Also anyone know the story behind the revolving door at the commentary table? JR is consistent but it seems like it’s never ending change between King/Cornette and now Kevin Kelly and Michael Cole with JR. It’s weird.

Jun 18, 2024 2:10:35 GMT UT said:

Thoughts on Mero Baker   

You answered your own question with...

Mero is someone I rarely give a second thought to.

So, am I gonna have to watch some Marc Mero now? These are my preexisting Mero opinions...

Johnny B. Badd- go away heat
"Wildman" Marc Mero- better than JBB, but still not my cup of tea despite the Merosault and Wild thing being kewl movez
Heel Marc Mero- the most tolerable incarnation of Mero (he was a pretty good heel during the Sable split), but I'd still rather be watching Chainz 

Yeah the Sable split is his peak. Not saying he is a world beater but he definitely has some great shitbird heel moments.

Also why in the hell is it Taker/Shawn for the title at the Royal Rumble? Taker has done nothing but get punked out by Kane for months and that’s on the rare occasion he’s around.

It should have been Owen. He was getting a ton of love from the fans, there was a clear motive and Owen had the promo of his life with Vince to get even more over.

No need to use Taker there , the Rumble is the draw.

I’m really starting to dislike Taker in this era.

My awards for the year now that I’ll be heading into 1998. They are probably pretty chalky but it’s an easy year with obvious standouts.

Wrestler of the year - Stone Cold - easy answer for a reason. It was a meteoric rise of one of the all time greats. Shout out to HBK and Foley.

Worst wrestler of the year - Artist Formerly known as Goldust - seriously this shit is embarrassing.


Tag Team of the Year - New Age Outlaws - they came around late In the year but it was a terrible tag scene for the most part and NAO are great. Seriously so underrated too for what they meant towards ushering in the era.

Worst Tag Team of the Year - Los Boricuas - you could put the DOA or pre Rock NOD here too. Fuck all of them and their 120 clusterfuck BS matches.


Promo of the year - Foley and JR hands down.

Worst promo of the year - I can’t remember which Raw but it was Shamrock during the IYHDX build.


Match of the Year - Bret/Austin at WM 13.

Worst Match of the Year - pick any of the DOA/Savio’s matches.


Rookie of the Year - Sorry Rock but it’s … it’s GOTTA BE KANE.

Moment of the Year - Austin Stuns McMahon

Worst of the Year - Melanie Pillman interview

Feud of the Year - Austin vs Hart Foundation.

God this Taker/Shawn thing sucks - the two have had zero interaction. Taker is feuding Kane and HBK had Owen… triple hate.

Plus the casket might be the bottom of all their ppv outings.

I could see that, at the same time it's still a really good match and their in-ring chemistry is fantastic.

Jun 21, 2024 1:46:13 GMT Big Pete said:

I could see that, at the same time it's still a really good match and their in-ring chemistry is fantastic.

Yeah but for two months the ONLY interaction Taker has had is with Kane. He hasn’t even acknowledged HBK or the title.

And Owen is not only incredibly over but has a built in feud with HBK for obvious reasons.

I would get it in most circumstances but the Rumble doesn’t need HBK and Taker.

You could make an argument that Owen is the second most over on the roster after Austin.

Jun 21, 2024 1:53:40 GMT UT said:

Yeah but for two months the ONLY interaction Taker has had is with Kane. He hasn’t even acknowledged HBK or the title.

And Owen is not only incredibly over but has a built in feud with HBK for obvious reasons.

I would get it in most circumstances but the Rumble doesn’t need HBK and Taker.

The post was in response to Ness, I don't have strong feelings either way on Owen as a main eventer.

If I had to guess, I'd imagine Owen's less than stellar record at the box office in '94, nearly paralyzing the cash cow and the tension in the Hart family made them compromise the push. Meanwhile they're framing Taker as a star and really hammering down that hierarchy.

I'd have been all for HBK/Owen at the Rumble and I've always been bummed out they didn't do more with babyface Owen in early '98. BUT was he really that over? I remember him getting a lot of lukewarm at best reactions. Although that may not come until a little later when he'd already been neutered a bit.

HBK/Taker had gone cold, but I get why they went back to that well. Their feud had been red hot a few months earlier. They're two huge names. Taker still needed to get revenge on Michaels. And of course, the real reason, heating Kane up even more in building to the inevitable Taker/Kane Clash of the Titans at 'Mania.

