The 1980s were a bloated, cheesy masterpiece of professional wrestling. Soap opera storylines with Big Heroes (mind you, Hulk Hogan, the biggest "hero" in the WWE was always cheating to win, overcelebrating his friends' victories, hogging the spotlight, and stabbing his friends in the back while waving The American Flag), steroid riddled promos about vitamins, warriors, maniacs, hard times, and Space Mountain, and A-B-C match formats where the hero used the same stale and unimpressive move to somehow annihilate his previously healthy opponents. Something had to give.

It took time. Time and evolution (not Triple H, Ric Flair, Randy Orton, and Batista; although they eventually contributed). Technical wrestling improved, storylines became more complex, and more room was made at the top for a wider variety of heroes and heels with fewer jobbers making their way on TV.

This season sees The Four Horseman Era continue in WCW while their undercard trains to be the future of the WWE. Meanwhile WWE becomes more than just the Hogan/Savage/Warrior show, as Shawn Michaels, Bret Hart, and The Undertaker make their presences known.

The middle of this season sees one of the three Gaping Creative Drouts that occured in wrestling during my lifetime. And, yet, they still contain some spectacular matches.  

1. Old Business, 1990 

While we bid adieu to Hulkamania running wild at the end of last season, it's not dead. The 80s wrestlers didn't just disappear as 1990 rolled in. So here we see the old guard start to wind down as slightly younger wrestlers like Mr Perfect, Texas Tornado, Shawn Michaels, and The Undertaker all make their way to the top of the WWE wrestling cards. This also includes the Survivor Series where, at the end, everyone who survived the previous matches teamed up for a random faces vs random heels match. Zero points for guessing who overcame the odds to win.

​Announcers: Roddy Piper, Vince McMahon, Gorilla Monsoon, Gene Okerlund, Sean Mooney, Lord Alfred Hayes, Howard Finkel.

1. Mr Perfect (WWE Intercontinental Champ) vs Texas Tornado
2. Demolition (WWE Tag Team Champs) vs Rockers
3. Ultimate Warrior (WWE Champ) vs Rick Rude in a Steel Cage
4. Million Dollar Team vs The Dream Team
Ted Dibiase, Honky Tonk Man, Greg Valentine, Undertaker vs Dusty Rhodes, Bret Hart, Jim Neidhart, Koko B Ware

5. Visionaries Vs Vipers
Rick Martel, Hercules, Paul Roma, Warlord vs Jake Roberts, Jimmy Snuka, Shawn Michaels, Marty Jannetti

6. Survivors vs Survivors
Hulk Hogan, Ultimate Warrior, Tito Santana vs  Ted Dibiase, Rick Martel, Hercules, Paul Roma, Warlord

2. Capitol Combat, 1990

WWE isn't alone in starting to push new stars a bit. Weirdly, almost all of the younger generation that appears in this season of WCW moves to WWE to get real famous next season. Stil, it's fun to see Mick Foley as Cactus Jack, Steve Austin as The Hollywood Blond, and Ron Simmons just being his badass self before WWE started tossing gimmicks at him.

Announcers: Jim Ross, Terry Funk, Bob Caudle, Paul Heyman, Gordon Solie, Missy Hyatt, Tony Schiavone, Gary Michael Cappetta

1. Norman The Lunatic & Legion Of Doom vs Bam Bam Bigelow, Mick Foley (as Cactus Jack), Kevin Sullivan
2. Rock & Roll Express vs Freebirds in a Corporal Punishment Match
3. Steiner Brothers (WCW Tag Team Champs) vs Doom
4. Ric Flair (WCW Champ) vs Lex Luger in a Steel Cage
5. Vader vs Tom Zenk
6. Doom (WCW Tag Team Champs) vs Rock & Roll Express
7. Sting (WCW Champ) vs Ric Flair
8. Steiner Brothers (WCW Tag Team Champs) vs Nasty Boys
9. Sting (WCW Champ) vs Sid Vicious

3. American Nationalism Run Amuck, 1991

This is all over the place. We even start with The Rising Hero Of The Late 80s (Ultimate Warrior) vs 70s Superstar Sgt Slaughter, whose scond run in the WWE we're going to mostly skip because it was super cringey when it was happening, and it's worse now. Likewise, the Royal Rumble calls back to the 1970s, let's some of the 80s undercard and some up-and-coming 90s stars mix it up before totally 1987ing the ending.

