The Most Useless PPV Ever

[Johnny Sorrow]

"Useless" implies that it didn't mean anything or helped advance any stories, be they good or awful. A lot of you went straight to "worst". "Worst" or "awful" isn't "useless".

[Jimmy Redman]

To be fair to those, the OP also said

 

So what is your ONE pick for the most completely irredeemable, meritless show you've ever seen, devoid of any quality, the one that sticks in your craw, and your explanation on why this takes the wooden spoon.

Which means worst, so the question wasn't exactly clear.

[dawho5]

Worst would equal useless as far as a fan is concerned. If it's a show devoid of good matches what use is it to you as a fan?

[The Chief]

Worst would equal useless as far as a fan is concerned. If it's a show devoid of good matches what use is it to you as a fan?

There are different types of bad though. Some stuff might look good on paper but just didn't work for whatever reason. There have been plenty of shows in wrestling history that looked good on paper but had no good matches. Other stuff you just wonder how the hell it even made it past the concept stage. I think of the latter when I think of useless.

[Ricky Jackson]

I take it to mean a PPV that was a total waste of time and its removal from history wouldn't make one bit of difference to overall wrestling history. Any number of WWE shows from 2003 - present would qualify. As would 90% of TNA's back catalog.

[JaymeFuture]

It is a fine line in terms of definition, I'll grant you, but I think you can have a show with no narrative function or purpose, but if you get a good entertaining match on it or something positive, it at least contributed something.

 

If a show has no purpose and also has nothing of merit, that's when you get the real candidates for this I think.

[Matt Farmer]

My vote is for the CWA "Bodyguards and Bandits" PPV.

[goc]

My vote is for the CWA "Bodyguards and Bandits" PPV.

Yea I had totally forgotten reading about years ago that until pantherwagner brought it up. I mean it's tough to imagine even 200 people ordering that PPV.

[JaymeFuture]

I want to thank everybody for the suggestions in this thread, we got to a lot of them on the show, which is now available to listen to at the following link:

 

http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/web/4285da/SCGRadio46-TheMostUselessPPVEver.mp3

 

Join us as we debate the Most Useless PPV in wrestling history! Taking your suggestions, we discuss shows such as King Of The Ring 95, WrestleManias 9 and 11, BattleBowl 93, ECW December To Dismember, many In Your House events, many TNA shows, many Great American Bashes, nWo Souled Out, WCW New Blood Rising, Battleground 2013, No Mercy in the UK, Heroes of Wrestling and many more, as we get to the bottom of what makes a big event truly worthless. A very fun show this week, check it out~!

[Woof]

Because I like resurrecting old threads...

TNA Bound For Glory 2014 gets my vote. The matches took place completely outside of the narrative of the company as it was being presented at the time. It was just a bunch of exhibition matches against guys from Wrestle-1 in Japan. It had ZERO impact on the booking of TNA going forward and exists in a complete and utter vaccuum. Oh, and it carried the name/PPV slot of what was supposed to be their "WrestleMania", which is just so deliciously TNA.

[The Thread Killer]

That recent AAA Triplemania PPV gets my vote now. Not only was it one of the worst shows I ever paid for, but it was so bad it reportedly killed AAA's future American/Canadian PPV plans. And so it should have. Between the technical problems and the booking, that show was just...so bad.

[Happ Hazzard]

KOTR 95 is my choice. Although saying that, it was 20 years ago and I still remember it and could tell you 3/4 of the matches off the top of my head. Which isn't something I could say about the vast majority of WWE (or TNA for that matter) PPVs of the last decade or more.

[Loss]

How about No Way Out 2003, which has HHH-Scott Steiner and Hogan-Rock rematches that I'm not sure I've ever heard a single person on the planet discuss. There's also Armageddon 2003, where HHH regained the title from Goldberg and Shawn and Batista had a completely forgettable match.

[WingedEagle]

Actually looking it over, much of '03 is pretty forgettable. Nash-HHH in a Cell did a buyrate with the Cell + Foley, then you have Goldberg's wasted push, the bad Taker/Brock match, just a really, really down year.

[SomethingSavage]

Meh.

 

A shitty, forgettable year for the most part - but Vengeance '03 stands head & shoulders above the pack. It's been awhile since I watched it last, but I remember REALLY digging the show at the time. And I've watched it at least a few times - every couple of years or so - since.

