Moments where wrestling went 'too far'
 

Seeing Vince's disgusting impersonation of JR got me thinking of other instances where storylines went just that bit too far and were just poor taste.

This storyline sticks out to me. Anybody have any others?
<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/W356F8uCYwI" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

I am so sick to death of the massive butt-hurt that takes place over JR getting made fun of on TV. EVERYONE gets made fun of on WWE programming. Why the hell is JR supposed to be such a hands-off target?

No idea. It keeps him fresh in the minds of the fans and truthfully is part of the reason the crown explodes when he comes out (For any reason).

It's not even really because it's J.R.

It's because making fun of a condition like that is a scumbag move.

What in the monkey are you talking about?

The crowd explodes when he comes out, because he's one of the best commentators of all time.

Literally thousands of ways to keep him fresh in people's minds without resorting to mocking his illness, so that is a pants on head retarded excuse.

The Katie Vick thing with Triple H/Kane was a bit much.

Yes but nothing than the lets pick on the handicap kid to make people feel sorry for him. Pretty sure Vince is not making these jokes with JR's permission. Now if that is the case the situation changes.

I always thought the Oklahoma character in WCW was more making fun of some one with bell's palsy as opposed to lampooning Jim Ross's style of broadcast.

Does the hand in Mae Young even have to be mentioned or is that just rather automatically implied?

Oh I thought of another cringe worthy moment ....

Hogan: "The only thing I hate more than a couple of cowards is a couple of cripples."


<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/7jY5Yi1xdXM" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/6Lla5K9d64Q" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Not cool

...and him doing this promo:
<iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/fk1V6Vo3pxY" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="420"></iframe>
and shitting all over the company as if they were to blame for it wasn't? Seems like a double standard to me (and yes, I get that it was a work/worked shoot...)

Personally, I think the funeral is one of the funniest things they've ever done in the time I've watched wrestling.

Bossman was gold through all of this.

With the recent JR incidents, they've been nothing but intentional bullying IMO. I mean, the incidents have had nothing to do with any storyline or character development and is just strictly entertainment for those (Vince, Cole, HHH?) who are doing it.

It also wouldn't be so bad if they weren't simultaneously using the Be A Star program to try and get the company good publicity. I mean you're talking about a business that is built around having bullies and making fun of others.

As an adult, I understand it's entertainment, but when you're trying to influence kids, who are now essentially their target audience, it doesn't exactly scream consistency to a developing child. Do as we say, not as we do! Sounds like most "authorities" I suppose though.

Raven crucifying Sandman should be at top of most lists. That was just terrible to do. I don't blame Angle for leaving after that atrocity.

Sandman beating up a legitimate cripple that they named Cripple H with a Singapore Cane.

Vince McMahon mocking JR's Bells Palsy on RAW this week. Also, when he made fun of him after having colon surgery-ridiculous.

Mentioning it in a promo and making fun of the disease are two very different things.

Yeah exactly. It's not that they're making fun of JR. It's that they're making fun of his Bells Palsy. It's a huge difference. On the other hand, I don't get why JR gets so much disrespect with everything he did for the company. He was one of the best real life GMs in my opinion. John Laurinitis honestly hasn't been nearly as effective in terms of signings and overall business acumen.

JR is only a Hallf of Famer because he has a disease, not because he is the voice of Wrestling to an entire generation of fans.

Right Ruien? FUcking Mutie.

Eh. If you're going to include that, you might as well include the watered down undertaker version of that where he did that to Austin and i think one other on that Tx symbol of his during the ministry days.

It wasn't real.



That Jerry Lawler anal bleeding thing. Not cool, man.

Thought THIS was going too far at the time

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/0FqQTcnyH2E" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Cole using Lawler's mothers recent passing as a taunt was pretty messed up.

Real or not, both of those "crossed the line" when they happened,. though i wasnt NEARLY as offended with the bleeding one as the vick thing. More specifically, the only real issue i had with the vick thing was the taped necrophile segment...

Spics don't go to heaven.