Announcers: Gorilla Monsoon, Roddy Piper, Gene Okerlund, Sean Mooney, Howard Finkel
​
​1. Ultimate Warrior (WWE Champ) vs Sgt Slaughter
2. Ted Dibiase and Virgil vs Dusty Rhodes and Goldust
3. Royal Rumble
Bret Hart, Dino Bravo, Greg Valentine, Paul Roma, The Texas Tornado, Rick Martel, Saba Simba, Bushwhacker Butch, Jake Roberts, Hercules, Tito Santana, The Undertaker, Jimmy Snuka, The British Bulldog, Smash, Hawk, Shane Douglas, Animal , Crush , Jim Duggan, Earthquake, Mr. Perfect, Hulk Hogan , Haku , Jim Neidhart , Bushwhacker Luke, Brian Knobbs, The Warlord, Tugboat 

4. The Japanese Invasion, 1991

While the WWE is being Super Problematic with their nationalism, WCW starts to do crossover events with New Japan Wrestling that highlight the mastery of Japanese Wrestling rather than trying to crush all of the performers under their American competitors. I haven't watched it for a while, so I don't know if it's completely uncringey but I think I would remember if it was as politically graceless as the WWE. Also, bonus points for a very early Rey Mysterio match before he disappeared back to Mexico for a while.

Announcers:  Jim Ross, Dusty Rhodes, Paul Heyman, Tony Schiavone, Missy Hyatt, Gary Michael Cappetta

1. Steiner Brothers vs Konnan & Rey Mysterio
2. Mr Saito & Great Muta vs Victor Zangiev & Salman Hashminikov
3. Stan Hansen (WCW US Champ) vs Lex Luger
4. Steiner Brothers vs Mr Saito & Great Muta
5. Jushi Thunder Liger vs Akira Nogami
6. Four Horseman vs Masa Saito & Masahiro Chono
7. Great Muta vs Sting
8. Ric Flair (WCW Champ) vs Tatsumi Fujinami (NJW Champ)
9. Barry Wyndham vs Brian Pillman in a Taped Wrist Match
10. Steiner Brothers (WCW Tag Team Champs) vs Ric Flair & Lex Luger

5.  Redemption, 1991

We continue the slow passing of torches in 1991 with some excellent slow burn storylines, including the Ted Dibase/Virgil feud, and the blurring of whether Jake Roberts is a face or heel. It's also the beginning of the Golden Age of The Intercontinental Championship as some of the biggest future stars take their turns with the belt.

Announcers: Gorilla Monsoon, Bobby Heenan, Roddy Piper, Jim Duggan, Gene Okerlund, Sean Mooney, Lord Alfred Hayes, Howard Finkel

1. Hart Foundation (WWE Tag Team Champs)  vs Nasty Boys
2. Jake Roberts vs Rick Martel in a Blindfold Match
3. Undertaker vs Jimmy Snuka
4. Ultimate Warrior vs Randy Savage in a Retirement Match
5. Ted Dibiase vs Virgil
6. Texas Tornado (WWE Intercontinental Champ) vs Mr Perfect
7. Mr Perfect (WWE Intercontinental Champ) vs Bret Hart

​6. The Chamber Of Horrors

While the future of both WWE and WCW wrestling start to take control of the WWE in the early 1990s, WCW starts to descend into terrible gimmicks and an overreliance on tournaments to give shape to their pay-per-views. There are still some stellar performers and matches, though. Plus, who doesn't want to see a relatively young Paul Heyman tossed into a Steel Cage match? 

Announcers: Jim Ross, Tony Schiavone, Dusty Rhodes, Eric Bischoff, Missy Hyatt, Gary Michael Cappetta

1. Arn Anderson (WCW TV Champ) vs Bobby Eaton
2. Tatsumi Fujinaki (NWA Champ) vs Ric Flair (WCW Champ)
3. Brian Pillman v Marc Mero
4. Nikita Koloff vs Sting in a Russian Chain Match
5. Lex Luger vs Barry Wyndham in a Steel Cage Match for the WCW Championship
6. Rick Steiner vs Arn Anderson & Paul Heyman in a Steel Cage Match
7. Chamber Of Horrors Match
Sting, Big Show, The Steiner Brothers vs Abdullah the Butcher, The Diamond Studd, Mick Foley (as Cactus Jack), Vader

8. Steve Austin (WCW TV Champ) vs Goldust
9. Lex Luger (WCW Champ) vs Farooq

7. Match Made In Heaven,  1991

The double turn of Randy Savage and Jake Roberts was a perfect way to see them out of the WWE, it's almost a shame it wasn't either of their last matches for the company. They worked incredibly well together. We don't get to see their matchup in this episode, but it's totally set up here. We also get a better Dibiase/Virgil match, the total redemption of Randy Savage, and we realize that The Earthquake isn't going to get the chance to be The Monster Heel in place of Andre The Giant because The Undertaker is an unstoppable force.

