Wrestling, in particular the WWE, is full of cringe-worthy goodness when it comes to the entertainment aspect of sports entertainment. Christmas-themed segments on Monday Night Raws or pay-per-views are quick to reassure you, the fan over 18, that you are clearly watching a program aimed at children. Sometimes there’s a gem amongst all that coal, but usually they’re bad. They’re so bad, I decided to watch Christmas with the Kranks last night on Netflix, rather than stream another holiday episode of Raw and watch guys like Dean Ambrose and Bray Wyatt go from killing themselves in TLC matches to tumbling over empty, novelty-sized, Christmas presents. Still, I was able to put together this list of other memorable Santa-filled moments.
Tag: WWF
The A-Team
“Body Slam”
Season 4, Episode 7
11/12/1985
80’s Television. It was nonsensical, over the top, cheesy, and most of all, terribly awesome. So it would make sense that a show like The A-Team would have wrestling’s Hulk Hogan guest star as wrestling’s Hulk Hogan. This episode alone could serve as the sole time capsule that epitomizes everything 80’s about 80’s TV shows.
The Supernatural Wrestler
What’s wrestling without its larger than life characters? It’s the only medium outside of a comic book where clowns, space travelers, battling cats, and mythical man-beasts can all do battle in the name of good vs. evil. Sometimes those characters are so much more larger than life that they exist outside the parameters that govern the real world, and extend to the great beyond. Or somewhere great beyond adjacent. These paranormal grapplers may call upon the spirit of the dead, live off of human blood for sustenance, worship the devil himself, or just like Bray Wyatt showed us at Hell in a Cell, produce hologram images via possessed lanterns. And as cool or absurd as it might seem at first if it’s at least moderately successful, like all other wrestling gimmicks, it’ll certainly be done to death (Thank you, thank you).
The Bundy 5: Hulk Hogan Halloween Costumes
There’s little doubt that the most recognizable wrestler on the entire planet is, was, and probably forever will be Hulk Hogan. At the very least, he’ll always be the George Lucas of wrestlers in terms of merchandising the hell out of his brand. From the start of Hulkamania in the mid-80’s to his lackluster and soul-sucking stint in TNA from the last couple of years, The Hulkster’s always been able to cash a few more checks come Halloween time.
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Wrestler Parodies
Playing dress up is part of the fun of being a professional wrestler. Hell, it’s part of the fun of being a professional wrestling fan. But it’s even more fun watching other wrestlers as their rivals mocking the way they dress and/or talk. In reality, it’s not that hard to impersonate a wrestler. Pro wrestlers are relatively one-dimensional cartoon characters. They oftentimes wear the same clothes and spout out memorable catchphrases. So, in the spirit of it being October and with Halloween and all, let’s look at some of the best moments in wrestlers dressing up as other wrestlers history.
The Bundy 5: Alcohol & Drug Addiction Storylines
As September draws to a close I figured I’d highlight the fact that September is National Recovery Month which raises awareness about recovering from drug and alcohol addiction. Addictions that the pro wrestling industry is all too familiar with. And while wrestling fans once chugged along with their favorite beer guzzlers like “Stone Cold” Steve Austin and The Sandman, and rolled a fatty for 4:20 friendly wrestlers like Rob Van Dam and The Godfather, in today’s wrestling landscape that’s no longer the case. While it’s not entirely condemned, because only heels are straight edge, it’s definitely frowned upon. Pro wrestling has even tried to make public service announcements out of wrestlers’ real-life past addictions. Here’s five of them.
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Wrestling-Themed Sitcom Episodes
With the 66th Primetime Emmy Awards airing tonight, it’s only fitting that I take a look at the ten best wrestling-themed sitcom episodes in TV history. As in situational comedy. No one-hour dramas or animated shows. None of which feature Hulk Hogan surprisingly enough.
That 70’s Show
“That Wrestling Show”
Season 1 Episode 15
2/7/1999
As the Attitude Era continued growing in popularity and wrestlers were fast becoming household names once again, it wasn’t strange to see WWE or WCW guys make cameos on other TV shows. One of the better ones involved a few WWE wrestlers showing up on That 70’s Show as old school wrestlers. Most importantly, it had The Rock in his first-ever acting role. He was portraying his dad, Rocky Johnson, a former wrestler, so really there wasn’t a whole lot of acting involved. Still, it’s one of the better wrestling-themed TV episodes out there. Plus, it had Ken Shamrock and The Hardy Boyz in awful wigs.
Body Slam (1986)
Don’t let the alternate VHS cover fool you, this is the same 1986 classic that stars Dirk Benedict from The A-Team and Donna’s mom from That 70’s Show.
Mustaches In Wrestling
Here at Cheap Pop Culture I’ve decided to honor this Movember by listing the Top Ten Mustaches in Wrestling. Like long glam metal hair and mullets, mustaches, and facial hair in general, are a wrestling fashion staple. Sadly, more and more wrestlers are doing away with the long hair and sporting a clean-cut Lou Thesz look. Mustaches seem to be going that route as well (beards and goatees however seem to be going strong). But just imagine what growing a mustache would do for wrestlers who desperately need a reboot like John Cena or how it would boost certain wrestlers to that next level like Cody Rhodes? The possibilities are endless.
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