My Two Cents: Vince Russo Plus Eric Bischoff Equals Doom For TNA

“…There were other issues between Eric and me.  Our philosophies were just different.  Eric was always a main event guy; I was always a mid-card and below guy.

 

“That’s where Eric and I had massive, unfixable differences.  Eric wanted to kowtow to the big stars, and give in to them at every turn, and I wanted to give the younger talent an opportunity…

 

“To anybody with half a brain, it was only a matter of time before this thing was going to erupt…” (Russo, 100.)

 

These words came from Vince Russo himself in his most recent book, Rope Opera: How WCW Killed Vince Russo .  His book was released during the early part of March 2010, two months after the beginning of the Hulk Hogan/Eric Bischoff Era in TNA.

 

I’ve been reading this book since then, and while there’s a lot to say about Russo’s writing style inside and outside of the ring, I found these comments very interesting when I ran across them.

 

Fans who consistently rag on TNA’s problems are often labeled as “marks,” “smarks,” and a sundry of other names that cannot be mentioned in B/R’s PG Era.  Often times, these fans remarks are disregarded due to their perceived bias against TNA and lack of knowledge about “the business.”

 

These same fans have droned on incessantly in particular on the overabundance of over-the-hill talent in TNA, especially the unnecessary additions of veterans who’ve landed jobs under the guise of “helping out the younger talent.”

 

Diehard supporters of TNA’s product counter this argument by noting that the veterans are providing fans with nostalgic moments and action that bring disenfranchised viewers to the product.  After all, these veterans bring so much to TNA’s table that everyone benefits from rubbing shoulders with these superstars.

 

But, is it possible that the so-called marks are on to something?  Could there be some truth to the ramblings that this new era in TNA is slowly but surely killing the company from the inside out?

 

After reading so many pages of Vince Russo’s book, I’m not totally convinced of that opinion anymore.

 

Instead, I feel that icons such as Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair are pawns in a much bigger game of chess between two of pro wrestling’s most despised and vilified men.  I believe TNA has haphazardly signed a deal with the devil in order to crush the black hearted Vince McMahon and his empire of broken bodies and obscene profit margins.

 

TNA’s fate now rests in the hands of two men that have proven that they cannot work together.  If the things that have been written and said about their credentials independent of one another were bad by themselves, imagine what has and will happen when they’re in the same room at the same time.

 

Vince Russo and Eric Bischoff are both killing TNA from the inside out.

 

It’s one thing for an opinion to magically appear out of thin air without a good, sound, and logical explanation for being spoken into existence.  However, it’s another thing completely when one is able to sense that something is afoul and can only verbalize it through their experience of the product.

 

But imagine what happens when one’s logic is grounded in facts and opinions that cannot be denied. 

 

Imagine what happens in an argument when one can prove that a belief has more weight to it than just what one sees through the cracked lens of a television screen or computer monitor.

 

As Mike the Professor and a few others have pointed out, when writing a pro wrestling piece anywhere, you’ve got to do your research.

 

What follows is a look at the relationship between Russo and Bischoff during their tenure together at World Championship Wrestling (WCW). 

 

There’s a reason why some continue to compare TNA to WCW during its dying days, and they’re doing so because history often repeats itself due to our staunch refusal to learn from our past mistakes.

 

History Repeats Itself

 

I’m an avid fan of reading, especially reading books about pro wrestling.  My library is far from being a literary pantheon of all things sports entertainment related, but there are three books that I would advise all pro wrestling fans to pick up and read if possible:

 

•   Wrestlecrap and Figure Four Weekly Present: The Death of WCW by R.D. Reynolds and Bryan Alvarez (ECW Press, 2004. 334 pp.)
•   World Wrestling Entertainment Presents: Eric Bischoff—Controversy Creates Cash by Eric Bischoff with Jeremy Roberts (WWE Books, Pocket Books, 2006.  389 pp.)
• Rope Opera: How WCW Killed Vince Russo by Vince Russo (ECW Press, 2010.  255 pp.)  

Again, this isn’t an exhaustive reading list for pro wrestling fans, nor is it a list that will determine how much or how “real” of a wrestling fan you are.  But these three books in my opinion are very important when discussing anything related to the current state of TNA Wrestling.

 

Each of these three books paints a vivid picture of the rise and fall of WCW way better than any WWE sponsored DVD.  However, these three pictures are very different from one another, especially in comparison.

 

On the other hand, when placed side by side, these images give the reader a beautiful mosaic that explains precisely what happened and how the same mistakes can be avoided by any pro wrestling company looking to compete against the WWE.