Announcers: Gorilla Monsoon, Bobby Heenan, Roddy Piper, Gene Okerlund, Howard Finkel 

1. Bushwhackers vs Natural Disasters
2. Ted Dibiase vs Virgil for the Million Dollar Championship
3. Nasty Boys (WWE Tag Team Champs) vs Legion Of Doom
4. Match Made In Heaven/Reception Made In Hell
5. Million Dollar Team vs Hitman Squad
Ted Dibiase, Ric Flair, Warlord, The Mountie vs Bret Hart, Roddy Piper, Virgil, British Bulldog

6. Hulk Hogan (WWE Champ) vs Undertaker

8. Lethal Lottery, 1991, 1992

WCW did a few of these Lethal Lotteries, where tag teams were put together randomly, and the winning teams' members were thrown into a 16 Man Battle Royal. It's an interesting concept. But this will be the only one I'm including in the series. Also, those Japanese wrestlers haven't gone away. They're still a vital part of this era of WCW, and it is Glorious.

Announcers:  Jim Ross, Tony Schiavone, Eric Bischoff, Missy Hyatt, Magnum TA, Gary Michael Cappetta

1. Steve Austin & Rick Rude vs Van Hammer & Doink
2. Bill Kaamier & Jushin Thunder Liger vs DDP & Mike Graham
3. Ricky Steamboat & Todd Champion vs Mick Foley (as Cactus Jack) & Buddy Lee Parker
4. Vader & Mr Hughes Vs Rick Steiner & Adam Bomb
5. Battlebowl Battle Royal
6.Enforcers Vs Michiyoshi Ohara & Shiro Koshinaka
7. Dusty Rhodes & Goldust vs Masa Saito & Kim Duk
8. Lex Luger (WCW Champ) vs Masahiro Chono
9. Sting & Great Muta vs Steiner Brothers

9.  Fair To Flair 1991, 1992

Bobby Heenan's finest hour is calling the 1992 Royal Rumble, as WCW's biggest star has jumped ship and is running around the WWE with the WCW belt around his waist. It's fantastic. The rest of this match is the ending of feuds from previous episodes, and showing off a couple of new talents. 

Announcers: Gorilla Monsoon, Bobby Heenan, Gene Okerlund, Sean Mooney, Lord Alfred Hayes, Howard Finkel

1.The Barbershop Incident
2. Jake Roberts vs Randy Savage
3. Undertaker (WWE Champ) vs Hulk Hogan
4. Royal Rumble Match
The British Bulldog , Ted DiBiase, Ric Flair, Jerry Sags, Haku, Shawn Michaels, Tito Santana, The Barbarian, The Texas Tornado, Repo Man, Greg Valentine, Nikolai Volkoff, Big Boss Man, Hercules ,  Roddy Piper, Jake Roberts,  Jim Duggan, Irwin R. Schyster, Jimmy Snuka, The Undertaker, Randy Savage, The Berzerker, Virgil, Col. Mustafa,  Rick Martel, Hulk Hogan, Skinner, Sgt. Slaughter,  Sid Justice,  The Warlord

10. Superbrawl 2, 1992

Again, this is kind of a gold buried under crap era for WCW, as it's slowly morphing from NWA to the official WCW. This episode, in particular, aligns with the earlier WWE matches from this season as 70s, 80s, and 90s stars are all represented pretty equally.

Announcers: Jim Ross, Jesse Ventura, Tony Schiavone, Eric Bischoff, Missy Hyatt, Barry Abrams, Gary Michael Cappetta

1. Jushin Thunder Liger (WCW Lightweight Champ) vs Brian Pillman
2. Farooq vs Mick Foley (as Cactus Jack)
3. Barry Wyndham & Goldust vs Steve Austin & Larry Zbysko
4. Rick Rude (WCW US Champ) vs Ricky Steamboat
5. Lex Luger (WCW Champ) vs Sting
6. Raven vs Buff Bagwell
7. Farooq vs Mr Hughes
8. Sting's Squadron vs Dangerous Alliance
Sting, Barry Wyndham, Goldust, Ricky Steamboat, Nikita Koloff vs Steve Austin, Rick Rude, Arn Anderson, Bobby Eaton, Larry Zbysko)

11. Damaged Goods, 1992

After the last episode's Superkick Heard Round The Industry, Shawn Michaels begins his spinning heel turn, Ric Flair's plan to go after Hogan goes belly up when Hogan is suspended for steroids, so, instead, we get Flair vs Randy Savage, which proved to be more fun, anyway. (Don't worry, Hogan vs Flair is coming.) 

Announcers: Gorilla Monsoon, Bobby Heenan, Vince McMahon, Mr Perfect, Gene Okerlund, Sean Mooney, Howard Finkel

1. Damaged Goods
2. Shawn Michaels vs Tito Santana
3. Undertaker vs Jake Roberts
4. Money Inc (WWE Tag Team Champs) vs Natural Disasters
5. Owen Hart vs Skinner
6. Roddy Piper (WWE Intercontinental Champ) vs Bret Hart
7. Ric Flair (WWE Champ) vs Randy Savage

12. Beach Blast, 1992

Jake Roberts crosses over to WCW here, along with Greg Valentine. There's not much to say about this episode other than Congratulations to these wrestlers for making entertaining matches during one of the worst booked eras of a wrestling company that doesn't have Vince Russo on the payroll yet.