Jun 21, 2024 2:17:55 GMT Baker said:

I'd have been all for HBK/Owen at the Rumble and I've always been bummed out they didn't do more with babyface Owen in early '98. BUT was he really that over? I remember him getting a lot of lukewarm at best reactions. Although that may not come until a little later when he'd already been neutered a bit.

HBK/Taker had gone cold, but I get why they went back to that well. Their feud had been red hot a few months earlier. They're two huge names. Taker still needed to get revenge on Michaels. And of course, the real reason, heating Kane up even more in building to the inevitable Taker/Kane Clash of the Titans at 'Mania.

In his initial “return” post screwjob when he was jumping Michael’s from the crowd , his interview with Vince and then them announcing his title match against HBK on Raw - he was getting great reactions - as I said probably only behind Austin.

I’m sure after demoting him back down the card and really cutting his legs out that he went lukewarm but they had a brief moment to strike while that iron was hot.


- I’m not saying he should have won the title but he certainly made more sense there as even a one off.

It may have just been bad timing as well. They had just come off a PPV headlined by Ken Shamrock, could they go back to back with another mid-card guy? I could see them viewing Taker as the safe option and the wiser investment.

Years down the road, they'd actually go with the hot hand or so to speak and the result was Hardcore Holly vs. Brock Lesnar.

Jun 21, 2024 2:44:00 GMT Big Pete said:

It may have just been bad timing as well. They had just come off a PPV headlined by Ken Shamrock, could they go back to back with another mid-card guy? I could see them viewing Taker as the safe option and the wiser investment.

I think they could seeing as it was the Rumble. Another IYH or any other PPV then definitely not but the Rumble match is the draw - especially when the #1 guy in your company is booked to win.

Shawn beats Owen in a hard fought match due to interference as always.

Austin wins the Rumble to keep the crowd happy.

Jun 21, 2024 2:44:00 GMT Big Pete said:

It may have just been bad timing as well. They had just come off a PPV headlined by Ken Shamrock, could they go back to back with another mid-card guy? I could see them viewing Taker as the safe option and the wiser investment.

Years down the road, they'd actually go with the hot hand or so to speak and the result was Hardcore Holly vs. Brock Lesnar.

Hardcore Holly isn’t in the same stratosphere as Owen, especially with his tangible connection to arguably the most controversial match/angle in wrestling history.

Jun 21, 2024 2:50:40 GMT UT said:

Jun 21, 2024 2:44:00 GMT Big Pete said:

It may have just been bad timing as well. They had just come off a PPV headlined by Ken Shamrock, could they go back to back with another mid-card guy? I could see them viewing Taker as the safe option and the wiser investment.

Years down the road, they'd actually go with the hot hand or so to speak and the result was Hardcore Holly vs. Brock Lesnar.

Hardcore Holly isn’t in the same stratosphere as Owen, especially with his tangible connection to arguably the most controversial match/angle in wrestling history.

It's still a well established mid-card guy getting a push based purely on circumstance than a concerted effort to put the machine behind him. The end result is that you have this match that does damage to the title and creates this negative perception of the brand.

Holly also didn't break Brock Lesnar or Triple H's neck, so he had that going for him.

Jun 21, 2024 2:48:23 GMT UT said:

Jun 21, 2024 2:44:00 GMT Big Pete said:

It may have just been bad timing as well. They had just come off a PPV headlined by Ken Shamrock, could they go back to back with another mid-card guy? I could see them viewing Taker as the safe option and the wiser investment.

I think they could seeing as it was the Rumble. Another IYH or any other PPV then definitely not but the Rumble match is the draw 

An excellent point. 1998 Owen was certainly a much bigger deal than other Rumble title challengers such as 2004 BOBCORE and 2006 Mark Henry.

My theory/internet rumorz back in the day for wimping out on Owen's babyface push- obviously he was HELD BACK by the Clique and/or Vince to further mess with Bret. Not sure I've mentioned this yet, but Owen was my favorite wrestler (again) from his December return until the Rock surpassed him, probably at or around Wrestlemania 14. Oh, and maybe Al Snow too for a day or two after that one ECW PPV.

Jun 21, 2024 2:54:24 GMT Big Pete said:

Jun 21, 2024 2:50:40 GMT UT said:

Hardcore Holly isn’t in the same stratosphere as Owen, especially with his tangible connection to arguably the most controversial match/angle in wrestling history.