[Yo-Yo's Roomie]

This is timely for me, as I'm rewatching all the B pay-per-views, and I just got done with 2003. Here's how I rated them:

 

No Way Out (Rock/Hogan, Hunter/Steiner, Austin/Bischoff) 2 1/4 stars

Backlash (Rock/Goldberg) 1 3/4 stars

Judgment Day (Lesnar/Show, Nash/Hunter) 2 stars

Insurexxtion (Nash/Hunter) 2 stars

Bad Blood (Nash/Hunter cell, Redneck Triathlon) 1 star - probably the worst ppv I've ever seen

Vengeance (Lesnar/Show/Angle) 3 3/4 stars

Unforgiven (Hunter/Goldberg) 2 stars

No Mercy (Lesnar/Taker) 3 stars

Armageddon (Goldberg/Triple H/Kane) 2.5 stars

[JaymeFuture]

The Redneck Triathalon may be the low point of Steve Austin's WWE career, and I'm including the time Debra laid him out with a cookie sheet when I say that.

[SomethingSavage]

Looks like a fair assessment. What else was on that No Mercy show? Isn't that the one with the hot little Tajiri/Mysterio match? Might have to go back and give that one a re-watch.

 

Nothing else I regularly revisit, aside from the Tag Title Ladder Match and the super-fun hoss fight Stretcher Match from Judgment Day.

[Yo-Yo's Roomie]

Tajiri/Rey, a decent Benoit/A-Train match, Zach Gowen Vs Matt Hardy in a fun little match, Vince Vs Steph, which is surprisingly effective, Angle/Cena which is nothing special, Show Vs Eddie, fun, and Bashams Vs APA, forgettable.

[JRH]

I think the battlebowl ppvs could have worked if they didnt have the champion in there and instead threw in a token world title match, with the winner of battlebowl getting a shot at the worlds champion (kind of like an expanded version of the royal rumble, only this one would actually require teamwork to get a chance to get the title). Now, while i love this show, i'd have to say ECW One Night Stand 2005 qualifies. NOTHING from this show had any ramifications (aside from the meanie/bradshaw stuff) or led to anything later in the year (unlike ONS 06). I understand it was just meant to be a fun nostalgia-driven show, but i expected to see it lead to something.

[Loss]

Is there anything remarkably good or bad about Survivor Series 2004?

[Ready_Willing_Gable]

I recently watched all WWE 04 PPVs cos I'm made of steel and though there's some good picks for pointless shit; Great American Bash, Armageddon, Survivor Series, but the worst had to be Taboo Tuesday. Just a waste of time, was the only major PPV I actually gave a miss to the next year

 

Also on the topic of Survivor Series, I wouldn't say it fits quite the category of 'pointless' cos the Bret/Owen feud began here, but man was Survivor Series '93 was such a slog, as was most 93 WWF to be fair, but SS was a real chore. The Hart rivalry might have started there but that match stunk. FOUR long elimination slogs, one of them a worst match of year contender Bam Bam, The Headshrinkers & Bastion Booger v Men On A Mission & The Bushwahackers dressed as Doink The Clown - the ugliest match visually ever conceived, Vince probably thought this one up in some kind of evil laboratory. The only mildly enjoyable or interesting bit really was the fact it had a SMW tag titles match on it, which is like.... okay? The opener feat. 123 Kid & Razor could've been passable if they'd built it as main event, rather than the MURRICA V FORRENERS they obviously went for.

[Zenjo]

I don't know if you'd count all of the TNA One Night Only PPV's. They're shot many months in advance en bloc, so have zero relevance to ongoing storylines. Often the wrestlers have left the company or turned heel/face by the time it gets aired. And most of the shows follow the template of: Long winded and tedious opening promo with 'comedy' elements, a bunch of bad-average singles matches, then a main event Battle Royal featuring everyone you saw earlier, before a worthless trophy gets presented.

[Woof]

I kinda of disqualified the One Night Only PPV's myself since they were treated like Coliseum Home Video releases, as opposed to proper PPV's. Bound For Glory was treated like an afterthought last year, but they still hyped it a *little* on the show and it *was* aired live. But yeah, those ONO things are the very definition of useless.

[Jingus]

Now, while i love this show, i'd have to say ECW One Night Stand 2005 qualifies. NOTHING from this show had any ramifications (aside from the meanie/bradshaw stuff) or led to anything later in the year (unlike ONS 06). I understand it was just meant to be a fun nostalgia-driven show, but i expected to see it lead to something.

It did lead to something, it just took them an entire year of stalling to pull the trigger on it. The office didn't expect the relatively huge sales it drew on DVD and PPV, which (once they got over being butt-hurt that a show mostly featuring non-WWE-wrestlers could outdraw their own Superstars) led directly to their launching ECW as a third brand.