to have Luger fight Yokozuna earlier on the show, and then Bret would challenge the winner in the main event for the championship. Add the intrigue of guest referees Mr. Perfect and Rowdy Roddy Piper, and you have a star-studded quest for the industry's top prize. The conclusion also brilliantly brings the night to a close, while also leaving the door wide open for the rest of the year's plans to unfold.
As if those two moments weren't epic enough, the show was widely considered stolen by the Ladder Match that Razor Ramon and Shawn Michaels had for the Intercontinental Championship. While it's not the first ladder match (a misconception to a lot of fans), it's certainly the first time the match type was featured on a globally viewed stage like Mania. This was the first of many times in Shawn's career that he would be credited for stealing the show, and probably the first match that led to him receiving the moniker of Mr. WrestleMania from his peers. It's quite an accomplishment to think how far the ladder match has come and people are STILL talking about the Shawn/Razor match over 20 years later. Nowadays, the ladder match has become a glorified spotfest, that it's almost a rarity to find people have a wrestling match that just so happens to feature climbing a ladder to win. But when people do have those types of ladder matches, they have THIS match to thank for it.
Highly Recommended
3. King of the Ring
The King of the Ring Tournament saw 4 Quarter-Final matches take place as Razor Ramon battled Bam Bam Bigelow, Mabel faced Irwin R. Schyster, Owen Hart took on Tatanka, and Jeff Jarrett squared off against the 1-2-3 Kid. The psychology in this tournament is outstanding, with my personal favorite being in the Jarrett/Kid match. I loved when psychology, injuries, and character development would occur throughout the evening and THAT'S why the King of the Ring PPV needs to be brought back. And by that, I mean a full 3 hour PPV with Quarter-Final, Semi-Final, and Finals matches all taking place with a number of other matches sprinkled throughout. Bring back some importance to actually winning it for crying out loud. Anyways, the Finals properly came down to Owen Hart and Razor Ramon. Either way, the winner was an up-and-coming main eventer that would have deserved it on a booking standpoint.So what else is memorable about the PPV for better or worse? Well, for starters the WWF Championship match between Bret Hart and Diesel was pretty good considering how green Diesel still was. The main event between Roddy Piper and Jerry Lawler at least had the crowd invested and pitted two of the all-time greats against each other. Thank heavens for that because the match is awful. But even worse than that match is the insipid commentary courtesy of football legend Art Donovan. He knew absolutely NOTHING about the product. Not the characters. Not the storylines. None of the names of the moves. NOTHING! Even more annoying, count how many times he says "How much does this guy weigh?" The commentary is worth checking out simply for how awful it is.
Mild Recommendation
4. SummerSlam
The heated sibling rivalry between Bret and Owen Hart continued with a fantastic Steel Cage match for the WWF Championship that really should have closed the show. Featuring the entire Hart family in the front rows (including Jim Neidhart and the British Bulldog), this match redefined the concept of a family feud, as the Harts watched on as Bret and Owen tore down the house with a different kind of Cage match. Instead of going for a bloody match, the two brothers put on a technical clinic, with added brutality from the cage. The ending is also one of the biggest nail-biting moments you could imagine in a WWF Championship match, as it was just a few seconds that separated the winner from the loser. In terms of a PPV match, this brought their rivalry to a close, but things were far from over between these two by the time 1994 came to an end.
Highly Recommended
5. Survivor Series
We've got two instant Survivor Series classics on display here, so let's start with the opening match. In a traditional Survivor Series elimination match, the Teamsters (Shawn Michaels, Diesel, Jeff Jarrett, Jim Neidhart, and Owen Hart) took on the Bad Guys (Razor Ramon, the 1-2-3 Kid, the British Bulldog, and the Headshrinkers). First of all, in terms of pure talent, the Teamsters is one of the greatest assembled teams in Survivor Series history. Secondly, this match told an absolutely phenomenal story for the Michaels and Diesel rivalry against Razor Ramon, while also teasing more dissension between Michaels and Diesel. This match really set the stage for a lot of future plans down the road for Big Daddy Cool and the Heartbreak Kid, and is definitely worth a watch for historical significance.The other classic on this show is the WWF Championship match between Bret Hart and Bob Backlund. This match was a submissions match where the only way someone could win was if their opponent's manager threw in the towel. The British Bulldog was representing Bret Hart and Backlund was supported by Owen Hart. If you don't like traditional technical wrestling, then this match may turn you off a bit, but trust me, it's worth the watch for the story being told. After some ringside shenanigans, the match results in some major controversy at the hands of Owen Hart. The man played his family like a fiddle...it's absolutely brilliant. It's an absolute tragedy that he's no longer with us. This year proved he had what it took to be an all-time great. Heck, 1994 was Owen Hart's year to take and he made the most of his opportunity. Feuding with his older brother Bret, Owen was able to turn his back on the entire Hart family, have instant classic matches at both WrestleMania and SummerSlam, was the winner of the King of the Ring Tournament, and got the last laugh on his brother by costing him the WWF Championship. THAT is one of the best years you could possibly have as an up and coming main event heel.
Recommended
Thoughts: 1994 is actually a very enjoyable year to make your way through. Held together by the AMAZING feud between Bret and Owen, each PPV felt like an important chapter in company history in some capacity. Also, some credit needs to be given to the Kliq, primarily Shawn Michaels, Diesel, and Razor Ramon. Whether it was Diesel dominating the Royal Rumble, the ladder match from Mania X, Diesel challenging for the WWF Title at King of the Ring, Diesel vs. Razor from SummerSlam, or the breakup of Shawn and Diesel from Survivor Series, every show had something involving these 3 iconic characters from the '90s and really brought them to the forefront of the upper midcard level. Add characters like Taker and Lex Luger, who found ways to stay relevant throughout the year, and you have a year that portrayed a great combination of memorable characters and well-wrestled matches to tell some of the company's all-time greatest stories in the ring.
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