It's still a well established mid-card guy getting a push based purely on circumstance than a concerted effort to put the machine behind him. The end result is that you have this match that does damage to the title and creates this negative perception of the brand.

Holly also didn't break Brock Lesnar or Triple H's neck, so he had that going for him.

You’re talking about a time where a broken Vader, Farooq and even Del Wilkes were challenging for titles - I don’t think they worried for a second about damaging the title with matches as long as the right guy was holding it.

Also the title is already second fiddle to Austin no matter what. They even admit as much in Austin’s promos - so the idea of a midcarder challenging for it would damage it is fallacy and that’s even if I concede that Owen was just another mid carder at this time … which I don’t.

Also I would contest that a personal blood feud between two guys where Owen has a chance to redeem his entire family is a far bigger deal than Taker/Shawn 3 “just because”.

Jun 21, 2024 12:15:14 GMT UT said:

You’re talking about a time where a broken Vader, Farooq and even Del Wilkes were challenging for titles - I don’t think they worried for a second about damaging the title with matches as long as the right guy was holding it.

The only guy I'd consider comparable is the Patriot. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm genuinely curious whether the Patriot was even the direction they were going in after SummerSlam, or if it just happened because the WWF had just lost Stone Cold? The Patriot is an example of giving somebody a shot due to circumstance, the others had concerted pushes behind them and there was clearly a long term behind them. The Patriot, like Owen, just seemed to be a case of the cards falling a certain way.

Jun 21, 2024 12:15:14 GMT UT said:

Also the title is already second fiddle to Austin no matter what. They even admit as much in Austin’s promos - so the idea of a midcarder challenging for it would damage it is fallacy and that’s even if I concede that Owen was just another mid carder at this time … which I don’t.

The WWF still clearly wanted to make the WWF Championship the holy grail for Austin, so having their two biggest stars challenge for it was a safer bet than having a mid-card guy that Austin had already surpassed.

Side-bar, but the WWF still treated the Rumble as a major PPV. If you go through all the championship matches at that point, they're all largely star vs. star. The only exception would possibly be Bret/Ramon, but it wasn't like Ramon had been established as a mid-card guy at that point - he virtually came in as a main eventer and fell down the card. Slaughter/Warrior, Razor/Bret, Taker/Yoko, Bret/Diesel, Taker/Bret, Shawn/Sid - all major matches and the trend would continue until the Holly/Lesnar - but that was when they could support it with a strong RAW title match like HHH/HBK.

Jun 21, 2024 12:15:14 GMT UT said:

Also I would contest that a personal blood feud between two guys where Owen has a chance to redeem his entire family is a far bigger deal than Taker/Shawn 3 “just because”.

The WWF would contest they got more mileage out of the visual of Kane setting his brother alight to end the show and promote their biggest PPV.

I'd be more receptive if the WWF clearly had big plans for Owen but on the face of it, this would have been a one and done match with the HHH/Owen match being a clear case of sloppy seconds.

They just wanted that fire visual probably.

I don’t know why you’d only see Patriot as comparable you’re seriously underselling Owen if that’s the case. Vader was an afterthought and Simmons was leading a fledging faction pre Rock so they were both far below Owens status at this very moment.

As Owen said in his promo to Vince, he’s been busting his ass in the company for years and the fans clearly respect him. Also he has a win against Bret at Mania under his belt and a title feud with him in the WWF. He isn’t just some fledgling mid carder. He certainly isn’t Del Wilkes who came in and fell into a USA/Canada thing.

I don’t think Owen challenging for the title does anything to Austin. That’s just crazy to think. It wouldn’t take any heat off HBK and would probably add even more to him and DX as a whole.


Kane could have lit Taker on fire in any scenario.

I don’t understand why you think the WWF had to have huge plans for someone in order for them to challenge for a title. They had zero plans for the majority of their contenders at this point - he’ll Wilkes was out of the company , Vader was on his way to feuding the worst version of Goldust , Farooq was on his way to being usurped by Rock in the NOD and Shamrock was a pawn in that story.

They could still easily transition Owen from Shawn to HHH after that match and after HHH cost him the belt at the Rumble and nothing would change.

Watching it as a fan it’s so frustrating having this match and there being zero build for it - the title is getting far more drug down by this match than it would be by Owen. At least with Owen it would be acknowledged.