Announcers:  Jim Ross, Jesse Ventura, Tony Schiavonne, Eric Bischoff, Bruno Sammartino, Missy Hyatt, Teddy Long, Magnum TA, Tony Gilliam, Gary Michael Cappetta

1. Raven vs Brian Pillman
2. Greg Valentine vs Buff Bagwell
3. Sting vs Mick Foley (as Cactus Jack)
4. Goldust & Barry Wyndham vs Steve Austin & Rick Rude
5. Sting (WCW Champ) vs Vader
6. Ricky Steamboat vs Brian Pillman
7. Farooq vs Barbarian
8. Sting vs Jake Roberts in a Coal Miner's Glove Match

13. The Excellence of Execution, 1992

Here we go, the old guard is almost completely gone (Hogan's appearance at the end of this episode is just to show what a desperate, aging cliche he had become THIRTY YEARS AGO.) and The Kliq (Shawn Michaels, Scott Hall, Kevin Nash, and XPac) are starting to dominate the entire industry, and will continue to do so for the rest of the decade. 

Announcers: Vince McMahon, Bobby Heenan, Jim Ross, Gene Okerlund, Sean Mooney, Lord Alfred Hayes, Howard Finkel

1. Bret Hart (WWE Intercontinental Champ) vs British Bulldog
2. Head Shrinkers vs High Energy
3. Bret Hart (WWE Champ) vs Shawn Michaels
​4.  Shawn Michaels (WWE Intercontinental Champ) vs Marty Jannetty
5. Bret Hart (WWE Champ) vs Yokozuna
6. Yokozuna (WWE Champ) vs Hulk Hogan

15. King Of Harts, 1993

WWE launches Monday Night Raw. The Kliq and the Hart family continue to run rampant, Hulk Hogan wrestles his last WWE match for a decade, and XPac debuts (as the 123 Kid) becoming the most famous jobber of all time.

Announcers: Vince McMahon, Bobby Heenan, Randy Savage, Rob Bartlett, Gene Okerlund, Sean Mooney, Lord Alfred Hayes, Howard Finkel

1. Bobby Heenan Can't Get In The Building
2. Scott Hall (as Razor Ramon) vs XPac (as The Kid)
3. Mr. Perfect vs Ric Flair in Loser Leaves Town Match
4. Bret Hart vs Scott Hall (as Razor Ramon)
​5. Bret Hart vs Mr Perfect
6. Hulk Hogan (WWE Champ) vs Yokozuna
7. Bret Hart vs Bam Bam Bigelow  for King Of The Ring

15. Supershow, 1993

Another New Japan crossover supports the otherwise awful booking of the era. Chris Benoit debuts, and Mick Foley vs Vader is an early 90s Highlight.

Announcers: Tony Schiavonne,  Jim Ross, Larry Zbysko, Jesse Ventura, Eric Bischoff, Missy Hyatt, Gary Michael Cappetta

1. Ultimo Dragon (IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champ) vs Jushin Thunder Liger 
2. Great Muta (IWGP Champ) vs Masahiro Chono (WCW Champ)
3. BattleBowl 2
4. 2 Cold Scorpio vs Chris Benoit
5. British Bulldog vs Bill Irwin
6. Hollywood Blonds (WCW Tag Team Champs) vs Dos Hombres in a Steel Cage
7. Vader vs Mick Foley in a Texas Death Match

16. Everybody's Got A Price, 1993

WWE's prime time show, Raw, expanded their ability to play with mid-term storytelling. You no longer had to compact a storyline into a single episode or make it months long in order to reach a pay-per-view event. I choose to celebrate this by condensing the Razor Ramon/1-2-3 Kid/Money Inc storyline into half an episode. We also get to see the short term revenge of Bret Hart against Jerry Lawler. Their storyline went on for months after this but the matches were at best terrible, and at worst, gross. We'll just pretend it stopped here. I've also tossed in the highlights from the 1993 WWF Family Feud shows, an amazing product of that era.

Announcers:  Vince McMahon, Bobby Heenan, Jim Ross, Ray Combs, Gene Okerlund,  Gene Wood, Howard Finkel

1. Scott Hall (as Razor Ramon) vs XPac (as The 1-2-3 Kid) for $10,000
2. Ted Dibiase vs X-Pac (as The 1-2-3 Kid)
3. Scott Hall (as Razor Ramon) vs Ted Dibiase
4. IRS v X-Pac (as The 1-2-3 Kid)
5. Bret Hart vs Doink & Jerry Lawler
6. Bam Bam Bigelow & Headshrinkers vs Tatanka & Smoking Guns

7. The Family Feud
Randy Savage, Slick, Crush, Tatanka, Big Boss Man vs Shawn Michaels, Jimmy Hart, IRS, Papa Shango, Repo Man 

18. Return Of The Flair, 1994

The Dirtiest Player In The Game returns home to spice things up for the final WCW episode of the season. 