 

WCW ultimately failed because of: (a) a non-wrestling friendly parent company, (b) too many veterans booked to be at the top, and (c) Vince Russo, Eric Bischoff, Hulk Hogan, and Ric Flair all under one umbrella at the same time.

 

I won’t get into each of those points, or what makes each book different from the one another (besides being told from three different perspectives).  If you look at TNA today, each and every one of those reasons are present in the company and could very well spell its end.

 

Today, I’ll just focus on the last point.

 

With Vince Russo, Eric Bischoff, Hulk Hogan, and Ric Flair once again working for the same company, can anyone tell the class what happened the last time we such an unholy alliance?

 

Most fans’ tirades against the company have to deal with one of these four men, usually Hogan, Bischoff, or Russo.  Flair is a little more than a supporting actor in this tragic comedy, but he plays a role in the grand scheme of things nevertheless.  Hogan plays a much larger role, but even that is second fiddle to the real issue at hand.

 

After reading these books, particularly Russo’s, there’s good reason to believe that having these men under the same roof at once is bad news for all parties involved.  However, the real issue lies between the relationship between Vince Russo and Eric Bischoff.

 

All four of these men can’t get along or trust each other, have different visions, and personal agendas. All of this is shown to audiences with each and every episode of IMPACT or PPV that airs.

 

But, since we’re only dealing with Vince Russo and Eric Bischoff, I’ll focus on pieces from their respective books.

 

For example, here’s an excerpt from Bischoff’s book regarding Vince Russo.  Bischoff is writing about the situation three months after he was sent home by WCW top executives in September of 1999.

 

“Bill Busch [former WCW accountant turned Senior Vice President of WCW] was running the company.  That was a joke.  I can’t even begin to describe how ill equipped he was to be in the situation he was in.  I sat back and laughed when people told me about what was going on…

 

“Then Bill brought in Vince Russo from WWE to book the shows and run the creative side of the company.  I laughed even harder.” (Bischoff, 332.)

 

Bischoff eventually returned to WCW, and adds his thoughts on Russo’s WCW stint prior to his return to the company:

 

“The whole Vince Russo experiment was an unmitigated disaster.  Vince was a one-trick pony and pretty much full of sh*t.  He was sent home in mid-January because of all the problems he’d caused.” (Bischoff, 335.)

 

He continues:

 

“After we agreed on terms but before I officially came back to WCW, Brad [Brad Siegel, executive in charge of TBS and TNT in 2000] asked me to go meet Vince Russo.

 

‘Tell me if you think you can work with him,’ Brad said.  ‘If you think you can, I’d like to try and make that work.  The two of you might be able to make some magic.’

 

“I called up Vince.  He probably knew when they sent him home that they’d end up calling me back.  He wasn’t surprised at all.  We met at a restaurant far enough outside of Atlanta where I didn’t think either one of us would be recognized.  I didn’t want anyone putting two and two together.” (Bischoff, 337.)

 

Finally, a few more thoughts from Bischoff regarding Russo:

 

“I liked him.  Vince can be a fairly charming guy.  He can come off kind of humble when you first meet him.  It’s anything but the truth, but he comes off as a pretty sincere guy…

 

“I called Brad back that afternoon and told him that I had no problem working with Vince.  I don’t have to like someone to be able to work with him.  I just have to be able to trust him, and I thought I could trust Russo.

 

“By the way, we were never coequals, as Vince later claimed.  The dirt sheets never seemed able to get that right.   Vince reported to me , which was another reason I didn’t think there’d be a problem.” (Bischoff, 337.)

 

Now here’s what Russo had to say about the same topic:

 

“It was sometime in late January 2000 that I received a phone call from Brad Siegel…

 

‘Vince, there’s somebody I want you to talk to.  He’ll be calling you.’

 

“That’s all that Brad said.  However, that’s all he had to say.  I knew immediately who Brad was speaking of.  I knew that the next call was going to come from Eric Bischoff…

 

“From the start I just had a bad feeling about this…I met Eric at a restaurant in Kennesaw, Georgia…The meeting was clandestine, to say the least.  After talking to Eric, Brad Siegel had called me back stating that nobody associated with WCW could know anything about this.” (Russo, 97.)

 

He continues:

 

“Man—I just hated everything about this meeting.  From the start, Eric and I never liked each other and never trusted each other.  We were cordial to each other because neither one of us had a choice in the matter. 

