Yes, there was. They were running a racist angle with Triple H just talking down to Booker T and not only does Triple H win, he kicks out of Booker T's Harlem Hangover (which looked great and was much better since he hardly used it in the WWE) and it takes forever for Triple H to cover Booker T after a pedigree for the win. That killed Booker T's push for awhile.

And normally, I don't mind it if someone like Dusty or Triple H puts himself over everyone else if they were putting on good matches...but during that time span, Triple H was horrible and it took a few years for him to get back. So what he did to Booker T and Kane really got my goat because guys, at their prime, who could have been on the top, entertaining me got jobbed out for that selfish longnose.

Triple H did get better both wrestling and putting others over...but I'm not going to give him a pass during those years because he did not put on good matches and he buried talent. He buried talent out of spite. I mean, The Rock puts The Hurricane over...and next week Triple H kills him dead. Actually, same with Booker T. Sigh, Triple H never could stand it that the Rock was more popular than him.

Honeslty, Booker T is lucky he got a Wrestlemania match with HHH to begin with.  Booker T is kind of mediocre.  He's ok on the mic and ok as either a goofy heel or a really goofy face with a very limited scope of what he can do in the ring.  Want my proof?  Compare the Benoit/Booker 5 of 5 against the Cena/Boooker 5 of 5.  It's obvious that Booker can't carry anyone to a great match I think.  I don't think he's the guy that was going to carry the company.  And he got a chance to later, so I don't see the point in complaining.  Even RVD got another shot to hold the title.  Kane didn't get anything, because he's a subpar big guy that had a good look with a red costume.  After he lost that, it was midcarder for life for him.

Okay, let me get this straight: You have said that Cena has sucked, but when Booker T doesn't do as well in a series of matches with him than he does with Benoit, one of the best wrestlers you can think of...it's a detriment to Booker? And, while it wasn't the best, there were a few matches in the series that were surprisingly good considering how green Cena still was. And Booker T, at his peak, was pretty good on the mic and great in the ring during his single run in WCW. Even pulling out good matches out of Scott Steiner. Steiner was done at that point, couldn't do anything in the ring and he got good matches out of him. And there is a very good reason: The fans were behind Booker T. BIG TIME. They wanted to see Booker T get that big push to the upper echelon...but Triple H kept him down.

And Kane...okay, now you're insane. Kane is easily one of the best big man wrestlers. He's great on the mic: I'd be done with this stupid Embrace the Hate storyline because how the writers have turned it into a B-Movie, but Kane's promos are great. Sounds like he's reciting Shakespeare. He even outpromoed The Rock and Hulk Hogan. AT THE SAME TIME. At Kane's best, he was doing dropkicks, flying clotheslines off the top rope (or top of a cage), hurricarans, and lauching himself over the top rope. Plus he was insanely strong, picking up the Big Show and tossing him over the top rope or holding him up in a tombstone for a good minute. He was doing stuff Kevin Nash could only dream of. Two things have hurt Kane's career: Being in the dumbest storylines in wrestling and being willing to put over anyone.

You are also blaming HHH for an angle that involved racism that he had no part in writing.  Blame the writers.  You know the ones that also came up with stuff like Cryme Tyme?  We're still not separating what is a work from what HHH actually had a hand in deciding.  Was HHH writing his own storylines at that point?  Was he booking who won his own matches?

Cryme Tyme was meant as a joke and never went too far beyond that. It was like watching In Living Color. No, Triple H was planning his wedding to the bosses daughter at this point. Look, we just had a discussion on how the Clique kept people down and McMahon was okay with it. You think the boss's future son-in-law didn't get that. When you're a big star, you normally get your way. If Andre hadn't wanted to, Hogan was not getting a win at WM III. That and the WWE's biggest stars were allowed in booking sessions to give their input.

I may be super annoyed that certain people jobbed to John Cena and Randy Orton, but you don't see me having heat against them for winning in matches that were decided by other people.  If I criticize them, it's about their work in the ring or on the mic.  That's all.  HHH had stroke, but it was McMahon that was picking and choosing who to push and who to groom as the next face of the company.  Vince is the guy that was grooming people like Batista and Orton instead of Kane.

Okay, can we please lay off Randy Orton? The guy had his best year and is my pick for wrestler of the year. He had great matches with everyone he faced in a major PPV or TV event: Christian, CM Punk, Barrett, Cody Rhodes, Mark Henry come to mind. He's no longer the guy who does a billion headlocks. Jab will back me up that I've bee one of Orton's biggest critics...but he's been great this entire year and the end of last  year.

Cena. Yeah, now you can talk about him not being good.

I admit McMahon wanted Orton as a big star...but that didn't happen his first push (mainly because of Triple H killing him and dominating the feud) Batista...that one he lucked into because the fans were rebelling against Orton's push and sided with the charismatic big guy of Evolution. Don't get me wrong, McMahon was going to get to it, but Batista became a bigger star ahead of Orton and ahead of McMahon's plans.