Announcers: Tony Schiavonne,  Jesse Ventura, Bobby Heenan, Eric Bischoff, Gene Okerlund, Michael Buffer, Gary Michael Cappetta

1. Goldust (WCW TV Champ) vs Steve Austin 2 Out Of 3 Falls Match
2. Rick Rude (WCW International Champ) vs Big Boss Man
3. Vader (WCW Champ) vs Ric Flair in Title Vs Career Match
4. Harlem Heat vs Thunder & Lightning
5. Ric Flair (WCW Champ) vs Vader in Thundercage Match
6. Marc Mero vs DDP
7. Rick Rude (WCW International Champ) vs Sting
8. Vader vs Big Boss Man
9. Ric Flair (WCW Champ) vs Ricky Steamboat

19. Raw, 1994

This episode is a bit of a placeholder, mainlyhere for The royal Rumble Match, but the Casket Match is also a classic, and the intra-family Hart feud will heat up even more next season.

Announcers: Vince McMahon, Jerry Lawler, Ted Dibiase, Bobby Heenan, Randy Savage, Gene Okerlund, Todd Pettingill, Howard Finkel

1.  Yokozuna (WWE Champ) vs Undertaker in a Casket Match
2. Royal Rumble 
Scott Steiner, Samu, Rick Steiner, Kwang, Owen Hart, Bart Gunn, Kevin Nash (as Diesel), Bob Backlund, Billy Gunn, Virgil, Randy Savage, Jeff Jarrett, Crush, Doink the Clown, Viscera, Bob Holly, Shawn Michaels, Mo, Greg Valentine, Tatanka, The Great Kabuki, Lex Luger, Genichiro Tenryu, Rick Martel, Bret Hart, Rikishi, Marty Jannetty, Adam Bomb

3. Owen Hart vs Bret Hart

20. The New Generation Takeover, 1994

Heresoeth endeth the 80's control of the WWE. No more shall Hogan, Heenan, Savage, Okerlund, Mr Perfect, Dibiase, Jimmy Hart, or any of their ilk cast their shadows on the WWE (well, ok, so SOME of them will come back eventually, but never for long). All the rising Harts, and Michaelses and, Razors both Ramon and not Ramon, and Diesels both Kevin Nash and Kane, Jerry Lawlers, and Jim Rosses shall come to forever be known as The Faces Of The WWE. I mean, for a few minutes, anyway.

Announcers: Gorilla Monsoon, Vince McMahon, Jerry Lawler, Bobby Heenan, Randy Savage, Gene Okerlund, Todd Pettingill. Burt Reynolds, Howard Finkel 

1. Scott Hall (as Razor Ramon) (WWE Intercontinental Champ) vs Shawn Michaels in a Ladder Match
2. Yokozuna (WWE Champ) vs Bret Hart
​3. Bret Hart (WWE Champ) vs Kevin Nash (as Diesel)
4. Owen Hart vs Scott Hall (as Razor Ramon) for King Of The Ring
5. Alundra Blayze (WWE Womans Champ) vs Bull Nakano
6. Kevin Nash (as Diesel) (WWE Intercontinental Champ)  vs Scott Hall (as Razor Ramon)  
7. Gorilla Monsoon vs Bobby Heenan

Wrestling is a work. It's sports entertainment with predetermined results. It's a soap opera famously designed for late twentieth century male-identified fans of steroid-riddled beefcakes. It's silly. It, like all sports, is 90% garbage, 10% amazing. It's way better than fat old white guys wearing tacky clothes on a liesurely walk through manicured grass while occasionally hitting a ball with a stick, or that other ball with a stick sport where a bunch of steroid-riddled non-beefcakes stand around in the sun (or the moon if it's a night game) waiting for someone to hit the ball in their general direction so they can maybe catch it or something.

Look, it makes just as much sense as soccer or lacrosse or underwater foosball . When it's great, it's Ping Pong Parkour Great, and when it's bad, it's insufferable golf with sweatier men.

I've watched A Lot of it. First in the eighties. All of my friends were into wrestling during the Hogan-centric era. All of them. Kids would act out The Interviews, not even the matches, The Interviews during recess, probably realizing they were more likely to grow up into Gene Okerlund or Tony Schiavone than Bret Hart of The Ultimate Warrior.

In the 90s, I lived with a family who got really into The Rock, Steve Austin, and Rey Mysterio, and I got hooked back in for a couple of years.

Poetry slam took over most of my life in the 21st century, but I would hear people talk about certain names that I would remember, and I would go on Youtube or DailyMotion and seek out the match and see if it still had any emotional resonance. And sometimes it did.

I am going to Seriously Condense wrestling history into a few seasons. Each season will contain YEARS of storylines. Maybe that sucks some of the drama out when you don't have to wait a full year for a feud to peak and resolve, but I want this list to MOVE. It will be mostly WWE (which is the product I grew up on) and some WCW.

