ECW
*I've had this on the brain and need to put it out before Kilgore beats me to it 

1. Nova & Chris Chetti vs. Danny Doring & Roadkill (Heatwave 7/18)
These teams developed good chemistry for their actionfest by wrestling each other on seemingly every ECW opener for two years.

2. Balls Mahoney vs. Steve Corino (Living Dangerously 3/21)
Corino was probably ECW's best heel already at this point. Here he talks trash as only he can before issuing an open challenge. Balls answers. Corino suffers Death By Chairshot via the hardest chair swinger in wrestling. Good times.

3. Lance Storm vs. Spike Dudley (Hardcore TV 2/5)
I needed to get both guys on the card. Big Evil rated this ***1/4. There ya go.

4. New Jack vs. Mr. Mustafa (Living Dangerously 3/21)
Obviously had to find room for New Jack. Jack getting revenge against his turncoat former partner makes this an easy choice over Jack vs. a stupid Baldie.

5. Yoshihiro Tajiri vs. Super Crazy (Hardcore TV 8/28)
I was originally set to include their first match from Guilty As Charged since all their matches kind of blend together 18 years later and it's a rule of thumb that I tend to choose the first match as the best in forever feuds so long as it didn't openly suck. But after thinking about it I realized Tajiri wasn't Tajiri yet so I dug around to see if I could find a Proper Tajiri vs. Super Crazy match. Big Evil gave this one ***1/2 and I realized we have ourselves a winner.

6. Sabu vs. Rhino (ECW on TNN 10/22)
I was way too hard on Rhino back in the day. If only he didn't get overpushed so hard in 2000 and I hadn't see him beat Daniels live at The Arena because even early pre-superpush Rhino had a slew of solid matches in the early TNN days between this one, and bouts with Awesome & RVD. Think I reviewed this a year or so ago in the match review thread. It was good. And you know I need to get Sabu on this show.

7. Shane Douglas vs. Justin Credible (Cyberslam 4/3)
Shane's Last Hurrah but at least he goes out in a blaze of glory by having a minor miracle match with Credible. I credit all those Dean vs. Aldo 1995 house show matches for familiarizing these two with one another. 

8. Tommy Dreamer (& Raven) vs. Dudley Boyz (ECW on TNN 9/3- Tag Title Match)
Had to include this as it would have been Moment of the Year for most companies in most years. It just so happens 1999 ECW has an even better moment coming in a month and a half.

9. Rob Van Dam vs. Jerry Lynn (Living Dangerously 3/21- TV Title Match)
Most people prefer Hardcore Heaven. Nah. This is the one that put Jerry Lynn on the map. This one match transformed him from a zero to a hero in the eyes of myself and much of the ECW faithful. Don't sleep on their August 99 Arena match either. 

10. Mike Awesome vs. Masato Tanaka vs. Taz (Anarchy Rulz 9/19- ECW Championship Match)
Awesome & Tanaka wrestled a thousand times. They were always good, albeit a little samey. But Awesome vs. Tanaka never felt bigger than it did here as they double pinned the departing Taz a few minutes and then had their usual war, but with higher stakes than ever as the ECW Title hung in the balance and an entire locker room poured out to see who would become their next standard bearer.

*I'm happy with this but am open to alternate takes.

There are a few notable omissions with Sandman obviously being the biggest. I just couldn't bring myself to sacrifice a bunch of other stuff for the sake of one Sandman. Sid is another (do we really need a Skull Von Krush or Rod Price match?). Guido is a 3rd (are one off B-List Luchadores essential to 1999 ECW?). Mikey is yet one more (Didn't have many matches and didn't really regain his mojo until well into 2000). Then you have Chris Candido, who was in and out of ECW all year.
 
There were also a few killer Dudleys vs. Balls & Spike matches one could include if they were willing to sacrifice Raven's return. Axl & New Jack vs. Balls & Spike (Jack & Axl return after brief absences upset at their former partners) was another Baker Approved ECW style barnburner I saw live at The Arena.