Honestly I'm really into the idea of Owen now. Maybe he doesn't have a place once they pivot to Meekmahn but perhaps he could have challenged Austin after mania instead of Dude Love twice. Yes one of them is an excellent ppv outing but the variety otherwise.

Jun 21, 2024 13:41:54 GMT UT said:

I don’t know why you’d only see Patriot as comparable you’re seriously underselling Owen if that’s the case. Vader was an afterthought and Simmons was leading a fledging faction pre Rock so they were both far below Owens status at this very moment.

Like I said, it's comparable because it would be a circumstantial push instead of a vision. Farooq was given his own faction and received a big push, naturally he was going to get a WWF Championship match. Vader was coming off a twelve month push and had beaten The Undertaker months prior, so a PPV rematch was inevitable.

Jun 21, 2024 13:41:54 GMT UT said:

Also he has a win against Bret at Mania under his belt and a title feud with him in the WWF. He isn’t just some fledgling mid carder.

That was nearly four years ago. Between then and the Rumble, Owen was clearly just a mid-card guy. If you want to say upper mid-card, go nuts, but he's certainly not a main event guy.

Jun 21, 2024 13:41:54 GMT UT said:

I don’t think Owen challenging for the title does anything to Austin. That’s just crazy to think. It wouldn’t take any heat off HBK and would probably add even more to him and DX as a whole.

You're talking about the WWF here, they have stranger tendancies than going with the two established stars on a major PPV. Shawn had yet to defend the title against The Undertaker and so far he'd defended it against a UFC Champion and a Deadman - it appears they were going for a particular dynamic and I don't think they had as much confidence in a pissed off Owen.

Jun 21, 2024 13:41:54 GMT UT said:

Kane could have lit Taker on fire in any scenario.

They chose the most dramatic moment possible, this was clearly a big investment for them as they were trying to push both guys at the same time.

Jun 21, 2024 13:41:54 GMT UT said:

I don’t understand why you think the WWF had to have huge plans for someone in order for them to challenge for a title.

It's contextual, this was a major PPV heading into one of the most important PPVs in company history. Of course if they have no other option, they'd have to get creative and throw a Patriot in there as a stop-gap, but Taker is higher on the food chain than Owen and they wanted to create this perception that Kane/Taker was a major story. If it happens on it's own island away from everyone else I don't think it's as effective and it would later pay off as Kane and Taker are a vital part of the title scene moving forward.

I just don't think they wanted to go that hard with the Black Hart push. I think they eventually wanted to transition from Montreal and put it in the background while they focus on the present. In retrospect, it's difficult to say they got it wrong, especially since Shawn/Taker always had good chemistry in the ring.

What was the build like? Yes Shawn went over in the Cell, but since Kane got involved did it justify Taker having a crack or had they just not engaged for 3 months?

Jun 21, 2024 14:16:55 GMT Big Pete said:

Jun 21, 2024 13:41:54 GMT UT said:

I don’t know why you’d only see Patriot as comparable you’re seriously underselling Owen if that’s the case. Vader was an afterthought and Simmons was leading a fledging faction pre Rock so they were both far below Owens status at this very moment.

Like I said, it's comparable because it would be a circumstantial push instead of a vision. Farooq was given his own faction and received a big push, naturally he was going to get a WWF Championship match. Vader was coming off a twelve month push and had beaten The Undertaker months prior, so a PPV rematch was inevitable.

Jun 21, 2024 13:41:54 GMT UT said:

Also he has a win against Bret at Mania under his belt and a title feud with him in the WWF. He isn’t just some fledgling mid carder.

That was nearly four years ago. Between then and the Rumble, Owen was clearly just a mid-card guy. If you want to say upper mid-card, go nuts, but he's certainly not a main event guy.

Jun 21, 2024 13:41:54 GMT UT said:

I don’t think Owen challenging for the title does anything to Austin. That’s just crazy to think. It wouldn’t take any heat off HBK and would probably add even more to him and DX as a whole.

You're talking about the WWF here, they have stranger tendancies than going with the two established stars on a major PPV. Shawn had yet to defend the title against The Undertaker and so far he'd defended it against a UFC Champion and a Deadman - it appears they were going for a particular dynamic and I don't think they had as much confidence in a pissed off Owen.

Jun 21, 2024 13:41:54 GMT UT said:

Kane could have lit Taker on fire in any scenario.

They chose the most dramatic moment possible, this was clearly a big investment for them as they were trying to push both guys at the same time.