 

“I was never asked if I wanted to work with Eric Bischoff, and I’m almost certain that he was never asked if he wanted to work with me.  If we were, I’m certain that both of us would have said thanks but no thanks.

 

“Add to that I had no idea what the pecking order was.  Was I now reporting to Eric?  Was he a consultant?  Brad never laid any of that out, to me anyway.” (Russo, 97.)

 

And finally:

 

“Again, it’s nothing personal against Eric at all.  We were just two totally different animals with two completely different styles and approaches.

 

“I’ve always considered myself a blue-collar guy in the business.  I just enjoy working with the boys no matter where they are on the card.  I don’t enjoy being the boss, and I never play the boss card—never.

 

“I always felt that the most important thing was to respect the boys.  Respect their talent, respect their craft, respect their families and respect them as human beings.” (Russo, 97.)

 

More interesting comments from Bischoff:

 

“To get [the Internet dirt sheets] to talk about what a great guy he was, he decided to bring a bunch of no-names, journeymen, and rookies to WCW.  He wanted to prop them up in high-profile roles.

 

“But the guys he thought should be stars didn’t project much charisma.  They didn’t dress like stars.  They didn’t look like stars.  It was like he went to a biker bar in New York, found some big guys who looked tough, and said, “Hey, follow me; I’m going to make you a star.” (Bischoff, 338-339).

 

As mentioned earlier in the piece, we can see that Bischoff essentially looks towards established talent to drive the ratings for his product, which seems to be more of a short term solution than anything else.

 

On the flip side, Russo lays it all on the line for young, unknown superstars to excite audiences and drive ratings, which really sounds like more of a long term vision than anything.

 

Think that these two men have changed from their ways?  Take inventory of the individuals that received pushes after the beginning of the Hogan/Russo Era…

 

The Band…The Nasty Boys…Jeff Hardy…Sean Morley…Orlando Jordan...Rob Van Dam…Shannon Moore…Team 3D…Kurt Angle (in part)…Mr. Anderson…“The Pope” D’Angelo Dinero…

 

Now take inventory of the individuals that were receiving pushes before the beginning of the Hogan/Russo Era…

 

Christopher Daniels…Awesome Kong…Desmond Wolfe…A.J. Styles (without Ric Flair)…

 

Old habits die hard, my friends.

 

We can also see here that both men weren’t anxious with the prospect of working for or with each other.  There was already bad blood between them. 

 

Russo was still somewhat leery of working with the man that refused to hire him, resulting in his infamous tenure booking for the WWE during the Attitude Era (1996-99).

 

Don’t let Bischoff’s sugary sweet commentary on his feelings for Russo fool you.  He wasn’t quite fond of the man at all:

 

“The more I worked with Russo, the less I liked him, and the less I trusted him.

 

“As I’ve said, it’s not important for me that I like someone.  It’s nice when it happens, but it’s not a requisite.  But when I start looking at people and start realizing that I can’t trust them, it has a serious impact on how I move forward.” (Bischoff, 340.)

 

All of this took place over 11 years ago, and yet it is hard for me to believe that these two men have changed from their views of one another.  Since 2000, Vince Russo has become a born again Christian, and Eric Bischoff is…well, he’s still Eric Bischoff. 

 

I fancy being a firm believer in the notion that people can change (if they desire to), but I’m also very aware that a leopard can’t change his spots to stripes overnight.  Russo and Bischoff have a grudge between each other, and you can see it every time you watch IMPACT.

 

Let’s put this in perspective; Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels have engaged in a war of words and threats for 14 years over after the Montreal Screwjob.  On 4 January 2010, Bret Hart embraced Shawn Michaels in the middle of a WWE ring.  Whether it was for show, ratings, or real, it happened right before our eyes.

 

We’ve yet to see Russo, Bischoff, or Hogan embrace each other in the middle of a wrestling ring after the infamy surrounding Bash at the Beach 2000. 

 

In fact, we haven’t even seen Russo and Bischoff on screen in TNA at the same time. And don’t be fooled; Russo has been on episodes of IMPACT since the beginning of the Hogan/Bischoff Era.

 

If you can’t picture the mosaic coming together, let me add a few more brush strokes:

 

“Over the period of a few weeks, Eric and I met in seclusion and laid out the road map that would serve as our springboard back into WCW.  The idea was to wipe the slate clean, and start with a huge angle that would bring Eric and me back to WCW together, with an ax to grind with the overpaid veterans.