I'm curious to see what Kilgore and shinobimusashi would do.

*Will tackle 1999 WWF later and might even see what I can do with '99 WCW (which I've seen more of than 97-98 WCW) if I have nothing else going on.

Just to make things fun, I'm doing a completely different 1999 ECW card than Baker .

Tajiri vs. Super Crazy vs. Little Guido (Anarchy Rulz)
Little Guido added a fresh dynamic to a match that had been done 50 times by then. Not that I was complaining.

Sid vs. John Kronus (Guilty as Charged)
Baker indirectly asked, "Do we really need a Sid squash match?" The answer to that is always yes. His first in ECW was probably the best. 

Sabu vs. Chris Candido (November to Remember)
I originally had the Sabu vs. Taz TNN match, but I needed Taz for something else. This match was good too. Candido sacrifices himself for Tammy and Sabu kills him.

The Impact Players and Rhino vs. Raven, Sandman and Tommy Dreamer (November to Remember)
Relatively quick match (after the entrances) that gets some of the peskier names used. 

The Dudley Boyz vs. Balls Mahoney and Spike Dudley (Heatwave)
I have to get the Heatwave match in. Dudley owned Heatwave two years in a row. This was also a damn good match that even gets a New Jack cameo

Taz vs. Shane Douglas (House Party)
This was the dilemma. Do I leave Shane Douglas out? If so, I put Taz vs. Sabu on instead. I was feeling sentimental about Shane, and I liked this match better than the Guilty as Charged one.

Mike Awesome vs. Masato Tanaka (November to Remember)
It was either this or the TNN match from Christmas Eve or New Year's Eve. I forget the date. I went with N2R. A lot of people prefer this match to their epic Heatwave '98 match. I'm not one of those people, but this match rules too.

Rob Van Dam vs. Jerry Lynn (Hardcore Heaven)
Got to close the show with The Whole Fucking Show vs.  The New Fucking Show. My favorite of their fantastic series. I was in the 3rd row, so I'm bias. 

No Corino! He and Rhino were so joined at the hip, that if I picked any random Corino match to shoe horn into this, Rhino would probably show up and gore somebody at some point. 

WCW

Blitzkrieg vs. Juventud Guerrera (Spring Stampede)
One of the greatest opening matches ever.

Eddie Guerrero vs. Perry Saturn (Halloween Havoc)
Pretty good match that gets both of these guys on the card before they bolt.

Kaz Hayashi vs. Lenny Lane (Fall Brawl)
Kaz was also in a lot of good tag matches with Blitzkrieg around this time. This was match was really good too.

Hak vs. Bam Bam Bigelow vs. Raven (Uncensored)
Hak vs. Bigelow at Stampede is a little better, but I wanted Raven on the card,  and this match isn't a huge dropoff. 

Kidman vs. Rey Mysterio Jr. (Nitro: 3/15/99)
Unfortunately, their best stuff is four ways or tag team matches with wrestlers I need elsewhere, but this was a really good TV match.

Scott Steiner vs. Booker T (Spring Stampede)
I think their best matches were in 2000, but this was a pretty good one too, as was pretty much everything on Spring Stampede.

Goldberg vs. Hall (Souled Out)
I think this sadly the best Goldberg match of 1999.

Sting vs. DDP (Nitro: 4/26/99)
Must have for WCW in 1999.

Hollywood Hogan vs. Ric Flair (Uncensored)
This match was a joke when it got announced, but it was pleasantly not bad. 

Bret "Hitman" Hart vs Chris Benoit (Nitro: 10/4/99)
Best match of the year for any company.

I'm feeling an urge to attempt 1999 WWF's SuperCard MashUp. It was a tough year as far as in-ring product, but I think with a SuperCard MashUp approach, something totally fucking awesome is possible!

