10 Reasons 1997 Was The Weirdest Year In Wrestling History

When analyzing the modern history of professional wrestling, few years stand out quite like the revolutionary 1997.

This was a year when WCW was riding high off the success of the nWo, and when the WWF was still struggling to find a new identity after the doldrums of the post-Hulkamania area. ECW began reaching out on a national scale with their first pay-per-views. The Monday Night Wars continued to rage on, as both sides of the conflict traded talent as well as barbs on-air.

While Eric Bischoff and WCW were content to ride the wave set by the New World Order, Vince McMahon was seemingly throwing everything at the wall to see what stuck. It was a year that saw the rise of Steve Austin, the death of Brian Pillman, the invention of Hell in a Cell, the end of Bret Hart’s run in the WWF, the introduction of D-Generation X and, the birth of the Attitude Era itself.

In short, 1997 is without a doubt one of the most important years in the history of wrestling... and boy, is it weird.

In wrestling, an angle is successful when people are able to buy into it.

Often, that means there’s enough reality incorporated so that it’s plausible enough for fans to suspend their disbelief. For example: the fans could buy into the idea that CM Punk had huge grievances with WWE and John Cena’s place at the top, because in real life, he did. They could also buy into the idea that Daniel Bryan was being stifled by the powers that be, because in real life, he was.

However, this wasn’t the case for most mainstream wrestling in the late 80s and early 90s. Trying to replicate the success that the cartoony Hulkamania era, both the WWF and WCW incorporated characters and storylines that were downright hokey and ridiculous. You had Hulk Hogan battling the evil Dungeon of Doom, or Bret Hart feuding with Jerry Lawler’s evil dentist. Wrestling fans can accept a lot, but it was clear that neither company was giving them what they actually wanted to see.

Starting in ‘96 with Scott Hall and Kevin Nash joining WCW, however, a trend began where both companies were starting to introduce more reality into their storylines. By 1997, the WWF were following suit, and cranking it into overdrive.

From Goldust’s feud with Brian Pillman incorporating his real family life (with Pillman even naming Dustin’s children in a promo) to Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels’ backstage tensions taking center stage, it’s clear that, by 1997, Vince and co. were intent on changing the WWF’s perception as a cartoon by placing more emphasis on what was “really” going on.

However, such an emphasis on reality can be tricky when you’re still presenting a work of fiction. Keep in mind: in 1997, the average wrestling fan was not on the internet learning about the chicanery backstage like they are now. So at this point, most of the angles designed to come off as a “shoot” went right over the heads of most viewers, and it can translate as nonsensical if all they know is what’s on the screen. The most blatant example of this was late in the year when Jeff Jarrett, freshly returned from WCW, cut various promos on RAW shooting on how he was held back by the likes of Eric Bischoff and Hulk Hogan.

But since Jarrett actually had a fairly prominent role on WCW television, including a run as U.S. champion and membership into the Four Horsemen, nobody had any idea what Jarrett was talking about, and they didn’t care.