[1993-12-27-WCW-Starrcade '93] Ric Flair and Gene Okerlund

[Loss]

Talk about it here.

[Loss]

We get footage of Flair saying goodbye to his family, which is a little weird considering what we know happens with everyone there many years later. Flair and Gene get in a limo to ride to Independence Arena, clips of which are interspersed throughout the show. Gene is a little negative about Flair's chances, but Flair won't hear it. Really compelling stuff.

[El-P]

Really well done, serious and "real", but Flair as a family man is a hoot. Gene, as annoying as he could be sometime with the hotline, really added to the flair, no pun intended, of the WCW product. Made it feel more big time, and working with Flair just felt so right.

[Kevin Ridge]

Gene and Flair on a road trip in a limo to the arena. We see Flair with his family first. No Fifi later on in match. Okerlund could be distracting in trying to overdo things. He didn't need to put the act on here.

[PeteF3]

Seeing Reid hurts, as is seeing Flair in happier times in general. Is that Charlotte, or is that another daughter? Another fantastic segment, in any event.

[...TG]

Gene and Ric have great chemistry, obviously. It's good to see them being low-key rather than the bombastic "MEAN...WHOO! BY GOD GENE" promos during the Nitro years. Those are great too, but this is nicely different.

[garretta]

These two really felt like old friends taking what could be their last ride together. It was a tad theatrical at times, but that was inevitable due to the presence of the camera.

 

When did Ric and Gene become so close? I guess they either befriended each other while Flair was in the WWF or became friends while they were both in Minneapolis at some point. Whatever the case, they weren't acting the way they were just for a wrestling interview. (If they were, they were two great actors.)

 

I'd have thought Beth and the older kids at least would have gone to the arena to see the match in person. Maybe they couldn't get a babysitter in time or something. By the way, Pete, the older daughter was most likely Ashley, the one whose boyfriend Ric would get into a fight with years later.

 

Line of the Segment: An anonymous Flair child, seeing that Beth has left the front door open too long: "Shut the door! I'm freezing!" I'll bet Ric howled his head off when he saw that on tape later; it's a shame he and Gene apparently didn't hear it, as it could have eased the tension slightly during the ride.

[soup23]

Gene is there to narrate Flair's journey to the arena. Fun stuff showing Reid and Charlotte at the house and Gene and Flair have built a good rapport with each other. Again, the gravity of the match is really being presented well drawing the viewer in.