I'm not 100% sold on the match order, or even the matches selected... but as a start:

PI's 1999 WWF SuperCard MashUp

1.) Ladder match for the managerial services of Terri Runnels & $100,000: Edge & Christian vs. The New Brood (Hardy Boyz) (w/ Gangrel) -- No Mercy

2.) The Acolytes vs. The Dudley Boyz -- Unforgiven

3.) Hardcore Title: Al Snow vs. Bob Holly -- St. Valentine's Day Massacre
*Or any of their other many matches, if any of them were better.

4.) Lion's Den Match: Ken Shamrock vs. Steve Blackman -- SummerSlam
*Alternatively, I'm OK with their Iron Circle Match from Fully Loaded if we don't want to pull too many matches from SummerSlam.

5.) #1 Contenders for Tag Titles: New Age Outlaws vs. Owen Hart & Jeff Jarrett (w/ Debra) -- Backlash

6.) Tag Title: Undertaker & Big Show vs. Kane & X-Pac (c) -- SummerSlam

7.) "Love Her or Leave Her" Greenwich Street Fight: Test vs. Shane McMahon -- SummerSlam

8.) #1 Contender for the WWF Title: Triple H vs. Chyna -- 8/16 RAW

9.) I Quit Match for the WWF Title: Mankind (c) vs. The Rock -- Royal Rumble

10.) Cage Match: Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. Vince McMahon -- St. Valentine's Day Massacre

*I had this card planned out before 🤯 posted so his card was no influence on mine. Will be interesting to compare and contrast the two.

1999 WWF

This turned out much better than I expected going in. I foresaw a trainwreck on par with my awful 1995 WWF MashUp. While this doesn't compare with the very best shows I devised, it absolutely smokes my 1995 WWF SuperCard. 

Also, I like these cards to capture the feel of what they represent. 1999 WWF was.....weird. So this card might seem a little weird to the uninitiated what with all the part timers and one choice that is bound to be controversial. Without further ado.....

1. Hardy Boyz vs. Edge & Christian (No Mercy 10/17 Ladder Match)
A star making performance by all 4 men. Consensus WWF MOTY at the time. Oddly enough given '99 WWF reputation as the anti-workrate promotion this is probably the best opener on any card I came up with.

2. Hardcore Holly vs. Al Snow (St. Valentine's Day Massacre 2/14- Hardcore Title)
Like those Nasty Boys matches with Harlem Heat & Public Enemy, this may not age well but was much-loved at the time for its unique. They fought in the bah gawd Mississippi River! Also began the unexpected rise of Hardcore Holly, who was one of my personal highlights of '99 WWF.

3. Kane & XPac vs. Mark Henry & D'Lo Brown (Over The Edge 5/23- Tag Title Match)
There are better Kane & Pac matches as a team (the Acolytes series comes to mind), and better/more important XPac singles matches (XPac vs. HHH), but I went with this one because reasons. And also due to the Kane Conundrum (a dearth of quality matches) rearing its ugly head for the second year in a row. Anyway, I remember this being a fun little match. D'Lo & Pac worked well together and I recall Kane having weirdly good chemistry with Henry (as well as other hosses from this era like Albert, Bradshaw & Test). 

4. Chris Jericho vs. Chyna (Armageddon 12/12- IC Title Match)
Chyna vs. JJ was the better/more important match but I had other plans for Jarrett and this gets Jericho on the show. It seems obvious in hindsight that WWF just plugged Y2J into Jarrett's role once he left whether it made any sense or not.

5. New Age Outlaws vs. Owen Hart & Jeff Jarrett (Backlash 4/25)
Remember this being a legit good old school face vs. heel tag match. Easily the Outlaws best since at least the Funk & Foley series. I couldn't stand the Outlaws for 98% of their run. Hated them. But this match (and possibly the build?) had me kinda sorta digging them for the first and only time. So of course they broke up weeks (days?) later   This also marks Owen last great showing as one of the in ring workhorses of 1990s WWF.

6. Test vs. Shane McMahon (Summerslam 8/22- Greenwich Street Fight)
A miracle match that made people look forward to Shane match going forward and probably also should have made Test a star. 

7. Undertaker vs. Ken Shamrock (Backlash 4/25)
The birth of MMATaker! This was so out of place for 1999 WWF but I dug at it the time as a breath of fresh air. It probably doesn't hold up (the reviews I've read are brutal) but I'm including it for uniqueness  & structural reasons.

8. HHH marries Stephanie McMahon (Raw 11/29)
Yep. That's right. A segment. I was originally going with HHH/XPac from Backlash. Then I toyed around with HHH/Austin from No Mercy. But nope. This is more important going forward. This is more 1999 WWF. And, let's face, you're dead inside if you didn't at least chuckle when HHH impersonated Stephanie with a high pitched "I do." 

9. The Rock vs. Mankind (Royal Rumble 1/24- I Quit WWF Championship Match)
One of the most memorable brutal matches in WWF history. Mankind's first title win would also be a totally acceptable choice here.

10. Steve Austin vs. Vince McMahon (St. Valentine's Day Massacre 2/14- Steel Cage Match)
A no brainer. This was the most important feud in WWF (history). It was also considered a miracle match at the time.  Of course, this was before we knew Vince was Jake Roberts level wrestling psychologist. Like most big Vince matches, it was perfect for what it was. We also get our Big Show appearance here.

Pre-Show Sunday Night Heat

1. Dudley Boyz vs. Mideon & Viscera (Metal/Jakked 10/16)
Probably the highlight of the Dudleys lousy 1999 WWF run right here (Don't worry. It gets better in a hurry.) as they pin big Vis following a 3D.

Storytime~! 

Either WWF Magazine or WWF.com ran a 1999 year end article with a bunch of Superstars and employees choosing their favorite moment from the previous year. It was all that stuff you'd expect- Big Show & Jericho's debuts, Foley winning the title, the HHH/Steph wedding, Higher Power reveal, Austin/Rock from 'Mania, Austin/Vince stuff, Edge & Christian vs. Hardys Ladder Match, "This Is Your Life," Rock/Mankind I Quit, and other assorted Rock/Mankind stuff, Chyna beating JJ for the IC title, etc. If anybody included a moment featuring themselves they made sure to take no credit and put over the person they were working with. Then Bubba is up. His favorite moment of 1999? "That time D-Von and I hit Viscera with the 3D."  Bubba Ray Dudley=Heel God

2. Val Venis vs. British Bulldog (Smackdown 11/11- European Title Match)
I wanted to get Val on the show. Unfortunately that also means we have to suffer through a 1999 Bulldog appearance. Hey, it was either Bulldog or Meat. Say what you will about 1999 Bulldog, at least he's a 'name' who was once good.

3. Acolytes vs. Public Enemy (Heat 3/7)
Acolyte maulings were one of my favorite things about 1999 WWF and this may have been the biggest and baddest of their beatdowns. It's certainly the most famous (and unprofessional). I only say "may have been" because, my god, have you seen some of the things they did to those poor Hardy Boyz?!?
*My use of the Acolytes is the only thing on this project I'm not 100% sold on. I may go back to put them in Henry & D-Lo's spot as Kane & XPac opponents.

4. Too Cool & Rikishi vs. Mean Street Posse (Raw 12/20)
I was desperate to get Too Cool on here. Was hoping for a Kaientai match. No luck. But even better, I found this! So now Rikishi & the MSP get a well-deserved payday too.

5. Godfather vs. Goldust (Raw 4/12- IC Title Match) w/ Big Bossman
Pre-match sees Godfather bribe Bossman with his hoes to get BBM's IC Title shot in the ultimate 1999 WWF moment  .  It took a few searches to find the date on this one but I distinctly remembered it occurring because it amused the hell out of my friends and I.

6. Kurt Angle vs. Steve Blackman (Armageddon 12/12)
Gotta get Angle on here and the pre-show main is the perfect spot for a newbie who is about to blow up big in a few weeks.

*Like I said, this turned out surprisingly well. Only thing I'm iffy on is my usage of the Acolytes.

Fantastic 1999 WWF SuperCard MashUp, Baker!

The only reason I went with the I Quit over Foley's first title win was because I think Foley's first title win technically took place in '98 and then aired in '99, right?

