30 Things You Learn Binge Watching Every WWE Attitude Era PPV

Taking the nostalgia glasses off for WWE 'Attitude' is difficult, but here goes!

The Rock Stone Cold Steve Austin
WWE

Throw out this question to a group of pro wrestling fans if you want to start an argument: 'Hey! When did WWE's 'Attitude Era' start then finish?'. To some, seeds were sown as early as 1996, but it's generally accepted the wildly-successful period didn't officially start until the company introduced a new scratch logo at Survivor Series 1997.

The new logo reveal was the only thing of note that happened on that PPV. Ahem.

Establishing exactly when 'Attitude' faded away is a little more complex. Many fans point to the WCW/ECW invasion angle as a swift death for the beloved marketing drive. Others believe it didn't end until WWF gave way to WWE in May 2002. The latter is what's held true here - every pay-per-view from December 1997-early May 2002 qualified for this binge watching session.

That covers a lot of ground. Multiple WrestleMania epics, the rise of stars like The Rock, Kurt Angle, Rob Van Dam and more, the aforementioned invasion, the aftermath of Vince McMahon fumbling a WCW trump card he now owned etc.

Hyper-analysing one of WWE's most successful eras was fascinating in retrospect. Here's everything gleaned from binging on 'Attitude'!

30. The First PPV Was Garbage

The Rock Stone Cold Steve Austin
WWE.com

Survivor Series 1997 earned a slot in the history books for the birth of 'Attitude' and Vince McMahon screwing over Bret Hart, but the WWF failed to follow up with anything worthwhile the next month. In Your House: D-Generation X was a miserable flop of a secondary supershow, and one of the least-fun pay-per-views to revisit.

No less than four disqualification finishes on an eight match card didn't help.

Then, in the main event slot, Ken Shamrock tried his best but was never treated as a serious threat to Shawn Michaels or his newly won/stolen WWF Title. The fact this is the first official 'Attitude Era' PPV is a crying shame. Goldust's cringeworthy Dr. Seuss promo midway through was flat out miserable too.

Contributor

Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.