The first season, Rock And Wrestling starts off with a Pilot Episode that doesn't really fit with the rest of the season but includes a bunch of famous matches from before I was born. Some of those matches are historically important, some of them just introduce characters who will come back much later but who you should probably see some of their Ancient Work.

I have edited all of these episodes together for my own personal use. I won't ever be sending these files out to people (because copyright is important) but I might do some free Discord viewing if people are interested.

Pilot: All-American Wrestling

I got into wrestling during Hulkamania, and never watched classic 70s or early 80s matches until I decided to work on this project. So this episode are all matches that are Historically Important. I was going to start with the end of Bruno Sammartino's first (and longest in history) reign as WWE (then WWWF) Champion, but the video from that match is really terrible, so I've decided to begin the series with the end of Sammartino's second reign, which also introduces us to the prototype that Hulk Hogan is based on.

Announcers: Vince McMahon, Gorilla Monsoon, Gene Okerlund, Howard Finkel, and more.

1. Bruno Sammartino (WWE Champ) vs Superstar Billy Graham, 1977
2. Superstar Billy Graham (WWE Chanp) vs Bob Backlund, 1978
3. Terry Funk Vs Jerry Lawler in an Empty Arena Match, 1981
4. Andre The Giant Vs Killer Khan in a Mongolian Stretcher Match, 1981
5. Pat Patterson vs Sgt Slaughter in a Street Fight, 1981
6. Bob Backlund (WWE Champ) vs Superfly Jimmy Snuka in a Steel Cage, 1983
7. Dynamite Kid vs Tiger Mask 3 in Japan, 1983
8. Andre The Giant Vs Abdullah The Butcher, 1983
9. Bob Backlund (WWE Champ) & The Persian Club Incident, 1983 sets up
10.  Bob Backlund (WWE Champ) vs. The Iron Shiek, 1983
11. Iron Shiek (WWE Champ) vs. Hulk Hogan, 1983

Episode 1: WCW Starrcade 1983/1984 

The first closed-circuit wrestling spectacular for a revamped wrestling promotion, Starrcade introduces us to a bunch of faces who will become famous in the WWE but who put on some of their best matches in this slightly less soap-operay divison.

1. Abdullah The Butcher vs Carlos Colon
2. Roddy Piper Vs Greg Valentine in a Dog Collar Match
3.  Brisco Brothers (WCW Tag Champs) vs Ricky Steamboat and Tully Blanchard
4. Harley Race (WCW Champ) vs Ric Flair
5. Tully Blanchard (WCW TV Champ) vs Ricky Steamboat
6. Wahoo McDaniel (WWE US Champ) vs Superstar Billy Graham

Episode 2: The Birth Of Wrestlemania, 1984

No one can deny that Hulk Hogan was The Guy who made wrestling mainstream, and as quirky as the weekly wrestling Superstars shows were, I'm really not inflicting people with Famous Wrestlers Take On Jobbers (usually local talent whose job it was to lose matches and make the stars look good), so  the WWE story really gets revved up with the first WWE (then WWF, no longer the WWWF) pay-per-view spectacular. The first match does not take place at Wrestlemania but was a match worthy of being on the ppv. I've also tacked on some early Saturday Night Main Event matches to stretch this out to two hours. This really helps because the main event of Wrestlemania was kind of meh. This allows the main event to be Hulk Hogan (in white diapers instead of the usual yellow) waving an American flag. Ain't nothing more 1980s WWE than that.

Announcers: Gorilla Monsoon, Jesse Ventura, Vince McMahon, Gene Okerlund, Alfred Hayes, Howard Finkel

1. The Iron Shiek vs Sgt Slaughter
2. Junkyard Dog vs Greg Valentine
3. Andre The Giant Vs Big John Studd
4. Wendi Richter (WWE Woman's Champ) vs Leilani Kai
5. Hulk Hogan (WWE Champ) and Mr. T vs Roddy Piper and Paul Orndorfff
6. Wendi Richter (WWE Woman's Champ) vs Fabulous Moolah
7. Terry Funk vs The Junkyard Dog
8. Randy Savage vs George Steele
9. The Dream Team (WWE Tag Team Champs) vs The British Bulldogs
10. Hulk Hogan Vs Nikolai Volkov in a Flag Match

Episode 6: The Slam Heard Round The World, 1987

More Saturday Night Main Events matches to end old storylines and tease events for Wrestlemania 3.

Announcers: Gorilla Monsoon, Lord Alfred Hayes, Vince McMahon, Jesse Ventura, Bob Eueker, Mary Hart,  Gene Okerlund, Howard Finkel

1. Hulk Hogan and Junkyard Dog vs. The Funks
2. Ricky Steamboat vs Jake Roberts
3. Hart Foundation vs Tito Santana & Dan Spivey 
4. Junkyard Dog vs King Harley Race
5. Randy Savage vs Ricky Steamboat
6. Honky Tonk Man (WWE Intercontinental Champ) vs Jake Roberts
7. Hulk Hogan (WWE Champ) vs Andre The Giant ​​

Episode 9: The Tournament Of Champion, 1988

Another Wrestling Classic style tournament takes place at Wrestlemania 4, but this time, it's to crown a new champion due to some chicanery from The Main Event that led to the tournament. Also, the closing match gives us a new champion, who's not wearing yellow and red! I've also tacked on some matches post-Wrestlemania so you can see Hulk Hogan with Elizabeth as his manager, but also end with Randy Savage defending his title, and not having Hogan around to hog his spotlight.

Announcers: Gorilla Monsoon, Jesse Ventura, Vince McMahon,  Bob Ueker, Gene Okerlund, Vanna White, Robin Leach, and Howard Finkel

1. Hulk Hogan (WWE Champ) vs Andre The Giant
2. Ted Dibiase vs Jim Duggan
3. Honky Tonk Man  (WWE Intercontinental Champ) vs Brutus Beefcake
4. Randy Savage vs One Man Gang
5. Strike Force (WWE Tag Champs) vs Demolition
6. Rady Savage vs Ted Dibiase for the WWE Title
7. Rick Rude vs Koko B Ware
8. Randy Savage (WWE Champ) vs One Man Gang

Episode 11: The Megapowers, 1988

Hulk Hogan, egomaniacal former champ, and Randy Savage, egomanical current champ, join forces to utterly dominate the industry with their storyline. This episode features the first ever Summer Slam, and the second Survivor Series. Please note that the "Hart Family" here is not, in fact The Hart Family (Bret, Owen British Bulldog, Jim Neidhart), who will become the main stars of season two, but members of Jimmy Hart's wrestling stable. 

Announcers: Gorilla Monsoon, Vince McMahon, Jesse Ventura, Superstar Billy Graham, Gene Okerlund, Sean Mooney, and Howard Finkel

1. Randy Savage (WWE Champ) vs Andre The Giant
2. 4. Hulk Hogan vs King Haku
3. Honky Tonk Man (WWE Intercontinental Champ) vs Ultimate Warrior
4. Demolition (WWE Tag Team Champs) vs Hart Foundation
5. Megapowers vs Megabucks
6. The Hart Family vs The Warriors
Honky Tonk Man, Greg Valentine, Bad News Brown, Ron Bass, and Danny Davis vs Ultimate Warrior, Brutus Beefcake, Owen Hart, Jim Brunzell, and Sam Houston

7. Super Megapowers vs Million Dollar Dream Team
Hulk Hogan, Macho Man, Hercules, Koko B Ware, and Hillbilly Jim vs  Ted Dibiase, Big Boss Man, One Man Gang, Haku, and the Red Rooster

Episode 13: The Royal Rumble, 1988/89

Featuring matches from Saturday Night Main Event, The Survivor Series, and The Royal Rumble, storylines develop that will keep building until Wrestlemania 5. We also have the second Royal Rumble, which contains storybeats and choreographed moves as opposed to the general chaos of the first rumble.

Announcers: Gorilla Monsoon, Jesse Ventura, Vince McMahon, Gene Okerlund, Sean Mooney, and Howard Finkel

1. Ultimate Warrior (WWE Intercontinental Champ) vs Honky Tonk Man
2. Mr. Perfect vs Koko B Ware
3. King Haku vs Harley Race for the cape and crown
4. Royal Rumble Match
Ax, Smash, Andre The Giant, Mr Perfect, Ronnie Garvin, Greg Valentine, Jake Roberts, Ron Bass, Shawn Michaels, Bushwhacker Butch, Honky Tonk Man, Tito Santana, Bad News Brown, Marty Janetti, Macho Man, Arn Anderson, Tully Blanchard, Hulk Hogan, Bushwhacker Luke, Koko B Ware, Warlod, Big Boss Man, Akeem, Brutus Beefcake, Red Rooster, Barbarian, Big John Studd, Hercules, Rick Martel, and Ted Dibiase

5. MegaPowers vs Twin Towers

Episode 16: Rise Of The Warrior, 1989

The man who dethroned The Honkey Tonk Man lost his Intercontinental Championship in the last episode but now begins his time to shine. We also see Hacksaw Jim Duggan as King of the WWE, the tag team reign of two of the biggest WCW stars (Tully Blanchard and Arn Anderson of the Four Horsemen are now the WWE's Brain Busters), and a couple of Survivor Series matches. Despite being the WWE Champ, there is no Hulk Hogan in this episode. 