Jun 21, 2024 13:41:54 GMT UT said:

I don’t understand why you think the WWF had to have huge plans for someone in order for them to challenge for a title.

It's contextual, this was a major PPV heading into one of the most important PPVs in company history. Of course if they have no other option, they'd have to get creative and throw a Patriot in there as a stop-gap, but Taker is higher on the food chain than Owen and they wanted to create this perception that Kane/Taker was a major story. If it happens on it's own island away from everyone else I don't think it's as effective and it would later pay off as Kane and Taker are a vital part of the title scene moving forward.

I just don't think they wanted to go that hard with the Black Hart push. I think they eventually wanted to transition from Montreal and put it in the background while they focus on the present. In retrospect, it's difficult to say they got it wrong, especially since Shawn/Taker always had good chemistry in the ring.

First of all it’s unfair that I can’t multi quote.

And I don’t consider it circumstantial at all , it directly plays into Survivor Series and Owen is in a better spot now than Farooq ever was even leading the NOD. He was second in a faction that just directly feuded with DX and ended in maybe the biggest wrestling moment of the year. He’s the last man standing and the one there week in and week out battling DX. It literally lends itself to that match more than any match on the roster.

They didn’t have any context as to why Farooq was challenging for the title. It was just because they wanted to maybe make Farooq which was stupid - this is a blowoff to an actual feud regardless of what happens with Owen afterwards.

Also for the record I don’t consider Owen delegated to a single spot on the card. The great thing about Owen is you could literally move him anywhere and it worked. Tag? IC? World? He played everywhere on the card seamlessly and the fans always bought him and are buying him now more than ever.

He also defended it against Owen on Raw in a really over match - an over match because it made sense and should/could have made a bigger deal.

They didn’t need to push Taker - he was Taker , maybe the most protected character in history. Hell they could have done a Kane spot early in the Rumble and still push both guys and create the same anticipation.


Except they were off on an island doing their own thing completely aside from the actual match. You cannot convince me that Shawn/Taker 3 with zero build was a better choice than Owen/Shawn with a hot build.

Jun 21, 2024 16:23:12 GMT @ness said:

What was the build like? Yes Shawn went over in the Cell, but since Kane got involved did it justify Taker having a crack or had they just not engaged for 3 months?

They have no engaged and until the last Raw of the year I don’t even think DX acknowledged Taker or the match. They’ve literally been feuding with Slaughter and then Owen since IYHDX.

Taker has only interacted with Kane/Paul Bearer and hasn’t even thought about the title. It’s like he doesn’t even know it’s happening because he’s so preoccupied.

So zero build.

It's all an interesting what if, Owen. I know he didn't have the passion like Bret did and it's extra tragic since he was supposedly looking to get out when he died. Internet rumors suggest he was gonna be the game too. Makes ya wonder if that all could've gone down differently if he was booked differently.

Jun 21, 2024 17:45:10 GMT UT said:

Jun 21, 2024 14:16:55 GMT Big Pete said:

Like I said, it's comparable because it would be a circumstantial push instead of a vision. Farooq was given his own faction and received a big push, naturally he was going to get a WWF Championship match. Vader was coming off a twelve month push and had beaten The Undertaker months prior, so a PPV rematch was inevitable.

That was nearly four years ago. Between then and the Rumble, Owen was clearly just a mid-card guy. If you want to say upper mid-card, go nuts, but he's certainly not a main event guy.

You're talking about the WWF here, they have stranger tendancies than going with the two established stars on a major PPV. Shawn had yet to defend the title against The Undertaker and so far he'd defended it against a UFC Champion and a Deadman - it appears they were going for a particular dynamic and I don't think they had as much confidence in a pissed off Owen.

They chose the most dramatic moment possible, this was clearly a big investment for them as they were trying to push both guys at the same time.

It's contextual, this was a major PPV heading into one of the most important PPVs in company history. Of course if they have no other option, they'd have to get creative and throw a Patriot in there as a stop-gap, but Taker is higher on the food chain than Owen and they wanted to create this perception that Kane/Taker was a major story. If it happens on it's own island away from everyone else I don't think it's as effective and it would later pay off as Kane and Taker are a vital part of the title scene moving forward.

I just don't think they wanted to go that hard with the Black Hart push. I think they eventually wanted to transition from Montreal and put it in the background while they focus on the present. In retrospect, it's difficult to say they got it wrong, especially since Shawn/Taker always had good chemistry in the ring.