Plus, with the co-mains we agreed on, I think it's OK to have Rock go over strong in a brutal way, because we're sending fans home happy with an Austin win.

For all the matches we had in common, you provided the exact reasoning that was behind my picks... So a big thank you, sir, for putting forth the extra effort I couldn't muster last night.

HHH was such a tricky cat for this SuperCard MashUp. 1999 was such a transitional year for him. I'd wanted to pair Chyna with Jericho too, or even against the Stooges from that RAW in January I think? But it kept leaving me with nothing compelling for HHH that wouldn't structurally fuck up the rest of my card. You found a very creative way to work HHH into the show, and arguably found a much more important/significant HHH moment. Kudos to you, brudda!

WCW 1999

*Another one I haven't seen much of but the completest in me must, well, complete.

1. Rey Mysterio Jr. & Kidman vs. Raven & Saturn (Tag Title Match- 4/5)
WCW had killer tag division for a little while these with two, Benoit & Malenko, and eventually the Jersey Triad. Sort of a proto-Smackdown Six. Had to represent that on my card. 

2. Juventud Guerrera vs. Blitzkrieg (Spring Stampede 4/11)
These two went balls to the wall in an all actionfest that may be the last great WCW cruiserweight match.

3. Bam Bam Bigelow vs. Hak (Spring Stampede 4/11- Hardcore Match)
I didn't expect much from Sandman in WCW but this ruled. Right up there with anything he did in ECW. Spring Stampede in general is a great show. Watch it.

4. Buff Bagwell vs. Curt Hennig (Mayhem 11/21- Retirement Match)
Haven't seen. Searched for it the other night. No luck. But I remember reading about it on the internet at the time. Seemed like a big deal....until they ruined it the very next night iirc.

5. Scott Hall vs. Sid Vicious (Nitro 11/29- US Title Match)
Get everybody on the show match.

6. Scott Steiner vs. Booker T (Spring Stampede 4/11- US Title Match)
Solid match that helped both guys on their slow crawl to main event status. These two are not unlike WCW's Bret & Shawn if you think about it. Started as tag team specialists. Then solid midcard champions. And finally main eventers. While feuding through all three stages of development.

7. Bret Hart vs. Chris Benoit (Nitro 10/4- Owen Hart Tribute Match)
Match of the Year. Best match in Nitro history. Best pure wrestling match of the Attitude Era. One of my favorite matches of all time, really.

8. Goldberg vs. Kevin Nash (Spring Stampede 4/11)
Pretty big deal highlighted by Nash doing the GOAT leapfrog....because it's Kevin Nash. Doing a leapfrog. 

9. Ric Flair vs. Hulk Hogan (Uncensored 3/14- WCW Championship First Blood Cage Match)
By all accounts this was convoluted and terrible. It also drew a surprisingly big buyrate and I needed these two on the card. Is this the first time Flair beat Hogan in an important match?

10. Sting vs. DDP (Nitro 4/26- WCW Championship Match)
Another match I need to see. Often called the best match in Nitro history nowadays. 

*The main guy I regret leaving off is Malenko. He was a pretty important character this year and Benoit's partner in a bunch of awesome tags. Dammit, WCW. Couldn't you have just booked Eddie vs. Dean one last time so I could get those guys on this card.

Random Tangent: WCW actually got good again in April-May. The tag division was awesome but the main event scene was also getting interesting. DDP as a main event heel was fresh. DDP as WCW Champion was even fresher. Hogan reverting back to babyface after three years of ultra heeldom also had legs. DDP vs. a returning Hogan out for revenge at, say, Bash At The Beach would have been a money match with competent booking. But of course they screwed it all up. What annoyed me most going through this fun period years after the fact was WCW randomly splitting the Horsemen & Flock so it was now Benoit teaming w/ Saturn, Dean doing....uh....something, and worst of all, Raven being saddled with f'n Vampiro. No wonder he quit to go back to ECW. I'd have done the same thing.