Annoucers:  Jesse Ventura, Tony Schiavonne, Gene Okerlund, Sean Mooney, Howard Finkel, Ron Garvin

1. King Hacksaw vs Rick Rude
2. Brain Busters (WWE Tag Team Champs) vs Hart Foundation
3. Dusty Rhodes vs Honkey Tonk Man
4. Rick Rude (WWE Intercontinental Champ) vs Ultimate Warrior
5. Brain Busters (WWE Tag Team Champs) vs Demolition
6. Debut of Earthquale
​7. The King's Court vs The 4x4s
Randy Savage, Earthquake, Dino Bravo, and Greg Valentine vs Jim Duggan, Bret Hart, Ronnie Gavin, and Hercules

8. The Ultimate Warriors vs The Heenan Family
The Ultimate Warrior, Jim Neidhart, Shawn Michaels and Marty Jannetty vs  Bobby Heenan, André the Giant, Haku and Arn Anderson

Episode 17: Kings Of The Hill, 1990

NWA/WCW loved to put multiple rings together for special gimmick matches. Here we begin with a two-ring Battle Royal, throw some War Games in the mix, and end with the WCW answer to The Megapowers, about a year too late.

Announcers: Jim Ross, Bob Caudle, Gordon Sollie, Chris Cruise, and Gary Michael Cappetta

1. King Of The Hill Battle Royal
2. Sting (WCW TV Champ) vs The Great Muta
3. War Games Match
Legion Of Doom, The Midnight Express, and Steve Williams vs The Fabulous Freebirds and The Samoan SWAT Team

4. Ric Flair (WCW Champ) vs Terry Funk
5. Samoan SWAT Team vs Midnight Express and Steve Williams
6. Doom vs The Steiner Brothers
7. Lex Luger vs Brian Pillman
8. Ric Flair/Sting vs Great Muta/Terry Funk

Episode 18: Superstars Of Wrestling, 1989/90

Some classic matchups from Saturday Night's Main Events. Plus, the 1990 Royal Rumble which sets up the feud that will finally topple Hogan from his perch.

Announcers: Vince McMahon, Bobby Heenan, Tony Schiavone, Jesse Ventura, Gene Okerlund, Sean Mooney, and Howard Finkel

1.  Ultimate Warrior (WWE Intercontinental Champ) vs Andre The Giant
2. Dusty Rhodes vs The Big Boss Man
3. Rockers vs Brain Busters
4. Rockers vs Hart Foundation
5. Royal Rumble Match
Ted DiBiase, Koko B. Ware, Marty Jannetty, Jake Roberts, Randy Savage, Roddy Piper, The Warlord, Bret Hart, Bad News Brown, Dusty Rhodes, André the Giant, The Red Rooster, Ax, Haku, Smash, One Man Gang, Jimmy Snuka, Dino Bravo, The Earthquake, Jim Neidhart, The Ultimate Warrior, Rick Martel, Tito Santana, The Honky Tonk Man, Hulk Hogan, Shawn Michaels, The Barbarian, Rick Rude, Hercules, Mr. Perfect

Episode 19: Future Shock, 1990

A two tournament simultaneous pay-per-view. One individual tournament, and one tag team tournament. Why? Why not? We'll follow it up with some Wrestle War to make it seem more polished.

Announcers: Jim Ross, Terry Funk, Gordon Solie, Missy Hyatt, Gary Michael Cappetta

1. Sting vs Lex Luger
2. Legion Of Doom vs Doom
3. Ric Flair vs Great Muta
4. Steiner Brothers vs Legion Of Doom
5. Sting vs Great Muta
6. New Wild Samoans vs Doom
7. Legion Of Doom vs New Wild Samoans
8. Sting vs Ric Flair
9. Norman The Lunatic vs Mick Foley
10. Legion Of Doom vs The Skyscrapers in a Chicago Street Fight
11. Ric Flair (WCW Champ) vs Lex Luger

Episode 20: The Ultimate Challenge, 1990

Make no mistake, Hulk Hogan is in every wrestling season for years and years and years, but this Wrestlemania 6 outing marks the end of Hogan's death grip on the WWE Heavyweight title. Sure, he'll snatch it again a few times, but he'll never have another five year long run with the gold again. This also signals the end of 80s stars' domination of  the industry, as "The New Generation" starts stepping into the spotlight. We also highlight the role of The Earthquake who is about to replace Andre The Giant as the WWE's Monster Heel.

Announcers: Gorilla Monsoon, Jesse Ventura, Jim Ross, Bob Caudle, Gene Okerlund, Sean Mooney, Tony Schiavone, Gordon Solie, Gary Michael Cappetta, Howard Finkel.

1. Ultimate Warrior (WWE Intercontintenal Champ) vs Dino Bravo
2. Ted Dibiase vs Lee Peak
3. Hulk Hogan (WWE Champ) vs Dino Bravo
4. Collossal Connection (WWE Tag Team Champs) vs Demolition
5. Dusty Rhodes/Sapphire vs Randy Savage/Sensational Sherri
6. Ted Dibiase vs Jake Roberts
7. Hulk Hogan (WWE Champ) vs Ultimate Warrior (WWE Intercontinental Champ)