The Complete History Of The New World Order | Wrestling Timelines
January 25, 1997 - Souled Out
The New World Order presents “its” first-ever pay-per-view: Souled Out.
It was also the only nWo pay-per-view, because Souled Out is a critical and commercial disaster.
It looks the part. Across every detail - the set, the signage, the broadcast personnel - it feels like a distinct spectacle produced by a “different” company.
Strangely, by its very, mega-flawed design, it is a punishment of a show. On commentary, Eric Bischoff and Ted DiBiase bury the babyfaces and don’t pop for anything they do during the WCW Vs. nWo matches. It is a deflating experience. Heel referee Nick Patrick is installed to officiate the matches and essentially let the heels win. This renders the show so pointless that when some babyfaces do win, there’s no drama nor catharsis. The heel winning should be a guarantee.
Each WCW wrestler walks to the ring in silence as the nWo ring announcer pokes fun at them. They walk past three rotund fellows who for some reason or another are sitting on the stage. Are they meant to look like the scuzzy low-lifes that the nWo hang around with, being mean and surly, in their free time?
This glimpse into the nWo extended universe, and really, the show itself, is above all else lame. It is unbelievably lame, a complete betrayal of the nWo’s core appeal.
The nWo works on a specific principle: they are cool badasses. What was once an exclusive club is ballooning by the time Souled Out is promoted. Is the former IRS, Mr. Wallstreet, cool?
Souled Out is a single, obnoxious punchline dragged out over three hours. The show begs a question that is less than ideal: what are we doing here?
If this is the nWo’s ideal world, the end goal, it is awful. Souled Out illustrates that there is no viable ending to the storyline - unless it’s a happy one.
People have now seen what a New World Order takeover actually looks like. The threat is delivered upon, and it feels like a punishment. The nWo only works when they threaten the sanctity of a functional wrestling card that is run properly. The fans must have sensed this going in. The Order formed at Bash At The Beach 1996. Every pay-per-view thereafter drew in excess of 200,000 buys. Even before it is executed abysmally, Souled Out draws 170,000. The concept is a dud.
Just one match is of value: a cracking ladder war between Syxx and Eddy Guerrero, who is so awesome that he wins the rigged game. This might be the catalyst for the later protests; many fans hope that the cruisers are pushed further up the card as the nWo main events become tedious.
It’s a dismal night for what remains the biggest thing in wrestling. There’s one simple solution to the problem: effectively promote star babyfaces. For a story based on groundbreaking inter-promotional warfare, the nWo angle actually functions best when it plays the classics - when a good guy rises up against a gang of baddies.
1997 is off to an awful start - but three men prove that babyfaces can still be cool, too.