Another one I thought of was the entire JJ/Chyna angle, where I thought that was a particularly uncool way of the E appearing to hint at how the company feels towards female wrestlers.

Yes, I know that there're other examples of that out there, but that sticks out.

I agree. Bossman hitting on Show's mom through the PA was hilarious.

People really need to get the sand out of their vaginas...... IT IS A SHOW!!!! Vince has known JR for over 20 years and they are probably quite close..... how are you to know that it wasn't JR's idea? JR makes fun of his looks all the time.....I don;t think any moment went too far, as wrestling "isn't real".....

Ric Flair Heart Attack, nWo Horseman Promo, Terri Runnels Miscarriage angle, Drunk Road Warrior Hawk, Eddie vs Rey: Dominic Feud, Lita's Pregnancy, VINCE vs. GOD, Kurt Angle: Rapist

I'm going to make a show where I show 9/11 victims being sodomized. This is fine because IT'S JUST A SHOW.

God no-showing that tag team match with HBK was pretty hilarious, tbh.

The Bossman/Big Show storyline was one of the funniest things in WWE history.

Are you some kind of gay faggot?

Drunk Hawk, Cole getting raped, the dude from wrestlecrap not selling me the Katie Vick outfit.

There is no such thing as too far in pro rasslin

Raven putting Sandman on the cross was a little too extreme.

No pun intended.

Randy Orton telling Mysterio he was going to send him to hell to be with Eddie Guerrero only a few months removed from Eddie's death. Tactless way to get heat.

Macho Man beating up his girlfriends backstage and then having them still come to the ring with him with black eyes and shit. Again, an extremely cheap way to get heat.

The entire "Oklahoma" angle in WCW in 2000. Served no purpose and was just ridiculous. The only good thing that came from it was the Oklahoma character wrestling Vampiro and doing commentary at the same time.

I felt like Triple H's comments toward Booker T before their match at WrestleMania XIX ("People like you don't get to be people like me") were a bit over the top - especially since Booker got no redemption and lost at Mania. "You're black and you have a criminal history and people like you can't beat people like me." And then Triple H basically proved it.

and really Paws? how are you going to get a paw stuck in your teeth.

The Hassan Terrorist angle was a bit to far.

A bunch of things New Jack was involved such as trying to kill Vic Grimes or over doing a beatdown which lead to the Mass Transit incident or stabbing another wrestler to the point of cops getting called.

Hardcore Holly legit beating the crap out of a few guys either during Tough Enough or during a match over petty reasons.

Was Animal falling off the titan tron before or after Owen's tragic death since that could be another if it occurred after?

Do tell how you figure that, Einstein. The angle was shot 3 days in advance of airing, and they did everything they could to inform and warn viewers that in light of 7/7/2005 some of the show involving a segment with Hassan might not be suitable for them. It's peoples' own fault if they saw that, knew they'd be offended by it and continued to watch and not turn off the tv or flip to another channel, not WWE's.

But, circumstances being what they were, led to a massive outcry, especially from the large Muslim communities in SE Michigan (Dearborn especially) about the character being 'stereotyped' as a terrorist or whatever and basically used that along with 7/7/05 and the airing of the segment to force UPN or CW or whoever it was at the time to pull him from tv and subsequently out of the company. He never got a fair shake, and it's a damn shame because if he were still around today he'd probably have at least 1 world title if not more. He certainly was worthy of it, in my view.

I was there live, and I assure you, it was not hilarious.

robocop

The front page brought up the Trish Stratus dog barking segment. In hindsight, that was too far and there's definitely no way in hell they'd be able to do that today.

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/HlAZWF0oJok" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

I know Dreamer's gimmick at the time was associated with "doing gross things" or whatever, but this never should've happened on-air.

I understand it was 3 days before, bro. It was a bit much with him praying before, the terrorist beat down, and then the martyr carry out.

Don't really think they have. Their efforts to shock haven't really had much of an effect on me, probably because wrestling is so ridiculous anyway that when they try and get a serious reaction, it just doesn't work.

