50 Things You Learn Binge-Watching Every WWE Royal Rumble
38. International Stars In ’94 Masked The Truth
Guest stars weren't really commonplace in Rumbles until the mid-1990s because they didn't need to be. The WWF roster was booming with talented full-timers when the event series launched on pay-per-view, but things were a little more thin on the ground by 1993. Seeking solutions, McMahon brought Carlos Colón and Genichiro Tenryu in. The next year, The Great Kabuki joined Tenryu.
The harsh truth? They masked what was becoming apparent: The WWF didn't have a deep enough full-time talent pool worthy of filling the 30-deep Royal Rumble. Other tricks diverted attention away from the thinning roster - Bastion Booger no-showed at #25 in '94, and there were loads of other duffers like Kwang, Virgil, Thurman 'Sparky' Plugg, Mo and a past his best Greg Valentine.
Cracks were beginning to show, and they'd only get worse when Vince struggled to fill the field in 1995 and 1996. Relying on part-timers or guests became common practice for a few years, and this was all presented as a bonus to federation fans after years of pretending that other wrestling companies just didn't exist. Most people could see right through what McMahon was trying to do here.
Claims that Kabuki or Tenryu could, in theory, win the Rumble and headline WrestleMania looked foolish. Nobody bought that, and so their inclusion came across as padding more than something fans should pay close attention to. Their appearances were cool for adding some international flavour and a splash of freshness to each match, but that was about it.
It's a stunning revelation to realise the Rumble was running low on bell-to-bell thrills less than a decade in.