How WWE Has Changed Since Jeff Jarrett Last Wrestled On Raw
"What about the Attitude Era?"
Well, what about the Attitude Era? What is it, exactly, that still gets blood in it for the angriest one-handed typists in the YouTube comments section, or the Vince Russo defence army that troll those that only have facts and data to back up their arguments, or those as offended by the letters P.G as others are their B.O?
The October 11th 1999 edition of Raw finds a way to answer these otherwise-rhetorical questions, mostly because of the eye-watering locale. Long forgotten but at the time one of WWE's biggest flexes, the decision to hold the flagship at Atlanta's Georgia Dome was a far bigger shot across the bow than any imaginary ones Triple H could fire from a tank. Over 33,000 packed into WCW's home base to watch the competition (in the loosest possible terms, by that point) put on a typically frenetic edition of the show. And to WWE's credit, the atmosphere was frenzied. The crowd were clearly not disenfranchised WCW escapees, or not remotely a*sed about the wrestling war, because they were white hot all night, in keeping with the product itself.
And Davey Boy Smith took a back bump into dog sh*t.
This itself could have been a rib at WCW's expense. Was this Vince McMahon telling Ted Turner that he could literally book a match to end like that and still fill his building? Or was the literal designed to mimic the metaphorical? The British Bulldog's career was in tatters thanks to a bump he took for WCW on a gimmicked part of the canvas he wasn't advised about beforehand. Better to land in cack than hard on your back.
It was the main event segment of this particular edition of Raw, itself just another week for the rampaging WWE in a ratings war already won long before the end. The 6.1/2.6 deficit would have been embarrassing enough without the faecal finish. At least that was being carried by The Rock for a month and - much like Jeff Jarrett - wasn't anywhere near the WWE Championship. Triple H and Stone Cold Steve Austin were brawling over that, leaving 'Double J' in charge of the Intercontinental Title. The wrestlers title. The workers title. The credible title.
Intercontinental Champion and rampant, violent misogynist Jeff Jarrett was stirring up another kind of sh*t.
CONT'D...