Lust Hogan Posted April 21, 2014 Report Share Posted April 21, 2014 I would be interested in hearing your thoughts on Koko. He was always one of my favorites growing up watching WWF. I loved The Birdman gimmick and thought with a solid push considering how popular he was maybe he could have gotten the IC title. After watching the Memphis set my fondness for Koko grew and I thought he was much more versatile and a better worker than he is given credit for being. People always crap on his HOF induction but I had no issues with it. What do you guys think of The Birdman?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
funkdoc Posted April 21, 2014 Report Share Posted April 21, 2014 unfortunately i haven't seen much memphis at all, heard he was awesome there i always suspected his HOF induction was mainly for Piledriver, representing the last peak of rock 'n wrestling in a sense he's also a strong example of how some guys can stay over even if they lose all the time. in his case he had a very memorable gimmick that was a lot of fun for the kids, so they'd always be into his matches just from that alone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C.S. Posted April 21, 2014 Report Share Posted April 21, 2014 I never got into him, but I'm not sure that's entirely his fault. I only saw his WWF gimmick, and he was treated literally like a jobber at times. (I don't mean the JTTS treatment where he was still a star - I mean Brooklyn Brawler/Jim Powers levels of jobberdom. He even teamed with no-name "preliminary wrestlers" on Superstars or Challenge a few times. Jim Brunzell was eventually put in the same position too.) As a kid, I knew Koko wasn't a "threat" so I had no reason to invest in him. I also thought his "High Energy" team with Owen was lame and bland - a pale imitation of The New Foundation (Owen and Anvil), which I absolutely loved at the time. When he was announced for the WWE HOF, I scratched my head and wondered why. In retrospect, I understand it more now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flyonthewall2983 Posted April 22, 2014 Report Share Posted April 22, 2014 It's interesting WCW never tried picking him up in the mid-90's. He could have had some good matches with Benoit, Malenko, etc. He could fly around but he also had a bit of brawling style as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El-P Posted April 22, 2014 Report Share Posted April 22, 2014 Koko Ware is all about Memphis. Koko in WCW in the mid 90's would have been a Jim Powers like jobber. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Evans Posted April 23, 2014 Report Share Posted April 23, 2014 I really enjoy 90's Koko after he left WWF and was a bitter heel in Memphis. For example, in 1992 when he showed up at the Memphis Studio to accept Jerry Lawler's challenge vs any WWF guy. He cuts a good promo about Lawler and how WWF guys get disrespected. He would show up numerous times in the 90's, usually feud with Lawler. Like in 1996 when they feuded over a truck. Also, Koko Ware and Bobby Eaton is probably one of the most underrated tag teams ever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny Sorrow Posted April 23, 2014 Report Share Posted April 23, 2014 I remember a Koko vs Super young Rick Steiner match from Mid South/ UWF that I loved. It had the fucking bossest power slam spot. I haven't seen it since 1986, but I remember loving it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeCampbell Posted April 23, 2014 Report Share Posted April 23, 2014 My first non-Birdman look at Koko was in the UWF, he hits UWF jobber Gustavo Mendoza with the mother of all dropkicks. It even winds up being in their intro video. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shoe Posted April 23, 2014 Report Share Posted April 23, 2014 I always thought his skill set was best served in a tag team. His team with Eaton from the footage out there was great. The PYT Express was another strong tag team. They had that killer match with Gilbert/Rich. He was great at taking a back drop. He got serious air on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thebrainfollower Posted April 24, 2014 Report Share Posted April 24, 2014 There's a WWF squash where the jobber takes some liberties and gets a bit too much offense and Koko just beats the ever loving hell out of him that's odd to watch. Poor guy must have been terrified going up for the Ghostbuster. Koko even lost his debut match, a tag against the Hart Foundation, which must be a rarity for someone the WWF pushed at first. I like his matches with Rude particularly for some reason. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Crackers Posted April 25, 2014 Report Share Posted April 25, 2014 There's a WWF squash where the jobber takes some liberties and gets a bit too much offense and Koko just beats the ever loving hell out of him that's odd to watch. Poor guy must have been terrified going up for the Ghostbuster. Ware is an awesome squash match worker. I remember there being one squash of his in the extras of the Memphis set where he just brutalized this masked jobber before dropping him with a Brainbuster, much like you described. It felt like one of those Jushin Liger vs low ranked junior squashes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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