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View Full Version : Do you agree with this assessment of Stone Cold?


Batsu
04-07-2006, 08:37 AM
Every now and then in wrestling circles, I read some real PB&J.
However, the claim of Stone Cold Steve Austin being a one of the worst gimmicks to get over, on par with the Ultimate Warrior is probably one of the biggest loads of Toast & Nutella I've read yet.

Check this:

"His character epitomized the lowest common denominator. Almost everything that came out of his mouth was rude, foul, ignorant, or nonsensical. His character was an alcoholic. I know that that sort of individual is endearing to a certain audience, but not to me, which is why I think it's one of the worst gimmick that ever got over.

Plus, he was already limited in the ring, and the Stone Cold character dictated that he become even more limited, focussing almost entirely on brawling instead of wrestling. The parallels between he and Cena are hilarious. The only difference between them is that Austin was a redneck and Cena wants to be a gangsta. Ick."

Mind you, This discussion was about about 1996 Stone Cold Steve Austin...the one with Bret, not the 1998 and later Austin, after Austin had already gotten over, the piledriver stuff had already happened, and his "Hogan"-ing of his moveset, the in-ring beer, etc. had already happened.

Even if you hate Austin, it wasn't that farfetched to see why the 1996-97 Austin got over, esp. as a heel. I was going to write a rebuttal to that, but it was like... WTF.

Kane Knight
04-07-2006, 08:53 AM
The only difference is Cena doesn't actually capture the demographic he should be after.

Yes, Austin pandered to the lowest common denomenator. Simple folk who wanted nothing more than to live vicariously through an "average" joe who got to beat up his boss.

Worst gimmick ever? Hell, it's the best gimmick ever. It appealed to the core fanbase of the WWF and then some.

Bad Company
04-07-2006, 08:59 AM
Kane Knight summed up my thoughts on the subject pretty well.

Londoner
04-07-2006, 09:07 AM
The only difference is Cena doesn't actually capture the demographic he should be after.

Yes, Austin pandered to the lowest common denomenator. Simple folk who wanted nothing more than to live vicariously through an "average" joe who got to beat up his boss.

Worst gimmick ever? Hell, it's the best gimmick ever. It appealed to the core fanbase of the WWF and then some.

:y:

Pepsi Man
04-07-2006, 10:44 AM
I've never really been a big Austin fan...but that guy's a mark. "omg he used foul language :eek:"

Xero
04-07-2006, 11:22 AM
What's with the fucking food references? Are you JR? :wtf:

LOL @ him being limited as a wrestler BEFORE the Stone Cold gimmick...

Pepsi Man
04-07-2006, 11:28 AM
What's with the fucking food references? Are you JR? :wtf:
:D Good catch.

dablackguy
04-07-2006, 12:05 PM
The only difference is Cena doesn't actually capture the demographic he should be after.

Yes, Austin pandered to the lowest common denomenator. Simple folk who wanted nothing more than to live vicariously through an "average" joe who got to beat up his boss.

Worst gimmick ever? Hell, it's the best gimmick ever. It appealed to the core fanbase of the WWF and then some.

Just perfectly said.

Who is this jackass writing that? The character was great in its simplicity. Too often, people say negative things because they themselves don't like something. Which to me, is the case here. Obviously, the genius who wrote that article didn't take into consideration how popular the character became and how in its prime (and to a degree now) you say the name "Steve Austin" and people know who you're talking about.

Definitely a terrible gimmick and we're all idiots for having liked it :roll:

Kane Knight
04-07-2006, 12:18 PM
Yeah. I wasn't a big fan of Austin, but the gimmick was pretty much perfect. It wore on me, but it was one of the big fucking deals in wrestling for a long time. It was the thing that brought us into the attitude era, and it's worth appreciating for that alone even if you HATE austin.

Batsu
04-07-2006, 12:59 PM
What's with the fucking food references? Are you JR? :wtf:

LOL @ him being limited as a wrestler BEFORE the Stone Cold gimmick...

Don't mind the codewords.

After the "limited moveset" stuff I decided, that was bullshit.

I can sort of forgive someone who hasn't seen him in WCW, but in WWE pre-neck injury and when he went heel, his moveset went far beyond the PUNCH-KICK, CLOTHESLINE, STUNNER BAH GAWD.