First of all it’s unfair that I can’t multi quote.

And I don’t consider it circumstantial at all , it directly plays into Survivor Series and Owen is in a better spot now than Farooq ever was even leading the NOD. He was second in a faction that just directly feuded with DX and ended in maybe the biggest wrestling moment of the year. He’s the last man standing and the one there week in and week out battling DX. It literally lends itself to that match more than any match on the roster.

They didn’t have any context as to why Farooq was challenging for the title. It was just because they wanted to maybe make Farooq which was stupid - this is a blowoff to an actual feud regardless of what happens with Owen afterwards.

Also for the record I don’t consider Owen delegated to a single spot on the card. The great thing about Owen is you could literally move him anywhere and it worked. Tag? IC? World? He played everywhere on the card seamlessly and the fans always bought him and are buying him now more than ever.

He also defended it against Owen on Raw in a really over match - an over match because it made sense and should/could have made a bigger deal.

They didn’t need to push Taker - he was Taker , maybe the most protected character in history. Hell they could have done a Kane spot early in the Rumble and still push both guys and create the same anticipation.


Except they were off on an island doing their own thing completely aside from the actual match. You cannot convince me that Shawn/Taker 3 with zero build was a better choice than Owen/Shawn with a hot build.

If it directly plays into Survivor Series, then it's the very meaning of circumstantial. Without the Screwjob to play off of, Owen had just had his ass thoroughly beat by Austin. He was clearly on his way down the card before the Screwjob took place.

The Nation of Domination was a play on the whole Black Panther movement and was all about battling the systemic racism of the company. Naturally having Faarooq become the first African American champion would have been a goal and he said as much. Both he and Taker had history that year as well, with Taker getting involved with the Ahmed drama. It would also spin-off into the DOA/Boriquas faction war. Admittedly not the most entertaining rivalry to come around, but it goes to show the thought the WWF put into it and that whole faction warfare thing was just their way of making the company feel more dangerous and mature.

You may view Owen that way, but clearly the WWF only saw him as a mid-card guy. Even before they had their cake and ate it too with that RAW match, at best he was the guy you beat to enter the main event.

It would be a weird spot to do in a Rumble. Kane just seemingly murders the Undertaker and we move on with entrant #6? It's one of those angles that logically has to close the show and you want as many eyeballs on it so you can use it to help co-headline your biggest show. That makes more sense than closing the show with Owen getting screwed just so we can build to a mid-card match with Hunter where he's going to get screwed again.

Maybe I can't convince you, I'll let history speak for itself. I think everything works out OK from here on out.

If the WWF didn’t view Owen as that guy than why have him attack Shawn weekly? Don’t put him in that spot.

Moving on though - just getting back into it.

Why the hell was Tom Brandi chosen as the guy to “save” Sable. Lordy.

Even if they would both be circumstantial pushes, I'm not going along with the Bob Holly comparison as if they are remotely the same.

Owen had been wrestling against the top guys in the company throughout the previous 4 years, PPV matches with Razor, Bret, Shawn, Diesel, Vader, Mankind, Austin. He had pinned Austin on PPV in mid-1997 and finished off a hot feud in November. Sure, he lost it convincingly, but post-Screwjob, it is not as if the idea of heating him up to main event level was absurd.

Comparing the idea of running HBK/Owen to Brock/Holly? Bob Holly. The guy whose biggest match was being the third wheel with Jericho and Chyna at the 2000 Rumble. Had he even been in a PPV match in the entirety of 2001 or 2002 before his injury? It can't have been more than a couple of lower card hardcore matches or tagging with Crash or something. Holly was a low-carder in 2001 and 2002, at best. At times, a no-carder. He had never been above a brief flirt with the mid-card really.

Did the WWF make the wrong decision? If they wanted to establish Owen as a strong #3 face behind Austin and Taker and possibly as the new Canadian hero after Bret, then sure. They did not need to, but it was a situation where attempting to strike while the iron was hot could have made sense. HHH helping HBK screw Owen in a Rumble title match, leading to Owen defeating HHH at Mania for the European title feels like an obvious route to go. Did the Taker/Kane angle need to be on PPV? Certainly not. Angles to sell PPVs normally take place on TV with the larger available audience. However, I think having Kane turn on Taker in a big title match was more effective than if they had somehow had it on a random RAW and there happened to be a casket about.

But again, Bob Holly. Is this a rib?