And Kane...Triple H just ruined it for him for countless years. The Katie Vick storyline hurt, but Triple H just killed him.

I didn't think HHH's matches during that time span were that bad, even when he was juiced up.  The one with Scott Steiner was a little wonky, but that was about it.  I give HHH credit for actually trying to work a main event one on one match with him honestly in the shape Steiner was in.  I also think this is especially the case if you're arguing that people like Batista and Cena were "good."  None of those guys understand psychology like HHH does.

A little wonky...THEY WERE HORRIBLE. I'll nominate Triple H vs Scott Steiner as the worse single match in a Royal Rumble. It was that bad. There was nothing in that match redeemable! NOTHING!

Triple H never could stand it that the Rock was more popular than him.

Seems like unsubstantiated fan mythology to me.  HHH put the Rock over multiple times.  And you know what, HHH is also the guy that put over Ultimate Warrior in a squash match.  I don't believe this stuff about him not wanting to put anyone over.  He didn't book the endings to his matches in 2002, I'm pretty sure.  Maybe he didn't volunteer to job to everyone after a certain point, but that's true of everyone that becomes big and is handed the ball. 

You mean in the late nineties. Hm...I think it would go to Triple H. They had a thirty minute iron man match with was a draw, Triple H won the IC belt at Summerslam, Defeated The Rock thanks to Billy Gunn, and defeated The Rock in an iron man match (a really good, smartly booked match) The Rock got in a few wins...but I think Triple H, who was pushed down the fans throats during this time, got the most wins.

Triple H didn't put over the Warrior. Triple H went out during the curtain call and he was on job and squash duty for about a year as punishment. And at the point, beating Triple H in a match didn't make a career. Triple H, I'll give him credit for this, sucked it up and was rewarded with the King of the Ring 1997. And The Rock didn't mind jobbing when he became one of the biggest stars the WWE ever had. The guy willingly put over Brock Lesnar, Booker T (Triple H kiled that push) and The Hurricane even (Oh, you know Triple H killed that one). The only person who The Rock refused to do business with was HBK, mainly because of what happened in the past with his father. I will admit, that most big stars are selfish, but you have a few who see that if they make the other guy look good in a loss, it's a win for the company.

At one point the Rock seemed super protected too and the fans got tired of it.  Everyone complained about that on the wrestling boards before this HHH era we are talking about.  I only recall him jobbing a lot more after it was obvious he was on his way out of the business.  He didn't put people over like the Hurricane in non-title matches when he wasn't a Hollywood actor.  It was more about the heels putting him over to make him look good as the main eventer.  But that's how wrestling works.  As for nWo insulting people they worked with to push their selves, that was the Rock's bread and butter for a while, mocking everyone else.

Too protected. You mean when he was a rookie and had that funky hair? That's about the only time I can think of when the fans thought he was too protected. The Rock ididn't put people over: He put over Ken Shamrock, Mark Henry, Mick Foley come to mind. Triple H on the mic...he buried people by point out how much they sucked or how boring they were or inferior. And...he won pretty conviningly at that time. He didn't do Goldberg any favors, that's for sure. The way he is, it's not made to get people over. Honestly, how many wrestlers can we say Triple H go over with the fans: I can only think of Batista. Not Orton. Not Sheamus. He doesn't know how to based on his style of wrestling and promos.

And The Rock...he never went off on someone's skill, just something about a wrestler or the storyline, and it was normally extremely funny. One of my favorites is Billy's prayer to God.

 

I also don't think every heel champ has to put the faces over like crazy either.  I'm perfectly fine with his run with the title.  Not every heel run has to be the same.  It was one of the best things in that time period actually when we were starting to get subpar OVW talent shoveled into the roster at full steam.

I agree, I just want good wrestling and Triple H didnt get back into ring shape for a good while and the matches suffered.

And Kane...okay, now you're insane.

Done with this thread.  I don't want to deliberate stuff that I got bored of talking and hearing about 10 years ago anymore.  If you want to think HHH is Satan and the guys you like are total angels and simply the victims of circumstance, that's ok with me.  Honestly, I'm not even a HHH mark.  If anything, I'm a Stu Hart Dungeon mark, which makes me one of the people that if you go by stereotypes is supposed to despise HHH.

There's a reason though I haven't posted in wrestling forums for probably 6-7 years or something.  Trying to over-analyze the backstage stuff and deconstruct the product like that actually zaps all the fun of out of it completely.

I for one didn't take any of this stuff personal.  Even if I was disagreeing with every single thing you said in your reply, I was just supplying my totally honest take on things.   You obviously are now since you called me insane, a personal insult, over something I said about a guy I've been watching since I was a child in 1995.  So yeah, forget it.