Honestly, the worst thing I've seen is sending Jeff out in that ridiculous state to fight Sting.

That whole Owen Hart falling from the ceiling angle was a bit much :-\

that was a worked shoot

It wasn't even the most convincing of worked shoots. Could totally see Jerry Lawler reading his "condolences" off a script.

Whatever gets people talking about the product. You can never go to far. Something the WWE really needs to think about, as they have little, to no stars left on the roster than can carry this company. No one is capable of making WWE relevant again in terms of the average fan.

They need to spice things up, and start making people talk about the business.

When Vince said "Nigga"

That Katie Vick thing was pretty uncomfortable to watch.


Also, that time when Christopher Daniels didn't shake that guys hand in ROH.

There's no place for that in the sport of wrestling.

But then you have to ask yourself, who's more despicable for it? Cole for doing it, Lawler for agreeing with the script, or the writers of the script (as fucking always!!!)?

Ok, why exactly is it "bullying" when JR gets made fun of and it isn't "bullying" when Michael Cole gets his clothes ripped off, covered in barbecue sauce and beaten up?

God fucking damnit i was gonna post that :foc:

Only been able to watch that twice ever, makes me feel physically sick when i see it, utterly disgusting.

Because JR is a "good guy" legend announcer who has a legitimate medical condition that effects thousands of Americans, and Michael Cole is an actor who plays an ass-kissing, sycophantic, douche bag announcer on TV.

There's a difference between "going too far" to elevate a superstar or bring a storyline to another level, and "going too far" for shock value. Shock value only works for so long, and even though it gets people talking, it demeans the product as a whole.

"Hey, did you hear about that guy who raped a mannequin on WWE RAW last week?"
"I sure did! What a crazy, over the top gesture!"
"Yeah! Do you want to watch RAW tonight?"
"Fuck no."

Mae Young's tits were.... too far to the ground....

I think the biggest complaint about "making fun of JR" is the fact that nobody has to twist up their face to do the damn impersonation, least of all Vince. That's the part that makes it cringeworthy.

That one over-exaggerated detail can make it go from simple ribbing to mean spirited.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-XGIMobZ9Zs

I think this one struck a nerve on several levels of too far

Well I want to say when they signed the Great Khali but I keep seeing him wrestle so they're outdoing themselves constantly

And TNA with Sharkboy waking from a coma with his family witnessing him turning into Stone Cold.

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/MweXfuQ7IFw" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

I'd say this entire storyline was a bit too much. I've never been a fan of storylines involing "outside of wrestling" family members. This storyline could have almost ended on a high note when Ric beat the crap out of Russo at The Great American Bash 2000, and then they did this crap the next night.

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/mDB9UhKxK9o" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/6dNTlJdoGM4" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/wWQChKyJ5h0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

<iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/_hn9j7fTVow" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" width="420"></iframe>

Jericho mocking Dean's dead dad and family.

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/80f0jB67_0E" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

When that indy promotion let an abosulte hammered drugged up Scott Hall out to cut a promo after he came out of hospital. As seen on his documentary.

The Snitsky/Heidenreich gay bromance is the most uncomfortable I felt watching wraslin

All the heavy breathing and "I like you do you like me" was just weird :lol:

The worst thing i've seen in this thread is Russo using Iron Man as his entrance, that BASTARD

I know there was one particular Nitro where Hogan fought the Giant and they went waaaaayy far. Tony Schiavone said they weren't cutting away until they had a winner. I think it cut into a viewing of Andersonville on TNT.

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/dAXSjThuNuI" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Well personally I think the fact wwe does lots of charity work and promotes antibullying campaigns one minute and then shows off vulgarity, rape and murder the next is pretty horrific.

Don't you remember the rape scene last week? Big Show really took it to Brodus Clay's dancer after he killed him with a punch. It was sickening.

The Matt Hardy/Edge angle with the whole Lita thing. That was kinda shitty.

When Val Venis got his penis chopped off by Yugi Nagata live on RAW. I think I got where they were going, but it went a bit too far fir my tastes.

How I initially read this.