Oct 24, 2017 13:20:38 GMT Baker said:

WCW 1999

*Another one I haven't seen much of but the completest in me must, well, complete.

1. Rey Mysterio Jr. & Kidman vs. Raven & Saturn (Tag Title Match- 4/5)
WCW had killer tag division for a little while these with two, Benoit & Malenko, and eventually the Jersey Triad. Sort of a proto-Smackdown Six. Had to represent that on my card. 

2. Juventud Guerrera vs. Blitzkrieg (Spring Stampede 4/11)
These two went balls to the wall in an all actionfest that may be the last great WCW cruiserweight match.

3. Bam Bam Bigelow vs. Hak (Spring Stampede 4/11- Hardcore Match)
I didn't expect much from Sandman in WCW but this ruled. Right up there with anything he did in ECW. Spring Stampede in general is a great show. Watch it.

4. Buff Bagwell vs. Curt Hennig (Mayhem 11/21- Retirement Match)
Haven't seen. Searched for it the other night. No luck. But I remember reading about it on the internet at the time. Seemed like a big deal....until they ruined it the very next night iirc.

5. Scott Hall vs. Sid Vicious (Nitro 11/29- US Title Match)
Get everybody on the show match.

6. Scott Steiner vs. Booker T (Spring Stampede 4/11- US Title Match)
Solid match that helped both guys on their slow crawl to main event status. These two are not unlike WCW's Bret & Shawn if you think about it. Started as tag team specialists. Then solid midcard champions. And finally main eventers. While feuding through all three stages of development.

7. Bret Hart vs. Chris Benoit (Nitro 10/4- Owen Hart Tribute Match)
Match of the Year. Best match in Nitro history. Best pure wrestling match of the Attitude Era. One of my favorite matches of all time, really.

8. Goldberg vs. Kevin Nash (Spring Stampede 4/11)
Pretty big deal highlighted by Nash doing the GOAT leapfrog....because it's Kevin Nash. Doing a leapfrog. 

9. Ric Flair vs. Hulk Hogan (Uncensored 3/14- WCW Championship First Blood Cage Match)
By all accounts this was convoluted and terrible. It also drew a surprisingly big buyrate and I needed these two on the card. Is this the first time Flair beat Hogan in an important match?

10. Sting vs. DDP (Nitro 4/26- WCW Championship Match)
Another match I need to see. Often called the best match in Nitro history nowadays. 

*The main guy I regret leaving off is Malenko. He was a pretty important character this year and Benoit's partner in a bunch of awesome tags. Dammit, WCW. Couldn't you have just booked Eddie vs. Dean one last time so I could get those guys on this card.

Random Tangent: WCW actually got good again in April-May. The tag division was awesome but the main event scene was also getting interesting. DDP as a main event heel was fresh. DDP as WCW Champion was even fresher. Hogan reverting back to babyface after three years of ultra heeldom also had legs. DDP vs. a returning Hogan out for revenge at, say, Bash At The Beach would have been a money match with competent booking. But of course they screwed it all up. What annoyed me most going through this fun period years after the fact was WCW randomly splitting the Horsemen & Flock so it was now Benoit teaming w/ Saturn, Dean doing....uh....something, and worst of all, Raven being saddled with f'n Vampiro. No wonder he quit to go back to ECW. I'd have done the same thing.

The proto SD! Six were SO good. The only thing I really liked about WCW when watching tapes back in the day. Too bad all of 1999 WCW wasn't as good from top to bottom. I feel like had they started transitioning the old stale big names (Hogan, Lex, Flair, maybe even Nash, Hall, and Sid?) to rare occasion/special attraction-only type matches and programs; started making the main event/world title scene truly revolve around fresher names like Goldberg, DDP (when he's not tagging) Bret, Booker, Jarrett, Big Poppa Pump, etc. while seriously pushing your strong midcarders and a new class of cruisers (since Rey, Kidman, Eddie, Jericho, Benoit, Malenko, etc. would be bolstering the tag division and upper midcard)... WCW could've been totally fucking awesome.