 

“We would ignite an uprising within the younger talent, or ‘New Blood,’ who were being blocked from opportunity by the ‘Millionaire’s Club.’  The idea was the brainchild of both Eric and me, but it was he who suggested that I appear on TV for the first time.” (Russo, 99.)

 

On the other hand,

 

“I laid out an angle that would have Russo and I feuding, with two camps of wrestlers opposing each other.  I think one of the things that helped convince Vince to come back was the fact that the storyline called for him to be on television.

 

“I didn’t know how badly Russo wanted to be on TV.  He was already a monster in many respects, but the newfound ‘celebrity’ really got to him.  He went off the deep end.” (Bischoff, 339.)

 

Russo’s take on the situation:

 

“I didn’t have an issue with Eric’s suggestion and here’s why.

 

“At the time, there was so much pressure on me to deliver ratings that my thought was, if I have to do it, I’ll go out there and do it myself.  Believe me, it had nothing to do with ego but everything to do with survival.

 

“There was no wiggle room.  I had to prove my critics wrong by showing them that not only would my way work, but that it would be just as successful as it had been in the WWE…At the end of the day, I just wanted to win.” (Russo, 99.)

 

Bischoff retorts:

 

“I wanted to make the situation work.  One of the things I decided to do early on was give Russo a lot of room.  That may have been a mistake.

 

“I gave him a lot of room.  Room, not rope—I didn’t want him to hang himself.  I wanted him to prove himself right.  I was hoping he’d show me something that would make me go, You know what?  This guy does have a point of view that makes sense.

 

“So I sat back a lot.  By May or June, I decided it wasn’t working.  The stories remained dark, weren’t going anywhere, and weren’t connecting with the audience. [Brad] Siegel told me to put a bridle on Russo and his dark tones.  So I began exerting more control.” (Bischoff, 340.)

 

These two men could not even work together completely to vanquish their common enemy.  Bischoff paints Russo as an egotistical glory hog that was incapable of crafting a story that connects with the audience. 

 

Russo paints himself as a dedicated underdog backed into a corner; willing to do anything to win as long as he gets to do it his way, which has been proven to work.

 

Russo also claimed that he wasn’t given room to work, whereas Bischoff states plainly that he gave Russo plenty of room, but the man just couldn’t cut the mustard.  In fact, Russo’s writing had gotten so bad that Bischoff was all but ordered to keep the man under control.

 

I’ll keep going.  Here’s what Bischoff thought of Russo’s style of writing:

 

“Many of the things that he came up with didn’t fit my SARSA formula.  There was (A)ction because they involved wrestling, but they didn’t have (S)tory, (A)nticipation, (R)eality, (S)urprise.  They were shock for the sake of shock.  There’s no structure in that.

 

“It was crash TV for the sake of crash TV.” (Bischoff, 340.)

 

But isn’t that the thing that made TNA great?  The fast paced, action packed matches that accentuated the strengths of the X-Division and Knockouts Division are what excited fans about the company’s product.  In fact, you can watch TNA’s Best of the X-Division, Volume Two to see what made the company better than anything else on television at the time.

 

In that case, and in Russo’s defense, his crash TV style worked perfectly.

 

But what happens when you try to fit a crash TV style with a crew of performers that are limited in the ring?  What happens when you place boundaries and limitations on matches that thrive off of innovation and athletic creativity?

 

You get exactly what we have now, and it’s troublesome for fans to follow without questioning the logic behind certain decisions being made.

 

You get an X-Division Champ that actually expects fans to accept the fact that a division built on “no limits” should be limited to technical savvy, catch-as-catch-can mat specialists.

 

You get a pay per view match between two high-flying, nutty-as-squirrel-poop wrestlers that follows a SARSA formula, and succeeds in failing at being the marquee match it should’ve been in the first place.

 

You get two men still subconsciously battling each while pretending to develop a healthy working relationship with one another. 

 

In the meanwhile, their creative differences seep into our collective consciousness through the product, comments, and backstage drama that gives the “dirt sheets” more cannon fodder than they could find or create in a lifetime.

 

So what does all of this have to do with anything?  Have I needlessly wasted your time, quoting random excerpts from two books from only a few select pages to give you a very one-sided perspective on problems that plagued WCW?

 

I would hope that you feel as if I haven’t.

 

You’d have to be living under a rock to ignore the many issues plaguing TNA.  Ever since that fateful day in October when it was announced that Hulk Hogan was teaming with TNA to take on Vince McMahon’s WWE machine, things have slowly begun to resemble WCW during its dying days.

