Rewatching The Last Wrestling Show To Beat WWE Raw In The Ratings

6. Judy Bagwell

Hollywood Hogan Horace Hogan
WWE.com

If ever there was a warning sign that WCW was about to step into dangerous territory, it was the moment that they introduced Judy Bagwell to wrestling fans.

On the October 26, 1998 Nitro, we not only got Buff Bagwell strutting about doing Buff Bagwell things, we also had to put up with his mother Judy getting some interview time. To be fair, one thing Judy absolutely nails is how she tells Gene that she's had enough of Buff - as so, too, had wrestling fans already long since had enough of Buff Daddy.

Judy Bagwell is likely a lovely lady, yet her presence on WCW programming remains one of the biggest sticks with which people hit Ted Turner's company. Judy Bagwell on a forklift, Viagra on a pole, Tank Abbott pulling a knife, and David Arquette as WCW Champion are just a select handful of go-to reference points for those bashing WCW and pinpointing its demise.

As a wrestling character, Judy Bagwell never worked. Still, WCW continued to feature her on its television programming, regardless of how audiences reacted to storylines involving Judy. In some respect, that's a little like what WWE does these days - with WWE so often ignoring the response of its passionate fan base.

Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main dayjob, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg.