Starrcade 2000: Best PPV of All Time

by Alfonso Colasuonno

WCW's post-NWA life can be traced in a pretty neat progression. The late 80s and early 90s were solid times with significant talent (Sting, Flair, Luger, Steamboat, Rude, Vader, etc.) but little appreciation on the national level as compared to McMahon's Stamford based behemoth. Signing Hulk Hogan captured people's attention, if not for having the biggest star in wrestling, for re-creating WWF circa 1989. Then with the NWO, WCW began to be taken seriously. They brought in spectacular technical performers from around the world such as Rey Mysterio, Ultimo Dragon, Dean Malenko, and Chris Jericho who wrestled A+ matches and topped off the night with the biggest stars in the biz. And then egos got in the way and it all turned to crap until Vince bought the company and trashed it. That's the history of WCW, right?

Wrong. At least on the last part. I am here to tell you that the most magnificent pay per view event ever was not a Wrestlemania, it was a Starrcade. Starrcade 2000 in fact. Brought to the fans from the MCI Center in Washington DC to only 6,596 paying customers and ridiculously low pay-per-view numbers, Starrcade 2000 was an under the radar gem from the beginning to the end...well maybe just the first two-thirds of the card.

Starrcade 2000 started off with a ladder match between six high-octane performers - Shane Helms and Shannon Moore of boy band 3 Count (try getting their theme out of your head, sickening as it is), the Jung Dragons (featuring perennial jobber Jimmy Wang Yang and Kaz Hayashi) and Jamie (K)noble and Evan Karagias. The action was non-stop. These young guys gave it their all. Granted, the conclusion of the match - Helms and Moore reaching the contract to face Chavo Guerrero for the lightweight title at the same time - was bunk. Still, the 3 Count theme song was as nauseatingly appealing as "It's Gonna Be Me."

Lance Storm versus The Cat was a solid match. The anti-American Canadian angle is always one of my favorite wrestling stock devices. To think of Hacksaw Duggan turning on the USA, albeit half-heartedly. Well, it was just an epic moment.

Crowbar vs. Terry Funk for the hardcore title was great. First of all, Daffney's ear-piercing screams throughout the match coupled with her nasal accent was great for those who want to learn how to withstand torture. Terry Funk wrestled even worse than you would think a 56 year old could wrestle. He barely could move, yet won the match. To put it simply, Terry Funk in this match makes a modern day Tommy Dreamer look like the most nimble wrestler around.

KroniK vs. Big Vito and Reno? Well, it was an unspectacular match. The twist of Reno turning on Big Vito was still impressive. OK, one subpar match can be excused.

Then the highlight of the night came in the next match....Bam Bam Bigelow crashing through an ambulance in an ambulance match against Mike Awesome. Granted Bam Bam Bigelow has always been a never was, yet always was promoted like a could have been, well Mike Awesome showed a for all intents and purposes fitting end to Bam Bam's career.

Shane Douglas vs. General Rection. Come on, Shane Douglas was one of the greatest wrestlers of all time. And he's facing a guy named General Hugh G. Rection. The match was actually surprisingly good. Shane Douglas' theme song was killer.

The best match of the night was a bunkhouse street fight between the Filthy Animals (Konnan, Rey Mysterio, and Billy Kidman) against Jeff Jarrett and the Harris Brothers. It was as frenetic and violent a match as I've seen in WCW. To see six men going at it at once was incredible (although oddly, midway through the match, tags began to be enforced)

The last three matches were unspectacular. DDP and Nash pinned the Perfect Event for the tag team titles, Goldberg beat Luger easily, and Scott Steiner wrestled Sid Vicious in a solid main event.

All that can be said to justify my opinion is that never have I been so enraptured watching a pay-per-view from the comfort of my own home. You might say that it was just so bad it turned good. You might be right. All that I know is that Starrcade 2000 was the premier event in wrestling history (for me, at least).