 

The fans have noticed this, and have commented accordingly.

 

The fact of the matter is that two of the most important people in TNA, Eric Bischoff and Vince Russo, have very different opinions on the direction of the product and the company.  Each time you watch a TNA program, you witness these creative differences right in front of your eyes.

 

You see it every time The Band gets more screen time and championship reigns than the Motor City Machine Guns.

 

But it is very true; people can change over the years. 

 

However, given the fact that Russo’s book came out a little more than two months ago, not to mention the fact that Bischoff has purchased all of his books from the WWE and is selling them via his Facebook page, I find it hard to believe that they’ve changed all that much from ten years ago.

 

How much change have these men gone through if they’re still willing to peddle their venomous books laced with sordid tales of the other man lining the pages?

 

When Hogan arrived to TNA, he promised the fans that there were changes coming and that they were going to help the company grow by leaps and bounds. 

 

Gone was everything that Russo and his writing team (Ed Ferrara and Matt Conway) built the company on.  Gone was the six-sided ring, the fast paced spot matches, and the edgy darkness that countered the WWE’s PG Era perfectly.

 

But on the other hand, the nonsensical matches, dangling storylines, and ADHD-inspired creative direction that made the company unbearable at times were also gone. They were replaced with performers so old that they creak and shake dust loose from their joints when they move.

 

In the spirit of objectivity, it must be noted that things seem to be working well between Russo and Bischoff.  The following was added at the end of Rope Opera:

 

“November 5, 2009:

 

“Last update before we go to press.  To date, I have had one face-to-face with Eric Bischoff, and multiple phone conversations.  And you know what?  It’s been cool.  Thus far Eric and I have been working together, and I’ve enjoyed it.

 

“I have not yet met with the red and yellow icon, but I’m looking forward to doing so.  If I can make this work for the Hulkster, it will be my greatest accomplishment in this business.” (Russo, 255.)

 

Here’s what Bischoff said in an interview with the Pro Wrestling Torch  on 15 February 2010:

 

“On the topic of working with Vince Russo, Bischoff said it's been a ‘very positive’ experience. He said their collaborations have been productive and he doesn't believe there has been one creative disagreement they couldn't resolve.

‘It would be a lie if I said there has been anything negative,’ Bischoff said about working with Russo. ‘If I see red and he sees green, we've been able to come as close as possible to resolving it every time’.”

 

Even the Hulkster chimes in on the love fest in his own unique way. 

 

In a 17 February 2010 interview with Brian Fitz of the website Fanhouse, Hogan said the following when asked if he was happy with things creatively behind the scenes and working with Vince Russo:

 

“Yeah.   I love Vince Russo from a distance. Sometimes a leopard doesn't change his spots, you know? All those old clichés I could plug in but I come in peace.

 

“I think we've all grown. I think we all don't really live by knee-jerk reactions any more. And so far, everyone is holding their end up.”

 

Hogan’s comments are interesting since he not only notes that leopards can’t change their spots, but also that he tolerates Russo “from a distance.”  I won’t read too much into those statements, as they speak volumes by themselves.

 

I’ll end this extremely long diatribe with a final conspiracy theory for you to consider as we prepare for the IMPACT aftermath of Sacrifice:

 

“It seemed to me when there was pressure on him, Russo would tend to go home for any number of reasons.  Maybe it was a coincidence, but I think he’d get so frustrated with things that he couldn’t function.

 

“Then he’d throw up his hands and go home for a week or two at a time.  At least it seemed that way to me.  He had the emotional constitution of an eggshell in my opinion.

 

“I didn’t really care.  It was easier to not have him around.” (Bischoff, 341.)

 

Do you think that it’s coincidental that only four months into the Hogan/Bischoff Era with a month of abysmal ratings that various wrestling “dirt sheets” are speculating that Vince Russo is burned out?

 

I’m just saying. 

 

SOURCES:

1. World Wrestling Entertainment Presents: Eric Bischoff—Controversy Creates Cash by Eric Bischoff with Jeremy Roberts (WWE Books, Pocket Books, 2006.  389 pp.)

2. Rope Opera: How WCW Killed Vince Russo by Vince Russo (ECW Press, 2010.  255 pp.)  

3. "Torch Exclusive Interview: Eric Bischoff talks first six weeks in TNA, making one new star every month." Pro Wrestling Torch, 18 February 2010.

 

4. "Hulk Hogan 'Plugged In' With New Role in TNA Wrestling." Fanhouse, 17 February 2010.